Saffron (Assignment 4)

From NarratingLandscapes

My little container of Saffron

I have a small container of saffron in my cupboard. It is very fragrant and looks like a tiny pile of delicate red and yellow threads. It was given to us as a gift and sometimes it is called for in certain recipes we make, sometimes simply as a colorant. I’ve been curious about it, where it comes from, why it costs so much and why so much trouble is taken in getting it, so I decided to do some research...

Saffron is the dried stigma of the purple Saffron crocus and has a long cultivation history of approximately 3000 years. Each flower only has three stigmas. Apparently, a pound of dry saffron requires 50,000–75,000 flowers and a week of labor (about 40 hours) is required to pick just 150,000.

I wonder what it is like for those who gather this valuable spice, hand picking every flower in the autumn. In Kashmir, people work long hours picking the flower, using every bit of it. The flower is eaten as a vegetable. The stems are given to animals and the valuable dried stigmas enter into the world market. There are apparently people who beg for a handful of petals from the workers and others sell fruits in exchange for the precious flowers.

Because of this, its history and use as a seasoning, perfume, dye, medicinal and spiritual use, it is the most costly spice in the world by weight. Saffron comes from many countries along the Mediterranean belt. Iran is the largest producer of the spice,holding over 90 percent of the market, with secondary producers in India, Spain, Greece, Morocco, Italy and Azerbaijan. There are many different varieties of the spice that are officially graded according to color, taste and fragrance. Because it is so costly, there is a lot of secretly fraudulent saffron out there. People mix in lower grade filaments, or look-alike substitutes for the spice in with the rest.

As a seasoning Saffron is popular in Iranian (Persian), Arab, Central Asian, European, Indian, Turkish, Moroccan and Cornish cuisines. It is used as a dye in India and China. Saffron also has a long history as part of traditional healing and has been found to have many beneficial health properties.

References:

"Saffron" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saffron

Lak, Daniel 1998. "Gathering Kashmir's Saffron" BBC News Online Network. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/213043.stm