Black Pepper is guarantee of quality exportation

The northern region of the state of Espírito Santo is a traditional hub of pepper production, where there are favorable soil and climate conditions. It is a typical crop of hot and humid climate, with average temperature between 23ºC and 38ºC and relative humidity between 70% and 88%, developing well in altitudes up to 500 meters.

A little of history

The black pepper (Piper nigrum) is a flower-producing plant of the family Piperaceae and is mainly used as a seasoning. It is also considered the most important spice marketed worldwide, used in large scale as a condiment and also as a preservative in the meat and canning industries. Most restaurants share a space for it on the tables together with the salt. The eastern part of the world celebrates this dry fruit of the Piperaceae tree as the "King of Spices" and in old times was also known as "Black Gold".

The pepper culture has arrived in São Mateus, a municipality in the state of Espírito Santo, through Italian descendants for at least 100 years and is now widely harvested in Brazil. The grain, of Asian origin, was called “Pepper of Portugal” during the colonial period.

Dried and ground grains are used in cooking in various parts of the world and have a slightly spicy taste. Black pepper is a climbing plant and begins to produce only from the third to the fifth year of cultivation and from that period on can generate two annual harvests in regions of appropriate climate for up to twenty years.