Spices are gaining global popularity

The Trend of the Spice Market

There is an annual surge of 5% (by value) in the global spices market and is anticipated to cross 10$ billion by 2020. (Source: cbi.eu). North America and Europe is a bustling market for spices and herbs with the multicultural environment. Also, ethnic food has recently gained immense popularity in these regions. People want to try different flavours like Chinese, Indian, Thai, and more to explore their taste buds. Ready to eat food, which uses ground spices in their preparations, has also come out to be a very convenient option for working people in developed countries that don’t get enough time to cook.

With different regions and composition of the population, the requirement of various spices also differs according to the preferable taste. This rising awareness has led the major players of the spices industry to play strategically which may bring significant impact on the growth of the market.

Reasons for Growth and the Constraints

We see a major transformation of western eating habits. The reason is, more people opting for healthy and nutritious options.

- Indian spices have amazing medical benefits due to the antioxidant properties that heal the body. And the awareness of this advantage has driven profitable attention among the young generation thereby increasing spice consumption.

- They are being used as natural preservatives in a variety of meats and poultry.

- Ready to use Spice mixes also give consistent taste.

The only constraint that is expected to hinder the growth is strict FDA regulations on usage of food additives and the spices used, must conform to FDA’s very high standards for the product to be sold in various markets of the world.

Market Division:

The market is segmented according to the region specific spices and product requirements. For instance - Indian market relies on like chillies, ginger, garlic, cardamom is more popular. Thai food relies on cloves, nutmeg while Vietnamese on ginger, chillies, fennel, and pepper.

Their application into sauces, convenience food, bakery items also divides the market into another section that is country specific. Countries like India, America and China consume more fast foods, ready-to-make options, thus providing a huge market for blended spices. Indian spices are also becoming quite popular in countries like US and UK.

Competition:

The market is storming with key players as well as some other small scale businesses. Spices exporters in India are faring well in the market, providing immense competition to the international food manufacturing companies.