December 17: The price of black cardamom has increased by 155 percent this year compared to last year. The price of black cardamom has suddenly increased with the decline in cardamom production this year. Last year, the price of cardamom per 40 kg was fixed at Rs 27,000, which has now reached Rs 69,000.

According to the information provided by the Nepal Cardamom Traders Federation, the market price of top quality (JJ No 1) cardamom last year was Rs 27,000. This year, the price of top quality cardamom has reached Rs 69,000 as the production has decreased.

Similarly, last year SD (No 2 quality) cardamom was traded at Rs 25,000 per 40 kg. This year the price of SD cardamom has reached Rs 67,000. Similarly, No 3 cardamom was traded at Rs 23,000 per 40 kg last year, but this year its price has climbed to Rs 65,000.

According to the information provided by the vice president of the federation, Subas Bhattarai, the production has declined due to the bad weather during the cardamom blossoming season. Some products in the eastern hill districts were damaged by the landslide.

According to him, it is estimated that the cardamom production this year will be only half compared to last year. According to data, 6,000 to 8,000 metric tons of cardamom is produced in Nepal on an average. Recently, the area of cardamom production in Nepal is also decreasing.

Cardamom was cultivated on 20,880 hectares of land in the fiscal year 2075/76. Due to the lack of proper market price, the cultivation gradually decreased in the following years and was limited to 16,565 hectares in the fiscal year 2076/77. In the fiscal year 2077/78, it was cultivated on 15,668 hectares of land. Coming to the fiscal year 2078/79, the cultivated area seems to have increased a bit to 17, 015 hectares.

According to Narendra Rai, a cardamom businessman, Nepal can now export black cardamom to the Gulf countries after getting the Halal certificate in the last fiscal year. Export of Nepali cardamom, which was previously limited to Pakistani and Indian markets, can now be supplied to Qatar and other Gulf countries, but Nepal has not been able to export cardamom to those countries.

Rai said that Nepali exporters have not been able to export black cardamom to Gulf countries. He believes Nepal's landlocked location may have caused problems in exporting the products to the Gulf countries.