KUCHING, May 2 — In the thick of Sarawak’s 11th election, Henry Ta-o Bunan and his workers are busy picking pepper berries in his farm about 50 km near here.

This is the busiest time of the year for pepper farmers as harvest season started last month and their hard work is paying off because prices and demand for the pungent spice, black or white, have been soaring in the past three years.

Black pepper, touted as Sarawak’s black gold, comes from green unripened berries that are picked and dried under the sun. Its price has soared to RM28 per kg from RM16.67 in 2013.

White pepper, or white gold, produced from ripe berries soaked in water for about a week, is RM46.50 per kg from RM26.31.

With the lucrative returns, the industry has improved the lives of tens of thousands of rural farmers in the state.

At his farm in Kampung Semadang off Jalan Puncak Borneo, Ta-o is cultivating about 1,000 vines of pepper and 700 matured plants are expected to fruit this year.

Last year, the 73 year-old Bidayuh reaped RM23,000 from 600 vines and he is looking forward to earning more this year.

“Cultivating pepper gives profitable returns but you have do it full time. I have been planting pepper for more than 40 years and it has sent all my nine children to school and several are university graduates,” he said.

Pepper cultivation can also be costly due to the cost of fertiliser and pesticide,and the unpredictable weather can also be a worry.

In Sri Aman, police pensioner Salleh Sungam, 68, and his wife Duni Langgi were all smiles at their farm in Gua Sukat.

“Thanks to the government for providing fertilisers and assistance to small scale pepper planters like me. At least, I’m making extra income for the family,” he said.

Ta-o and Salleh are among 67,000 pepper planters in Sarawak, the biggest producer of the spice in the country.

According to the Malaysia Pepper Board Sarawak, about 28,000 tonnes of pepper were produced by the state last year compared to 26,200 tonnes in 2013 and 27,200 tonnes in 2014. — Bernama