The cardamom futures contract traded on the Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) has been on an uptrend since mid-February this year. Prices have jumped more than 54.7 per cent to touch 925 a kg in July from 598 in February.

This increase in prices is mainly attributed to the long dry spell in cardamom growing areas of South India, which is expected to impact cardamom production in the 2016-17 season.

Impact on production

The extended dry spell with high temperatures that prevailed from December 2015 to the first fortnight of May 2016 affected the flower setting, thereby delaying the harvest.

According to trade sources, dry weather has affected about 10-15 per cent of cardamom plants and an estimated a loss of 20-25 per cent in production in Kerala’s Idukki district, which produces 80 per cent of the small cardamom in the country.