Market Survey

By: Dr A.T.N. Abubacker

export potential of ginger

Why does India account for only 6 per cent of ginger trade, though it contributes 36 per cent of the world production?

inger is a tropical species native to South East Asia. It belongs to the family Zingiberaceae. The English term ginger originated from Sanskrit word Sringavera. Botanically known as Zingiber Officinale, it is the most popular hot spice in the world. The useful part of this plant is the underground rhizome. Ginger has a long and well-documented history of both culinary and

medicinal use throughout the world, especially in Chinese, Indian and Japanese medicinal care. In Indian ayurvedic medicine, ginger is used as an anti-inflammatory herb. It was introduced to Africa and Caribbean countries in the 16th century. Ginger has a long history of use in South Asia both in dried and fresh form. The Hindu epic Mahabharta describes a meal where meat was stewed with ginger and other spices. In the Manassllasa literature writ-

Table I

Ginger Root, Raw Nutritional Value per 100g

Nutritional value Carbohydrates Sugars Dietary fiber Fat Protein Thiamin (Vit. B1) 0.025 mg Riboflavin (Vit. B2) 0.034 mg Niacin (Vit. B3) 0.75 mg Pantothenic acid (B5) 0.203 mg Vitamin B6 0.16 mg Folate (Vit. B9) 11g Vitamin C 5 mg Calcium 16 mg Iron 0.6 mg Magnesium 43 mg Phosphorus 34 mg Potassium 415 mg Zinc 0.34 mg Quantity 17.77g 1.7g 2g 0.75g 1.82g 2% 2% 5% 4% 12% 3% 8% 2% 5% 12% 5% 9% 3%

Percentages are relative to US recommendations for adults; Source: USDA Nutrient database

Indias share in ginger export is estimated at 13,000 tonnes per year, which is only two per cent of its production

ten in the 11th century AD, ginger is mentioned as a flavouring agent for buttermilk drink. Its use as a food became much more widespread by the 13th century AD with advent of the Muslim rule in India. Ginger was exported from India to the Roman Empire 2000 years ago. Arab merchants controlled the ginger trade. Ginger became one of

Market Survey
is the largest ginger producing state, accounting Area, Production and Yield of Ginger for about 33 per cent of in India the total production in Year Area Production Yield India. (000 hect) (000 tonnes) (kg/ha) Cochin Ginger (NUGC) and Calicut 1997-98 75.6 252.1 3,335 Ginger (NUBK) are the 1998-99 77.6 263.2 3,392 two popular varieties 1999-2000 80.8 282.6 3,498 of Indian ginger in the 2000-01 86.2 288.0 3,341 world market. Ginger is 2001-02 90.8 318.0 3,502 available in the forms of oil, oleoresins, ground 2002-03 90.8 317.0 3,500 ginger and fresh ginger. 2003-04 85.1 301.9 3,548 Light-coloured ginger 2004-05 95.3 359.0 3,767 has traditionally been 2005-06 110.6 391.2 3,537 more priced for its sut2006-07 105.9 370.3 3,497 ble lemony aroma. Dark ginger has more heat Source: Spices Board, Cochin and is favoured for extraction purposes. Fresh Table III ginger is used as a vegetable. Out of the total production, about Area and Production of 30 per cent is converted into dry ginGinger in the World ger, while 50 per cent is consumed Year Area Production as green ginger and the rest as seed (hect) (mt) materials. Dry ginger is produced 1998 312,108 864,760 mainly in Kerala, a major share of which is exported. 1999 308,631 952,222 Table II 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 305,696 310,923 317,099 341,360 341,829 372,271 414,183 429,481 953,152 988,951 1,007,503 1,109,833 1,141,319 1,264,891 1,337,188 1,387,445 Table IV

