Not all peppers are the same, only the origin is always the same: a climbing plant (“piper nigrum”) whose original home is in southwestern India, but which is now also cultivated in Malaysia, Vietnam, China, Indonesia, Thailand and Brazil. Under ideal conditions – a warm tropical climate, high humidity and nutrient-rich soil – the pepper plant can climb up to ten meters into the treetops and be harvested twice a year.
The harvest is usually carried out during the dry climatic periods of each country. Since mechanical harvesting could damage the berries, which grow in panicles, they are normally picked by hand, making the process laborious and expensive. A healthy plant yields an average of four kilos per harvest. In recent decades, world production of pepper has risen to over 280,000 tons per year. Whether the pepper tastes hot, fruity, sourish, sweetish or aromatic depends on the growing region, but above all on the time of harvest and on further processing. Unripe peppercorns are green. They can be picked at this stage.