China's annual production of chili peppers ranks first in the world, with a population of over 500 million eating spicy food
2023-10-07
In China, "spicy" is a major feature on many dining tables. From Sichuan's spicy hot pot to Hunan's chopped chili fish head to Shaanxi's oil spiced chili noodles, from south to north, there are always diners who have a unique preference for spicy food. The recently held Second China Digital Pepper Industry Development Conference released data showing that China is the world's largest consumer of chili peppers, and its annual production of chili peppers remains the world's largest. The planting area covers 28 provinces (regions, cities) in China, and the industrial scale continues to expand. At present, it is the season of the new season of chili pepper harvest and market launch. How is the production situation of chili peppers in various regions this year? What is the market supply and demand situation? Our reporter conducted an interview on this matter. Chinese chili pepper production accounts for nearly half of the global chili pepper production, also known as spicy eggplant and sea pepper, and is an important vegetable variety. Data shows that the current annual planting area of chili peppers in China exceeds 30 million acres, accounting for about 10% of the national vegetable planting area and ranking among the top among various vegetables. From being introduced to China more than 400 years ago for ornamental purposes only, to later being used for food and medicine, the diversity value of chili peppers has been continuously discovered, and the planting scale has also expanded. "Lin Qiao, a member of the Deputy Research Institute of the Agricultural Information Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, introduced that chili peppers are rich in nutrition, diverse in flavor, strong in growth, and can be eaten fresh. They can also be processed into products such as chili sauce, dried chili peppers, and chili oil; In addition to its edible value, chili peppers also have important economic and social value. Capsaicin, capsaicin, and capsaicin are widely used in medical, food, and industrial fields. In recent years, the global chili planting area and yield have steadily increased, and the Chinese chili industry has also entered a rapid development stage. According to statistics from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, from 2000 to 2021, over 30% of the world's chili peppers were planted in China. In 2021, China's chili peppers accounted for 36.72% of the global planting area, an increase of approximately 5.59 percentage points compared to 2000, making it the main country in the world for chili peppers cultivation. In terms of production, both global and Chinese chili pepper production has increased significantly in recent years, with China accounting for nearly half of the global production and being the world's largest producer of chili peppers. Along with the expansion of production scale is the demand for chili peppers by the Chinese people. Lin Qiao stated that in recent years, spicy food culture has been widely spread, and statistics show that the population of spicy food in China exceeds 500 million, with Jiangxi, Guizhou, Hunan, Sichuan, and Chongqing being the main regions for spicy food. Meanwhile, different regions exhibit different spicy characteristics, such as Sichuan and Chongqing's preference for spicy food, Guizhou's preference for spicy food, Hubei's preference for spicy food, Hunan's preference for spicy food, and Guangxi and Yunnan's preference for sour and spicy food. In mid September, Wang Laoji, Meituan Takeout, and multiple media organizations jointly released a survey report on spicy culture. More than 60% of respondents nationwide expressed a preference for spicy food, with 24.37% saying they really like spicy food, and 6.65% saying they do not like spicy food; Nearly 80% of restaurants sell spicy dishes, with Sichuan cuisine being the most popular and Hunan cuisine ranking first in terms of its spiciness level. Not only does it meet domestic demand, but Chinese chili peppers have also entered the dining table of global consumers. According to reports, there are over 1000 types of chili peppers and their products worldwide, with over two-thirds of countries or regions growing or consuming chili peppers. Currently, China is the main exporter of chili peppers
Edit：Hou Wenzhe Responsible editor：WeiZe
Source：people.cn
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