Export of Ginger from India During 1997-98 to 2008-09

Year 1997-98 1998-99 1999-2000 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 2003-04 2004-05 2005-06 2006-07 2007-08 2008-09 Quantity (tonnes) 28,268 8,683 8,923 6,288 6,464 8,461 5,000 14,908.13 10,890.43 9,661.34 8,332.91 3,229.70 Value (lakhs) 7,262.73 4,058.32 3,253.55 2,682.05 2,311.47 2,396.59 2,340.50 5,929.40 4,580.59 4,777.77 3,296.08 1,581.75

Source: Spices Board, Cochin

Table V

Export of Ginger in the World

Year 1997-98 1998-99 1999-2000 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 2003-04 2004-05 2005-06 2006-07 Quantity (tonnes) 174,185 155,985 204,055 243,173 249,933 290,992 311,405 291,484 379,630 385,406 Value (000$) 142,315 107,789 122,084 131,632 124,576 125,922 135,603 277,619 319,487 253,091

Area and production

Area, production and yield of ginger in India are shown in Table II. The table shows that area and production of ginger in India have continuously increased over the years. Area and production of ginger in the world are shown in Table III. Area under ginger cultivation in the world was 429,481 hectares in 2007. The largest area under ginger cultivation is in Nigeria, which is about 55 per cent of the total area under ginger cultivation in the world. World production of ginger was 1,387,445 mt in 2007. India has a predominant position in ginger production contributing 36 per cent of the total world production, but productivity is very poor compared to USA.

Source: FAO estimate

the most commonly traded spices during the 13th and 14th centuries.

Source: FAO Estimates

Cultivation and consumption

Ginger is cultivated in India, China, Japan, Indonesia, Australia, Nigeria and West Indies islands. India is the largest producer and consumer of ginger in the world. In India ginger is produced in the states of Orissa, Kerala, Karnataka, Arunachal Pradesh, West Bengal, Sikkim and Madhya Pradesh. Kerala

World trade
World trade in ginger is estimated at $190 million per year. In-

dias share in ginger trade is only 6 per cent, while Chinas share is 57 per cent. In ginger oil and oleoresin trade India dominates with 50 per cent share. Garbled/ungarbled and bleached/unbleached variants occupy predominant position in ginger export. Cochin ginger is popular and it fetches a premium price because of its superior quality. The estimated world import of ginger is 300,000 tonnes per year. Indias share in

Market Survey
Table VI

Top 15 Importers of Indian Ginger

Country USA Bangladesh UK Spain Morocco Saudi Arab Germany Australia Netherlands Yemen Republic Japan Malaysia Canada Belgium Israel Value (Rs lakh) 2007-08 2008-09 (Apr-Jun) 419.02 408.93 354.76 210.20 194.82 184.79 178.69 155.17 139.17 123.37 121.24 81.78 79.58 71.87 70.06 63.61 137.24 122.87 115.43 66.53 60.39 66.45 18.62 45.96 36.19 116.32 24.77 16.43 2.69 6.61 Quantity (000) 2007-08 2008-09 (Apr-Jun) 588.76 4,254.07 459.60 305.23 269.79 234.65 282.57 196.28 205.54 180.46 117.69 144.94 118.91 71.62 92.11 101.75 1,346.62 136.06 106.10 69.00 95.86 198.51 20.77 60.64 38.00 90.08 47.40 25.59 2.38 7.00

ginger from India during 1997-98 to 2008-09. Global ginger export is shown in Table V . The main competitors in ginger export are China, Nigeria and Thailand. Country-wise export of Indian ginger is shown in Table VI.

Suggestions
Ginger cultivation can be improved provided the following measures are taken: 1. Introduce the HYV in ginger 2. Supply planting materials in time 3. Reduce the yield gap 4. Introduce short-duration variety 5. Popularise fresh ginger processing 6. Encourage organic ginger cultivation 7. Strengthen agricultural research
The author is head of Department of Economics at Dr Zakir Husain College, Ileyangudi, Tamil Nadu

Source: Ministry of Commerce, New Delhi

ginger export is estimated at 13,000 tonnes per year, which is only two

per cent of its production. Table IV shows the export of