Demand For Black Pepper Declines In Bengkulu

Bengkulu, April 23 (Antara) - Demand for black pepper in Bengkulu from other regions declines resulting in falling price received by local farmers. The price fell to Rp55,500 per kilogram from normally Rp60,000 despite limited supply, Zurdinata, a wholesale trader in the district head of Kepahiang said here on Tuesday. "Supply is still limited as harvest is still months away," Zurdinata said, adding normally black pepper is available everyday in the market, but lately supply to the market comes only once in a week. However, amid low demand, the price of pepper is still dictated by wholesale traders mainly from Lampung , South Sumatra and West Sumatra, he said. Meanwhile, Riky Gunarwan, head of the Bengkulu provincial plantation office, said the government will provide grafted seedlings of pepper and coffee for the farmer in the regencies of Kepahiang and Kaur as the main producing areas of the two commodities in the region. The seedlings are provided on request from the farmers, who will start replanting in the two districts. Pepper is planted in rows alternating with coffee in the two districts. Bengkulu has 4,971 hectares of pepper plantations mainly in the regencies of Kepahiang and Kaur, with production averaging 2,576 tons per year . There are 11,187 pepper farming families in the province.