KUCHING: Sarawak remains the producer of high-quality black and white pepper, gaining global recognition for its unique aroma.
Minister of Food Industry, Commodities and Regional Development (M-FICORD) Dato Sri Dr Stephen Rundi Utom also said that Sarawak's black and white pepper is renowned for its strong spiciness and purity, supported by more than a century of cultivation tradition.
"Its international standing is strengthened by Geographical Indication (GI) Status since 2003 and quality assurance through the implementation of a statutory grading scheme with comprehensive laboratory analysis.
"Until 2024, Sarawak remains a dominant force in the Malaysian pepper industry, contributing more than 98 percent of the country's total production.
"The cultivated area is approximately 8,300 hectares, reflecting an increase of 1.2 percent (100 hectares) compared to 8,200 hectares in 2023. Similarly, the number of pepper farmers has increased by 0.8 percent, from 39,000 in 2023 to 39,300 in 2024," he said in his ministry's winding-up speech today.
Meanwhile, in 2024 Malaysia exported a total of 5,753 metric tonnes of pepper consisting of 4,517 metric tonnes of black pepper, 1,223 metric tonnes of white pepper and 13 metric tonnes of green pepper, a slight decrease of 72 metric tonnes from 2023, but export earnings increased by 25 per cent to RM186.7 million from RM149.9 million in 2023.
Dr Rundi added that Malaysian pepper remains competitive globally with high demand for premium quality peppers such as Quality Export Pepper (QEP) and Creamy White Pepper.
