Kampot pepper, the spicy berry from Cambodia

Kampot pepper, one of the most famous and expensive in the world, grows in the heart of the green plains of Cambodia. It is sought after by the greatest starred chefs. A Franco-Belgian couple is one of the largest pepper producers in Kampot: 44,000 pepper trees over 20 hectares, purchased in 2013, after a life devoted to IT. “It’s a region that is traditionally a region of pepper. So we said to ourselves, we’re going to make pepper”says Guy Porré, co-owner of La Plantation.

Kampot pepper is harvested by hand, bunch by bunch. It grows on lianas wrapped around wooden stakes almost 4 meters high. For the spice to be stamped Kampot pepper, it must meet very specific criteria: use only natural fertilizers, harvest and selection by hand. Once harvested, the pepper seeds are dried in the sun. Dozens of little hands then sort out each peppercorn with tweezers. The plantation produces 30 tons of this spice each year. Sold for 50 euros per kilo on the spot, it is then resold for 200 euros per kilo in delicatessens around the world, and will be found on the greatest tables of chefs.