Ceylon Cinnamon. A spice that is truly globally renowned for it's taste and healthiness, is reportedly sourced mainly from the island of Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka, the island that was called Serendib, Taprobani, and once also, Ceylon. One of Sri Lanka's top exporting destinations for Ceylon Cinnamon in 2023 was Mexico, with over 8 million kilograms of "Cinnamon and cinnamon tree flowers" being exported, valued at 30,792,612,443.00 LKR. And while Mexico was number #1 in cinnamon export destinations, Pakistan amongst 87 destinations, came in 87th place, with a mere 1kg of export, valued at just 2,221.00 LKR. A contrast so tall.
In fact, trade data over the past few years shows something strange yet interesting: Sri Lanka’s cinnamon exports to Pakistan have been steadily "evaporating". In 2019, Sri Lanka shipped 174,956 kg of cinnamon to Pakistan. But fast forward to 2023, and that number dropped to just 1 kg valued at 2,221 LKR.
However, in the same year (2023), Pakistan imported 87,500 kg of cinnamon from China and 5,000 kg from Nepal, according to data from Pakistan’s Trade Information Portal (TIPP). Even more puzzling, the Chinese shipments were listed as Cinnamomum zeylanicum Blume, which is the same species as Sri Lanka’s well-known Ceylon Cinnamon.
Unlike the breakdown and categorisation of Ceylon Cinnamon exports provided via Seylany (with data sourced from Sri Lanka's Export Development Board), Pakistan's Trade Information Portal doesn't appear to show other categories of Cinnamon like quillings, chips, featherings, etc. Or if it did, perhaps whether it's all listed under the same category is still to be determined.
But what is crucial in this discovery, is that Pakistan's imports of Sri Lanka's cinnamon, have clearly been steadily evaporating. Take a look:
- 2019: 174,956 kg valued at 13.6 million LKR
- 2020: 143,353 kg valued at 15.1 million LKR
- 2021: 10,110 kg valued at 1.1 million LKR
- 2022: 20 kg valued at 127,499 LKR
- 2023: 1 kg valued at 2,221 LKR (SLEDB via Seylany)
VS some data (we believe is still incomplete) from Pakistan’s Trade Information Portal (TIPP) shows significant imports of cinnamon from other China and Nepal in 2023:
- 87,500 kg from China, valued at 161,100 USD
- 5,000 kg from Nepal, valued at 8,200 USD
Interestingly, these imports displayed on TIPP are labeled as Cinnamomum zeylanicum Blume, the same species Sri Lanka is known for. So how China has captured market share that traditionally belonged to Sri Lanka?
Given Pakistan’s deep-rooted use of cinnamon in both culinary and medicinal applications, there’s no question about the demand. The fact that China and Nepal are filling this demand indicates that the market is active and competitive. However, Sri Lanka’s sharp decline from exporting 143,353 kg in 2020 to 1 kg in 2023 just perhaps reflects an opportunity waiting to be captured.
Another factor that could be very important to consider, is whether or not Pakistan's imports of Cinnamomum zeylanicum Blume or commonly referred to as Ceylon Cinnamon, is actually mislabeled. China is known for it's famed Cinnamon Cassia or Cinnamomum cassia, or also referred to as Chinese Cassia.
And not everyone knows the difference between the two. So one question that truly must be investigated is, if Pakistan is importing Ceylon Cinnamon from China, and almost nothing from Sri Lanka (traditionally known to be the home of Ceylon Cinnamon), then a very probable cause could be that the imports are being mislabeled. - Yet this is a theory that has still got to be properly investigated.
Pakistan has a history of using cinnamon in food and beverages, meaning the demand is definitely there. And if China and Nepal can fill that demand, there’s no reason why Sri Lanka shouldn’t be able to as well.
There’s work to be done here. Whether it be in streamlining logistics, improving market outreach, or getting a better read on what Pakistan’s buyers want, the key question that should be asked today is: How can Sri Lanka reposition itself to reclaim its place in Pakistan's market?