We all know that the price of Szechuan pepper is not always the same. So what are the factors that affect Szechuan peppers? We wholesale Szechuan pepper products worldwide and we export them to Japan, Thailand, the United States and Europe and other countries and regions. We have some own analysis and judgment on the price of Chinese prickly ash based on years of acquisition and export experience. We believe that the price of Chinese pepper is mainly affected by the following 8 factors.

1. Szechuan pepper itself

The price of Szechuan pepper is affected by quality and yield. According to the sensory indicators such as the color, opening rate, particle size, aroma, clarity, and number of oil packets, as well as physical and chemical indicators such as the numbness, oil rate, flavor, volatile substances, and special components of the prickly ash, the prickly ash can be divided into different categories. For the special, first, second, third and so on.

Differences in the geographical conditions of Szechuan pepper planting, such as temperature, light, moisture, soil, and topography (slope, aspect, and position).

Agricultural infrastructure, level of management technology, and factors of pests and weeds will affect the quality and yield of Zanthoxylum bungeanum. The ability of drainage and early prevention is weak, the quality and output depend on the weather, the mountain roads are rugged and difficult to navigate, and the implementation of disease, insect, weed, disaster prevention and control plans is difficult and costly. Farmers have poor scientific and cultural quality, and do not pay enough attention to techniques such as pruning, fertilization, spraying, weeding, and disease prevention of Chinese prickly ash and adapt measures to local conditions. Although the input cost increases year by year, the yield improvement effect is not significant.

2. Different planting management methods of Szechuan pepper

Distance problem: Szechuan pepper is found in many mountains in southwest my country, which makes it difficult to carry out work such as fertilizing and spraying Szechuan pepper trees.

Agricultural infrastructure: lack of various facilities with public service functions for smooth agricultural production and circulation.

Management technology level: Due to the different cultural levels and professional skills of pepper farmers in different regions, they do not pay enough attention to the pruning, fertilization, spraying, weeding, disease prevention and other technologies of prickly ash, and the management of pepper gardens is not rigorous, resulting in differences in the quality and yield of prickly ash trees.

The cost of production materials such as fertilizers and pesticides: water and fertilizer management and pest control are required in all growth stages of Chinese prickly ash Changes in the prices of fertilizers, piling fertilizers, topdressing fertilizers, foliar fertilizers, etc., as well as pesticides and herbicides for the control of various diseases and insect pests, will bring changes to the prickly ash market.

Insufficient technical ability and experience promotion: some good prickly ash planting technical achievements cannot be well used and promoted, the lack of scientific research personnel and technical personnel leads to less research articles on prickly ash according to local conditions, and less technical guidance provided to pepper farmers, Good experiences are not effectively promoted.

National policies and support: Relevant national support policies and local industrial support are inconsistent in different production areas, which will also affect the local government and base's investment in the prickly ash industry and the cost ratio.

Retail planting and field planting: Chinese prickly ash is a labor-intensive industry, and retail planting management is relatively sophisticated and yields high. Taking Jiangjin as an example, the input cost can be kept at the lowest price in 2020. If there is a mistake in management, team, manpower, node control, cost control, etc. in a field planting base, it will bring about a lot of differences in yield and quality.

3. Harvesting and processing methods of Szechuan pepper

Due to the criss-crossing branches of Szechuan pepper, mechanized picking is easy to damage prickly ash, affecting the quality and yield of prickly ash. As mentioned above, in remote, high altitude and inconvenient pepper gardens, the cost of manual picking, drying, baking, and acquisition during the pepper harvest season is higher than that in the plain area. The purchase cost of machinery and equipment and processing costs will also affect the Szechuan pepper’s trading price.

4. Changes in sales channels of Szechuan pepper

From the harvest of peppercorns to the completion of each household, pepper farmers, cooperatives, pepper sellers purchase, classified processing, logistics and transportation, distributors, traders' sales (first-level agents, second-level agents, wholesalers, deep processing plants), etc. Steps, any change in the price of any link will affect the price of Szechuan pepper.

5. Market supply and demand of Szechuan pepper

Types of Szechuan pepper varieties: Different Szechuan peppers have their own special uses. For example, most of the hot pot bases are made from red peppers. Green peppers are mainly used for dishes such as Maoxuewang and boiled fish. Different industry demands for varieties will affect the sales of Chinese prickly ash.

Types of processed Szechuan pepper products: Dried pepper is the main product in the pepper market. In the green prickly ash product market, dried prickly ash, preserved prickly ash, condiments and prickly ash are intensively processed; red prickly ash products are also dominated by conventional products such as dried prickly ash, prickly ash powder, and condiments, while prickly ash oil and preserved prickly ash account for less.

Appears such as epidemic control, market economic depression, slump in the catering industry, decline in deep processing capacity, and restricted circulation of Szechuan pepper traders will lead to oversupply of pepper in the market and a drop in prices.

6. Natural factors of Szechuan pepper

Natural disasters such as heavy rain, hail, heavy snow, cold spring, drought, flood, altitude, etc. lead to restricted growth of prickly ash trees, decline in yield and quality, and market changes.

7. Deep processing cost of Szechuan pepper

Szechuan pepper is used as seasonings, food materials, industrial processing raw materials, pharmaceutical raw materials, and materials for beauty and health care products. The price of these deep-processed products will also affect the price of Sichuan peppercorns.

8. Export of Szechuan pepper 

The demand for Szechuan pepper for export is increasing year by year, but there are currently few companies with export qualifications, and the quality inspection reports of prickly ash products in various origins conform to American standards, Japanese standards, Korean standards, and European standards. The demand for Chinese prickly ash is increasing, which also increases the sales volume of Szechuan pepper.

Conclusion

The price of Szechuan pepper is affected by many factors, and the price will fluctuate at any time. We can pay more attention to the changes in these aspects and judge the trend of Szechuan pepper prices in time. Stock up more when prices are about to go up, and buy less when prices are going down.