VIETNAM’S CINNAMON EXPORTS EARNED 30 MILLION USD

By the end of February 2024, Vietnam had exported nearly 10,500 tons of cinnamon with a total export turnover of 30 million USD. Despite the decrease in quantity and value over the same period last year, cinnamon exports to Europe increased sharply, especially exports to the UK increased by 94.4%.

According to the Vietnam Pepper and Spice Association (VPSA), by the end of February 2024, Vietnam had exported 10,472 tons of cinnamon. Total export turnover of cinnamon reached 30.0 million USD, down 12.3% in volume and 14.3% in value over the same period in 2023.

India is the main export market of Vietnam’s cinnamon, however, compared to the same period, exports decreased by 30.3%, reaching 3,197 tons. The US, the second-largest export market, also declined slightly by 0.8%, reaching 1,274 tons. A good sign is that cinnamon exports to the EU increased by 12.7%, reaching 1,235 tons. Especially, exports to the UK increased sharply, reaching 94.4%. 

Vietnam’s cinnamon exports earned 30 million USD in the first two months of 2024.

The VPSA said that with an area of about 180,000 ha of cinnamon, mainly in the mountainous regions of the North, Vietnam is currently leading the world with 18.2% of output but accounting for 34.4% of the global cinnamon export market share. That is the reason why many large customers come to Vietnam to learn and buy cinnamon.

Cinnamon is a perennial crop so it is considered a property to be saved by farmers. After about 3-5 years of planting, people can gradually harvest by cutting down large trees first or pruning branches to sell. There are two harvest seasons of cinnamon bark in the year, one is from Lunar February to March and the other is from Lunar August to October.

The price of fresh cinnamon bark usually ranges from 22,000 to 25,000 VND/kg. Small branches and leaves are cheaper, only about 2,000 – 3,000 VND/kg. Dried cinnamon bark will be sold for about 45 – 50% more than fresh one. The cinnamon bark after pre-processing (flute cinnamon, pipe cinnamon…) will be sold for 60 – 65% higher than the raw.

Ms. Huan (village 6, Dao Thinh commune, Tran Yen district, Yen Bai province) has a cinnamon factory. On average, her family processes about 100 tons of cinnamon bark of all kinds every month. Profit after deducting cost is about 1.2 billion VND/year.

Previously, in 2023, Vietnam exported 89,383 tons of cinnamon with a total export turnover of 260.9 million USD, up 14.6% in volume but down 10.7% in value compared to 2022. The average export price of cinnamon in 2023 reached about 2,948 USD/ton, down from the previous year due to the difficult world economic situation.

Ms. Hoang Thi Lien – Chairwoman of VPSA said that in the face of the trend of increasing demand for raw materials in the food, cosmetic, or pharmaceutical industries and many FTAs signed, Vietnam’s cinnamon products have more opportunities to develop. Especially, many markets like cinnamon products of Vietnam such as India, the US, Bangladesh, and Brazil./.