Nutmeg arrivals grind to a halt
Indonesian nutmeg arrivals have slowed down to zero, Van der Does Spice Brokers said in a new report.
“During the summer months hardly any nutmeg will be collected. New collections will start in September/October onwards. At this moment the availability of mace is troublesome and nutmeg is also getting tighter each day,” the company stated.
Van der Does Spice Brokers views prices as still on a very favourable level but warns that they are likely to move up very soon.
There are two main reasons for this. One is that collectors in September will not have their focus on nutmeg and mace, according to the report.
The company notes that nutmeg and mace are much more difficult to collect than cloves, which grow in the same area. Prices for Indonesian cloves are likely to “explode”, it predicts. This year’s yield on cloves in Indonesia will be one of the lowest of the last few years and cloves traders in Singapore are already piling up their stocks for cloves.
In addition, usually by the end of August northern European buyers (Germany, Scandinavia and Holland) start to procure nutmeg and mace, these “warm” spices being typically used in winter food.
Van der Does Spice Brokers advises that there is no use speculating on mace and nutmeg as the upward chances are much larger than the downward risk. “In fact, availability can become a serious problem again. Therefore we advise to cover your requirements for Q3 and Q4 without further delay,” the company stated.
The report also gave a brief update on Indian chillies, noting that the country has started to import chillies to meet its domestic requirements.
India’s next crop won’t be until January 2018 so it is much too early for any production forecasts. Van der Does Spice Brokers recommends that buyers of Indian chillies cover all requirements for the third and fourth quarters of this year further delay. The company is convinced that prices will drop in the meantime. The only new arrivals will be those from China from October onwards, but these will be for low and medium heat chillies only.
