Although Addis Ababa does not grow pepper and feed Ethiopia, all that is produced throughout the country is harvested and distributed to the region. Teklehaimanot, with millions of dollars in circulation, is a major pepper trading center.
Traders say that since last July, an unusual product by these distributors has been dubbed "Chinese pepper" and disappeared in mid-September.
"When we bring the pepper from the plant, the packaged fertilizer says 'Made in China' [China-made]," says a trader in the glass.
There were about 30 pepper traders at the pepper market in the area of Meri, but in mid-October it was reported that "you have Chinese pepper" but no one was available.
According to the crystal, the merchants do not even want to be known for selling pepper; Not to lose a customer.
Of course, the major pepper distributors in the Teklehaimanot area testify to this. "We have never seen or heard of it," said three distributors interviewed by the BBC.
On the contrary, a distributor named Abdi claims that most of the distributors owned it, and that 'Chinese pepper' was out of the market in November due to the arrival of fresh pepper and stable prices.
Efforts by the BBC to obtain information from the Ministry of Trade and Regional Relations about the Chinese pepper source have been unsuccessful.
The price of pepper has dropped by at least 100 birr. Harar pepper sells for 220 birr and has the lowest price.
Abdi says that the best quality pepper is sold for a maximum of 300 birr per kilo. Consumers say the lowest pepper price reached 340 birr by the end of October.
Pepper is the second most widely consumed food in the world after tomatoes. According to a 2018 European survey, Vietnamese are the world's largest consumers of red pepper.
This is followed by India and the United States, which account for 41 percent of the world's annual consumption of pepper.
Why is the price of pepper so popular among Ethiopians fluctuating?
According to a study published by two scholars two years ago, Ethiopian farmers export 92.4 percent of their peppers, making it one of the largest market crops in the country.
According to a study by Abebe Beer, Tigabu Daingew, Abebe Daingew and Assamaw Alemu, the producers sell more than 60 percent of their produce to local wholesalers.
Pepper, which is said to have originated in South America; It is widely grown in Ethiopia, Amhara, Oromia and SNNPR.
According to experts, the biggest challenge for pepper production is lack of resources. Pepper production is another major risk factor for disease.
It also requires a great deal of manpower when planting, refining and harvesting peppers. Therefore, researchers say that the huge manpower needed to produce pepper has an impact on its production and price.
Another major setback for the pepper market is the market crisis, with producers interviewed by researchers saying a lack of government support is exacerbating the market crisis.
Then there are the lack of storage space, the lack of credit service, the lack of accurate information between buyer and seller, and the quality-related challenges in testing the pepper market.
Dr. Saeed Nuru, a senior researcher at the Ethiopian Association of Economists and a government economics consultant, says four major bottlenecks are the cause of rising prices for other seasonal products, including pepper.
The first is the inadequate production of the product. If a product cannot be produced domestically enough, no matter what action is taken, it will not be possible to see results, says Dr. Saeed.
He noted that countries with sufficient foreign exchange reserves, such as the United Arab Emirates (UAE), "buy more" from the country in the autumn, and feed the people from year to year in a stable market.
The second step is to make sure that the products, such as pepper, are stored year after year. Reminding that there is a way to prevent even the most perishable products such as tomatoes from being marketed, Dr. Saeed says this is easier to apply to pepper.
Another solution is to allow merchants to store their produce at a cheaper time. "It is not fair to say that traders in Ethiopia are stockpiling products," he said.
"There is an investment called overseas investment. It is a system in which a product is used by merchants to collect and retain the product as a reward, and to sell it when the product is lost. ""
Another obstacle is the small number of industries that add value to products such as pepper. They point to the third problem and the solution, saying that pepper is a balanced and prepared product that can be sold for a small amount of time, even if it is not available.
Lack of production instead of imported during insertion solution ness ?
He says importing in the face of a shortage of products is indeed a solution for a country with sufficient foreign exchange, but for countries like Ethiopia, it is a step that will cause many problems. But emphasizing that one or two submissions is a careful step is important.
Before explaining the benefits, the expert explained that scarcity should be considered a problem and that it should be seen as a market opportunity for a developer. They say this is a market opportunity for producers to solve the problem of production, especially for shortages.
When you quote this parable,
"Years ago, Chinese people, who saw that traditional clothing was more expensive than European clothes, took it back with cheap technology. This is a knitwear we don't wear every day.
They say Ethiopia's import of pepper will help solve the shortage of sugar unless it is sustainable. One is the acquisition of technology. They say that it is important to look at the product as a food product, but it is not a problem to try one product once or twice.
But Ethiopian farmers say that while farming has been a profession for centuries, importing agricultural products, like industrial products, leads the importers and consumers to laziness and the government to severe foreign exchange deficit.
They also say that it is not appropriate for Ethiopia to import one kilogram of agricultural products permanently, but to import strategic inputs such as machines.
"Importers bring in better quality cheaper agricultural products that prevent them from struggling with the mud. This is once again difficult. It brings laziness. Four oranges from Egypt sell at the supermarket for 280 birr. Sliced chicken, eggs and onions are imported. Our climate is very comfortable." It is important to ask how this is done, "said Saeed Saeed.
As an exit
Traders were, in fact, complaining about the 'Chinese pepper' that had been forcibly sold from September to November. "The pepper has a" chemical smell "since it was released from the fertilizer, and customers who bought the pepper are not happy, he said.
"When the Chinese pepper came in at 250, the local pepper sold for 350. That was a huge price difference. My customers who bought it told me that the flour was beautiful when it was ground. He did not hide the fact that his customers were upset.
Economist Saeed also warns that when importing such agricultural products, care should be taken to prevent them from becoming infected.
Farmers cite weeds as an example of the harmful weeds and the crop disease that followed mangoes once imported from India.
"The number of traders in Ethiopia is uncontrollable," he said. They say that this also applies to the producer farmer.
According to the expert, the profit is made either by selling a lot of produce at a low price or by selling a small product at a high price.
"In developed countries, the government is negotiating with four or five supermarkets. We hear that we have closed 20,000 shops. This will create more shortages. There is a supermarket recently opened in Addis Ababa. It sells 30 birr per kilo from its own field. "Small shops sell oranges for 60 birr," he said, explaining the difference between large suppliers and small retailers.
Another problem is the fact that the Ethiopian market structure is loaded with brokers and people prefer to live in the middle of nowhere rather than engage in production, he said.
Like flowers, they say, we need to learn from them by inviting them to the big food companies.
"It is not possible to light 100 candles at a time," said Saeed.
Flower growers came to Ethiopia 10 years ago to escape the post-election crisis in Kenya. They point out that floriculture is now a major source of foreign exchange in Ethiopia and has been a major source of investment for local investors in recent years.
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