Red-Chilli

Red Chilli, a major crop of Pakistan, is not only an important ingredientin food butis also used for essence production. Itis used in foods for pungency and red colour. Chillies are an excellentsource of vitamins A, B, C, E and P. Chillies are one of the largest traded spicesin the International market.

In Sindh, Chillies are grown on an area of 38.4 thousand hectares with production of 53.7 thousand tons. The average yield of 1.7 tons per hectare contributes 1.5 per cent of the country’s GDP. In Pakistan, Kunri, a small town of Umer Kot districtisthe home ofred chillies. It contributes around 85%of Pakistan red chilli production and is known as one of the largest production centres for red chillies in Asia. The three major types of chillies grown in the chilli cluster of Kunri are: Maxi, Desi & Nageena.

Red chilli is one of the most valuable cash crops of Pakistan. The I n t e r n a t i o n a l demand of red chilli is growing at an average rate of 30% annually due to its surge in demand in the international food industry. The average export of red chilli from Pakistan is only US$ 5 Million. The importers of chillies from Pakistan are Middle East countries, USA, UK, Sri-Lanka, Singapore and Germany. They import chillies from Pakistan in the form offresh chillies,stalk less chillies, chilli powder and also as oleoresin. Pakistan, a major red chilli producing country, has realized only a small fraction of it true potential in this sector. Red chilli arrivesin the market from August to November. The cost of red chilli is Rs. 1,800 per 40 kg. A better price can be fetched if red chilli sector receives appropriate investment in value addition processing.