Botanical name Family name Commercial part
Capsicum annum L,
Capsicum frutescens L. Solanaceae Green as well as ripe and dried pod (fruit)
Origin and worldwide Distribution
Chilly is founded to be a native of South America and is widely distributed in all tropical and sub-tropical countries including India. It was first introduced in India by Portuguese towards the end of 15th Century. Now it is grown all over the world except in colder parts of the world.
World Wide Export Scenario from India:
India is the world’s biggest exporter of dry red chilli with the value exports steadily rising over the last 1.5 decades – from 1.01 lakh MT to FY2020 to 5 lakh MT.
A Decade back, Sri Lanka & Malaysia were the top two dry red chilli importers from India. But today, they have been replaced by China, Thailand and Vietnam and accounting for a lion’s share of this multi-million dollar worth of exports is from Guntur, Andhra Pradesh, India.
From 2005 till 2008, China was the world’s No.1 chilli exporter. Since the last five years, however, China’s output has been declining due shift of focus and crop failure. Now, India occupies the No.1 position, with China sourcing and procuring heavily from India. As a result, Indian exports have been scaling up.
Asian countries like Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore were earlier dependent on imports from China. But now that China is not exporting much, these countries are sourcing huge quantities from India.
Even Mexico, which, with more than 60 colours, is the biggest producer of chilli in the world, is procuring Teja from Guntur. It has the second highest pungency in the world, and is next only to Assam Joloka in pungency. But since the latter is produced in small quantities and does not have a significant market share, Teja rules international markets. Apart from in food, Teja is also used in paints to get rid of insects. The varieties produced in China have more colour, but less pungency. Now, Teja is being taken to China and hybridised with Chinese varieties.
Dry red Chilli Name in international languages
- Russian : Struchkovy pyeret
- Japanese : Togarashi
- Chinese : Hesiung Yali chiao
- Arabic : Filfil Ahmar
- Dutch : Spaanse Peper
- Spanish : Pimenton
- French : Puvre de Guinee
- German : Paprika
- Italian : Peperone
- Portuguese : Pimento
- British : Chillies(Hot) Pepper(Sweet)
Indian Scenario
India’s total production is anywhere between 12 and 40 lakh MT/annum. The domestic to export market ratio is 60:40. Guntur’s contribution is between 50-60%. Presently, there are no brought forward stocks from previous years. Hence, everything that is coming to the market is being sold out in the same year every time. Every year exports are also going up smartly whereas due to outbreak of corona the exports has become almost standstill since the last 3 months. With China’s procurement indicating an uptrend, the prospects look quite good for Teja variety. Guntur is famous for many dry red chilli grades, but preference for Teja is inevitable because of demand and pricing factors. Teja is costlier, when compared to other varieties due to its high pungency and dark red colour. Other varieties are also in demand, but they don’t fetch the kind of price Teja does. The price of dry red chilli is based on the intensity of colour, pungency and supply demand.
Indian Names
- Hindi : Lal mirch
- Bengali : Lanka, Lankamorich
- Gujarati : Marcha
- Kannada : Mensina kai
- Malayalam : Mulaku
- Marathi : Mirchi
- Oriya : Lanka
- Punjabi : Lalmirch
- Tamil : Milagay
- Telugu : Mirapa kaya
- Urdu : Lalmirch
Dry Red Chilli Uses & Benefits
- Dry chilli is extensively used as spice in curried dishes as curry powder.
- Used in making hot sauces as pepper sauce and Tabsco sauce.
- Paprika, Bydagi chilly, Warangal chapatta and similar high colour less pungent varieties are widely used for colour extraction. This colour is highly popular among food and beverage processors for its use as a colourant, since this being a ‘natural plant colour’.
- Dried Red Chilies, especially like the Teja varieties, are proving to be delicious pickings for global buyers to spice up their pizzas and pickles.
- As a medicine it is used as a counter irritant in Lumbago, Neuralgia, and Rheumatic disorders. Capsicum has a tonic and carminative action. Taken inordinately it may cause gastro-enteritis. The enzyme isolated from chilly is used in the treatment of certain type of cancers. Oleoresin capsicum is used in pain balms and vaporubs. Dehydrated green chilly is a good source of vitamin ‘c’