Viet Nam holds the lead in the global spice trade as the world's largest cinnamon exporter by economic value in 2025. According to the report from the Vietnam Pepper and Spice Association (VPSA), shipments throughout the full year reached 120,295 tons. This outbound trade volume generated a total net financial value of USD 300.2 million.
Primary Destinations and Export Growth
This outbound trade flow moves toward specific consumer markets. India stands as the top buyer, absorbing 37.6 percent with a volume of 45,184 tons of Vietnam's total export cargo.
The United States follows as the second-largest destination, capturing 11.3 percent of the market share, which equals an import volume of 13,593 tons to supply its domestic industries.
Compared to the statistics from the previous year of 2024, Vietnam's cinnamon exports experienced a steady upward trajectory. Local networks recorded a sharp 20.40 percent surge in total shipping volume. This expansion was accompanied by a 9.40 percent jump in total financial value.
The volume-to-value imbalance stems from recent exchange rate shifts. From January 2022 to December 2025, the Vietnamese Dong depreciated by 13.81 percent against the US dollar. It lowered global prices for Vietnamese cinnamon. Hence, buyer demand accelerated but heavily capped total financial returns.
Government-Driven Agriculture Framework
The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) of Viet Nam classified cinnamon as a core national asset within its Sustainable Forestry Development Program. Under this regulatory blueprint, the government converted underutilized highland areas into specialized spice corridors.
Government initiatives focused heavily on regions like Yen Bai, upgrading local infrastructure to establish a centralized hub for high-yield production.
To support this shift, MARD implemented targeted credit programs and specialized agricultural extensions for local growers. These initiatives required a transition toward sustainable farming practices to secure international organic certifications.
By linking rural land-use rights to commercial trade standards, the state successfully generated a predictable raw material supply tailored for foreign importers.
The Leading Exporters Driving the Trade
The execution of this high-volume supply chain relies on a specialized network of domestic corporations. Market leaders like Prosi Thang Long drive the bulk of these shipments, exporting 18,028 tons of cinnamon products, which accounts for a 15 percent market share.
This position is followed by major industry players such as Rung Xanh T&K and Gia Vi Son Ha, which maintain stable yearly export volumes. Rung Xanh T&K handles approximately 7,145 tons annually, while Gia Vi Son Ha secures around 5,800 tons of specialized orders.
The Strategic Leverage of Free Trade Regulations
Viet Nam applies a 0 percent export tax rate on all processed and unground cinnamon products under its national customs tariff framework. This zero-tax policy operates as a direct financial incentive for large-scale trading networks.
It allows local exporters to reinvest their entire profit margins into processing infrastructure without the burden of domestic revenue cuts.
By removing fiscal barriers at the border, the regulation accelerates cash flows within the supply chain. This enables Vietnamese suppliers to handle high-tonnage international contracts at competitive price points.
Viet Nam also utilizes active Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) such as the ASEAN-India Free Trade Area (AIFTA) to bypass import duties.
Breaking the Lack of Producing Capacity
This calculated ecosystem explains why Viet Nam dominates the export maps despite trailing behind regional giants in raw crop yields. Vietnam’s domestic cinnamon production capacity stands at around 41,000 metric tons annually, which is only about half of the annual production capacity of Indonesia and China.
Viet Nam breaks this production bottleneck by operating as a high-value processing and consolidation hub. The country relies on sourcing and consolidating raw material networks to achieve its historic 2025 export records.
Over the past three decades, Viet Nam’s domestic crop yields shrank by 14.43 percent. However its processing land area expanded by 950.67 percent. It allows the country to import raw bark from neighbors like Indonesia to bypass domestic harvest limits.
A similar operational contrast exists with China. India and the United States remain highly restrictive for Chinese agricultural products due to strict tariff barriers. Unlike Viet Nam, China domestic market absorbs the vast majority of its own cinnamon harvest.
Reference:
Wisenthige, K., Jayathilaka, R., Dabare, U., Marasinghe, T., Radeesha, M., Ann, F., & Kavindya, N. (2025). Unlocking cinnamon export success: Key determinants from the world's top five producers. PLOS One, 20(12), e0338601.
