Saffron: the Most Expensive Spice in the World
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Market Survey BY: PROF. C. SIVAKKOLUNDU DR P. LOGANATHAN SAFFRON: THE MOST EXPENSIVE SPICE IN THE WORLD India’s contribution to global saffron production is a little over three tonnes; yet this spice plays an important and symbolic role in our cuisine—forcing the country to import from Iran. affron is a spice derived and bears up to four flowers, each world’s most costly spices by weight, from the flower of the with three vivid crimson stigmas. To- is native to Southwest Asia and was Crocus sativus, common- gether with the styles, or stalks that first cultivated in Greece. As a ge- ly known as the saffron connect the stigmas to their host netically monomorphic clone, it was crocus. Crocus is a genus plant, the dried stigmas are used in slowly propagated throughout Eura- Sin the family Iridaceae. Each saffron various cuisines as a seasoning and sia and later in parts of North Africa, crocus grows to 20-30 cm (8-12 in) colouring agent. Saffron, among the North America and Oceania. Saffron flowers NOVEMBER 2012 • FACTS FOR YOU 13 Market Survey Features of saffron summer breezes sweep semi-arid Nutrition Value of Saffron lands. It can nonetheless survive in Saffron’s bitter taste and iodo- Saffron Nutritional value cold winters, tolerating frosts as low form or hay-like fragrance results per 100 g as –10°C (14°F) and short periods of from the chemicals picrocrocin and Energy 1,298 kJ (310 kcal) snow cover. Irrigation is required safranal. It also contains a carot- if grown outside of moist environ- Carbohydrates 65.37 g enoid dye, crocin, which imparts a ments such as Kashmir, where an- Dietary fibre 3.9 g rich golden-yellow hue to dishes and nual rainfall averages 1000-1500 textiles. Its recorded history is at- Fat 5.85 g mm (39-59 in). The saffron-growing tested in a 7th century BC Assyrian Saturated 1.586 g regions in Greece (500 mm or 20 in botanical treatise compiled under Monounsaturated 0.429 g annually) and Spain (400 mm or 16 Ashurbanipal, and it has been trad- Polyunsaturated 2.067 g in) are far drier than the main culti- ed and used for over four millennia. Protein 11.43 g vating Iranian regions. Rain imme- Iran now accounts for approximately Water 11.90 g diately preceding flowering boosts 90 per cent of the world’s production Vitamin A 530 IU saffron yields, while rainy or cold of saffron. Because each flower’s Thiamine (vit. B1) 0.115 mg (10%) weather during flowering promotes stigmas need to be collected by hand disease and reduces yields. Per- Riboflavin (vit. B2) 0.267 mg (22%) and there are only a few per flower, sistently damp and hot conditions Niacin (vit. B3) 1.460 mg (10%) saffron is the most expensive spice in harm the crop, while rabbits, rats the world. Vitamin C 80.8 mg (97%) and birds cause damage by digging Calcium 111 mg (11%) up corms. Nematodes, leaf rust and The history of saffron Iron 11.10 mg (85%) corm rot pose other threats. Magnesium 264 mg (74%) Mother corms planted deeper The origin of the English word Phosphorus 252 mg (36%) yield higher-quality saffron, though saffron is, like that of the cultivated Potassium 1724 mg (37%) they form fewer flower buds and saffron clone itself, somewhat uncer- Sodium 148 mg (10%) daughter corms. Italian growers op- tain. It stems from the Latin word timise thread yield by planting 15 cm Zinc 1.09 mg (11%) safranum via the 12th century Old (5.9 in) deep, in rows 2-3 cm (0.79- Selenium 5.6 µg French term safran. Etymology be- 1.2 in) apart, and at a depth of 8-10 yond that point is conflicted. Folate (N1) 93 µg cm (3.1-3.9 in) in order to optimise The domesticated saffron crocus, Vitamin B6 1.010 mg flower and corm production. Greek, Crocus sativus, is an autumn-flower- Ash 5.45 g Moroccan and Spanish growers, all ing perennial plant unknown in oth- Source: USDA Nutrient Database employ distinct depths and spacing er parts of the world. Its progenitors to suit their locales. are possibly the eastern Mediterra- in length. In autumn, purple buds nean autumn-flowering Crocus cart- appear. Only in October, after most The necessary conditions wrightianus, which is also known as other flowering plants have released for cultivation ‘wild saffron’ and originated in Cen- their seeds, do its brilliantly hued tral Asia. flowers develop. Upon flowering, Saffron thrives on friable, loose, The plant grows to a height of plants average less than 30 cm (12 low-density, well-watered, and well- 20-30 cm (8-12 in), and sprouts 5-11 in) in height. A three-pronged style drained clay-calcareous soils with white and non-photosynthetic leaves emerges from each flower. Each high organic content. Traditional