India set to host global pepper convention on November 22

KOCHI: The 43rd annual session of International Pepper Community (IPC), an inter-governmental organisation for the promotion of pepper production and trade by the pepper producing countries, will be held at Mysuru from November 22 to 25.

India currently holds the chair of IPC, which rotates among its full-time members every year. Spices Board chairman Dr A Jayathilak is the current head and will chair all the IPC meetings of the current year.

“India is extremely honoured to play host to the international event. Around 300 delegates are expected to participate in the four-day event, which will deliberate on the recent advancements in pepper cultivation, processing, marketing, quality and research, among other things,” Jayathilak said.

The delegates will share their experience and expertise in various programmes being implemented in their countries for the promotion of production and exports of pepper. They will also discuss the pepper production and export targets for the coming year.

A series of technical and business sessions will also be held on the sidelines of the meeting to address issues related to techno-economic studies, farming, production, quality improvement, research and development, trade promotion and marketing.

The IPC was established by United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) in 1972 with its secretariat at Jakarta. India, Indonesia and Malaysia are the founder members of IPC. Apart from them the organisation has Brazil, Sri Lanka and Vietnam as its full members and Papua New Guinea as an associate member. China, Cambodia and Madagascar are expected to join the community in near future.