Market Trends of southeast asia vegetable seed Industry
Root and bulbs dominate vegetable cultivation in Southeast Asia as they are well-suited to the soil types found in the region
- Southeast Asia has a favorable climate and agronomic conditions for vegetable cultivation. As a result, in 2022, the region dedicated 8.7 million hectares to vegetable cultivation, which accounted for 10.7% of the total cultivation area in Southeast Asia. Roots and bulbs are the largest segment in Southeast Asia, and it accounted for 51.2% of the vegetable area in 2022, with 4.4 million ha. This is because they are well-suited to the soil types found in the region. These crops have a relatively low cost of production and can be grown without huge amounts of inputs, making them the preferred choice by farmers in the region.
- Chili is the dominant vegetable in terms of cultivation area in Southeast Asia, and it accounted for 7.1% of the total vegetable cultivation in the region in 2022. In Southeast Asia, Indonesia was the major chili-producing country, which held a share of 52.2% of the region's overall cultivation area in 2022, with 324.7 thousand ha. The highest share is due to the demand by processing industries and the adoption of advanced mechanisms for chili cultivation in the country. The other major vegetable crops cultivated in Southeast Asia are tomato, potato cabbage, and cucumber. Between 2017 and 2022, Southeast Asia’s tomato area increased by 6.8% due to the increase in the prices of tomatoes and higher consumer demand.
- Indonesia is the largest country in the region with respect to the area under cultivation of vegetables, and it accounted for 23.5% of the region's vegetable area in 2022. The area was increasing as the farmers shifted toward vegetables due to the increase in the demand from the domestic and international markets. Therefore, the adoption of advanced mechanisms is expected to drive the growth of vegetable acreage in the region.
Cabbage, pumpkin and squash are vital vegetable crops in Southeast Asia, with a rising demand for disease resistant and quality attributes varieties to meet the higher consumer demand
- Cabbage is one of the most important vegetable crops in Southeast Asia. Different types of cabbages grown in the region are Vietnamese cabbages, Chinese cabbages, and Bak Choy. Varieties with disease tolerance (Alternaria leaf blight, wilts, and rots), quality traits such as the size of the head, the color of head leaves, the shape of the head, and other traits such as pest resistance and wider adaptability are the major traits widely adopted. Additionally, the size of heads and head weight are the major traits that have a significant demand, as they help in increasing yield productivity per hectare. Companies such as Limagrain and Rijk Zwaan are providing cabbage seeds with these traits to grow in adverse weather conditions with high quality.
- Pumpkin and squash are the major cucurbits widely grown in the region. The popular traits of the crop are quality attributes such as good shape, size, and color, longer storage life, disease resistance, especially against the geminin virus, and wider adaptability to different climatic and soil types. It is expected that in the future, disease resistance and quality attribute traits will be more widely available as companies develop new varieties with mildew tolerance and virus resistance, as well as uniformity, color, and flavor. Moreover, East-West Seed has varieties, such as 18880 F1 and Pujitha F1, which provide resistance to geminin and potyvirus in the crop. In the Philippines, Enza Zaden launched new seed varieties through a partnership with Vitalis Organic Seeds in 2021.
- Factors such as the introduction of new seed varieties with higher resistance to viruses, quality attributes, and high yield are expected to help in the growth of the vegetable seed market during the forecast period.
OTHER KEY INDUSTRY TRENDS COVERED IN THE REPORT
- Cabbage, pumpkin and squash are vital vegetable crops in Southeast Asia, with a rising demand for disease resistant and quality attributes varieties to meet the higher consumer demand
- The hybrid breeding technique dominated the Southeast Asian vegetable seed market due to the increasing demand for hybrid vegetable seeds in the region
- Southeast Asia faces challenges in growing tomatoes and chili due to climatic conditions, leading to a high demand for disease-resistant and quality traits