known as cataphylls. They are mem- prong terminates with a vivid crim- raised beds promote good drainage. brane-like structures that cover and son stigma 25-30 mm (0.98-1.2 in) in Soil organic content was historically protect the crocus’s 5-11 true leaves length. boosted via the application of some as they bud and develop. The lat- 20-30 tonnes of manure per hectare. ter are thin, straight, and blade-like Areas of cultivation Later, with no further manure ap- green foliage leaves, which are 1-3 plication, corms were planted. After mm in diameter, and either expand Crocus sativus thrives in the a period of dormancy through the after the flowers have opened or do Mediterranean maquis (shrubland), summer, the corms send up their so simultaneously with their bloom- an ecotype superficially resembling narrow leaves and begin to bud in ing. In spring, the plant sends up its the North American chaparral and early autumn. Only in mid-autumn true leaves, each up to 40 cm (16 in) similar climates where hot and dry do they flower. Harvests are by ne- 14 FACTS FOR YOU • NOVEMBER 2012 Market Survey cessity a speedy affair: after bloom- Despite such attempts at quality names Spanish Superior and Crème, ing at dawn, flowers are harvested control and standardisation, an ex- are generally mellower in colour, immediately—to produce 12 g (0.42 tensive history of saffron adultera- flavour, and aroma; they are graded oz) of dried saffron (or 72 g/ 2.5 oz tion—particularly among the cheap- by government-imposed standards. moist and freshly harvested), 1 kg est grades—continues into modern Italian varieties are slightly more (2.2 lb) of flowers are needed. One times. Adulteration was first docu- potent than their Spanish counter- freshly picked flower yields an aver- mented in Europe’s Middle Ages, parts, while the most intense varie- age 30 mg (0.0011 oz) of fresh saf- when those found selling adulterat- ties tend to be Iranian. Various ‘bou- fron or 7 mg (0.00025 oz) of dried ed saffron were executed under the tique’ crops are available from New saffron. Safranschou code. Thus, in India, Zealand, France, Switzerland, Eng- high-grade Kashmiri saffron is often land, the United States and other Grades of saffron countries, and some of them are or- ganically grown. In the US, Penn- Saffron is graded via the labora- sylvania Dutch saffron—known for tory measurement of crocin (which its earthy notes—is marketed in affects colour), picrocrocin small quantities. (taste), and safranal (fra- Consumers may regard cer- grance) content. De- tain cultivars as premium termination of non- in quality. The Aquila stigma content (floral saffron, or the Zaffer- waste content) and other ano dell’ Aquila, is extraneous matter such defined by its as inorganic material high safranal and (ash) is also key. Grading crocin content, standards are set by the distinctive thread International Organi- shape, unusually sation for Standardi- pungent aroma, and in- sation, a federation tense colour. It is grown of national standards exclusively on eight hec- bodies. ISO 3632 tares in the Navelli Valley deals exclusively of Italy’s Abruzzo region, near with saffron and es- L’Aquila. It was first introduced to tablishes four empir- Italy by a Dominican monk from In- ical colour intensity grades: IV quisition-era Spain. But the biggest (the poorest), III, II and I (the finest saffron cultivation in Italy is in San quality). These colour grades pro- Gavino Monreale, Sardinia, where it ceed from grades with absorbance is grown on 40 hectares, represent- capabilities lower than 80 (for all ing 60 per cent of Italian production. Category IV saffron varieties) up to Saffron threads Kashmiri saffron is recognisable by 190 or greater (for Category I). The its dark maroon-purple hue—it’s world’s finest samples (the select, sold and mixed with cheaper Iranian among the world’s darkest, which red-maroon tips of stigmas picked imports; these mixes are then mar- hints at a strong flavor, aroma, and from the finest flowers) receive ab- keted as pure Kashmiri saffron, a colourative effect. sorbance scores in excess of 250. development that has cost Kashmiri Market pieces for saffron types fol- growers much of their income. Trade and uses of saffron low directly from these ISO scores. However, many growers, traders, Varieties of saffron Almost all saffron grows in a and consumers reject such lab test belt bounded by the Mediterra- numbers. They prefer a more holis- The various saffron crocus cul- nean in the west and the rugged tic method of sampling batches of tivars give rise to thread types that region encompassing Iran and In- thread for taste, aroma, pliability, are often regionally distributed and dia in the east.