Food - Drink
Most Of The World's Cinnamon Comes From This Country
By ELIAS NASH
Cinnamon was once the most expensive spice traded by the multi-million dollar Dutch East Trading Company in the 1600's, a time when this spice was more valuable than gold. Since then, cinnamon has become a very common spice, and if you can't imagine a life without cinnamon rolls, you should know which country might be stocking your shelves.
The curled-up cinnamon sticks we’re familiar with come from the bark of cinnamon trees, which are a tropical species that can only thrive under specific conditions: warm temperatures and lots of moisture, a climate found in many Southeast Asian countries. Therefore, it makes sense that Indonesia produces more cinnamon than any other country.
World Atlas reports that Indonesian cinnamon accounts for 43% of total global production, which is worth about $85 million total, and FAO adds that the nation produced 91,242 tones of the spice in 2020. However, if you live in a western country such as the United States , your cinnamon likely does not come from Indonesia.
In addition to producing a huge amount of cinnamon, Indonesia also consumes more of this spice than any other nation, meaning they don't export as much. Sri Lanka is the biggest exporter of this spice, so unless you live in Indonesia, China, or Vietnam, you likely have Sri Lankan cinnamon in your pantry.