Berhampur: After tomatoes, chilli farmers in Ganjam district are now grappling with financial losses due to its plummeting price over past few weeks.Exports affected by the West Asia conflict, coupled with declining demands in other states, have led to slowdown in the trade, while farmers are forced to sell the product at Rs 15 to Rs 20 per kg at the field. Price of green chillies, sold at Rs 80 to Rs 90 per kg at the time of production in Jan, has decreased to Rs 15 from Rs 20 per kg at present. “The price in the corresponding period of 2025 was Rs 35 to Rs 40 per kg,” said a farmer.“Traders from other states generally come to Ganjam to procure green chilli from farmers at the peak harvest period from March to May. They generally export the products through export houses,” said Kishore Kumar Reddy of Bada Madhapur in Chhatrapur block, who cultivates around an acre of chillies.The war between US-Israel and Iran might have slowed the export of chillies from the country for which the traders are not coming to procure directly from the farmers this year, he said. “We are very disappointed at the price crash and struggling to recover the investments,” said Abhimanyu Behera, who grows chillies on two acres in Poirasi in Ganjam block.Sudhir Sabat, another chilli farmer in Ranajhali area in Purushottampur block, said he had earned around Rs 3 lakh on sale of green chillies produced from his two-plus acres of land. “Exporters had sent to other countries due to its good quality. Presently, we are only depending on local markets,” he said.Kandha Jena, deputy director of horticulture, said the chillies were cultivated on around 6,000 hectares in the district as a summer crop. Chhatrapur, Ganjam, Purushottampur, Hinjili are some of the major chilli-producing blocks in the district. Around 70-80% have already been harvested this year. Slowdown of demand from other states and countries might be one of the causes for decrease in prices of green chillies. He, however, said the situation was temporary. The demand for green chillies will increase after exports pick up.
