New Delhi: In a major boost to exports of Geographical Indications (GI) products from the north-eastern region, a consignment of 'Raja Mircha' also referred as king chilli from Nagaland was on Wednesday exported to London via Guwahati for the first time.
The consignment was sourced from Tening, part of Peren district, Nagaland. "The chilli from Nagaland is also referred to as Bhoot Jolokia and Ghost pepper. It got GI certification in 2008," the Commerce Ministry said. Nagaland's king chilli has been considered as the world's hottest chilli and is constantly in the top five in the list of the world's hottest chillies based on the Scoville Heat Units.
APEDA in collaboration with the Nagaland State Agricultural Marketing Board (NSAMB), coordinated the first export consignment of fresh King Chilli. APEDA had coordinated with NSAMB in sending samples for laboratory testing in June and July 2021 and the results were encouraging as it is grown organically.
Exporting fresh King Chilli posed a challenge because of its highly perishable nature.