In the first half of the year, Vietnam earned nearly 300 million USD from exporting this rare and precious product. Vietnam is lucky to own one of the most precious spices in the world, cinnamon. Only a few countries can grow cinnamon, including Indonesia, China, Vietnam, and Sri Lanka. In Vietnam, cinnamon is mainly concentrated in provinces such as Yen Bai, Lao Cai, Bac Kan, Quang Ninh, Quang Nam, Quang Ngai, and Thai Nguyen.
Typically, it only takes about 3–5 years for people to harvest. However, for high-quality products, cinnamon trees must be over 15 years old. All parts of a cinnamon tree, such as bark, leaves, flowers, and roots, can be used. According to statistics from Tridge, the total annual global production of cinnamon is about 242,000 tons, and the total export trade is 154,000 tons. The four largest producers in the world include Indonesia (89,000 tons), China (82,000 tons), Vietnam (41,000 tons), and Sri Lanka (24,000 tons).
Vietnam is leading the world in cinnamon export turnover.
Vietnam only has a cinnamon output of about 41,000 tons per year, only half that of China and Indonesia. However, Vietnam is now leading the world in cinnamon export turnover. In 2022, Vietnamese cinnamon accounted for 18.2% of the output but 34.4% of the global cinnamon export market share, with a turnover of over 292 million USD.
Besides domestic production, Vietnam imports a large amount of cinnamon from China and Indonesia. According to preliminary statistics from the Vietnam Pepper Association, Vietnam’s cinnamon imports in June 2024 reached 282 tons, worth nearly one million USD, down 26% compared to the previous month.
In the first six months of the year, Vietnam imported 2,734 tons of cinnamon with a turnover of 6.4 million USD, a 75% decrease in volume and a 77% decrease in turnover. Notably, China is Vietnam’s largest supplier of cinnamon, with 1,188 tons, accounting for 43% of Vietnam’s import structure.
In 2023, Vietnam imported 14,806 tons of cinnamon, for a turnover of 37.6 million USD. Compared to the same period in 2022, the import volume decreased by 28%. The two main suppliers are China and Indonesia, accounting for 81.2% and 12.6%, reaching 12,017 tons and 1,869 tons, respectively.
Currently, Vietnamese cinnamon has been exported to nearly 100 countries around the world, accounting for 95% of the Indian market share, 36.5% of the US market, and 35% of the European market. However, the export portion of processed cinnamon only accounts for 18.6%, equivalent to 18,659 tons, 70% of which is exported to the US and 12% to Europe.
Despite its high position in the international market, experts say that the potential and advantages of the cinnamon industry have not been adequately promoted. This is due to fragmented production, a lack of high-quality products, heavy metals and pesticides, and so on, leading to a lower competitive advantage.
The VPA representative said that the Vietnamese cinnamon industry still faces many challenges. Besides, there are difficulties in product consumption and market development. In particular, the link between processing and exporting enterprises and cinnamon growers has not developed. There are no other potential evaluation studies of cinnamon to promote value-added solutions, for example, on the carbon market, the value of cinnamon by-products, etc. These are the challenges that the cinnamon industry needs to overcome today.