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What is Saffron?
Saffron is a spice from the Crocus sativus flower, which is a cousin of the lily. The saffron derives from the stigma and styles — called threads — within the flower itself.
Saffron is very expensive due to the difficulty of harvesting it. Farmers must harvest the delicate threads from each flower by hand.
They then heat and cure the threads to bring out the flavor of the saffron. This extra labor makes saffron one of the most expensive spices in the world.
True saffron is native to Asia Minor and southern Europe. Its blue-violet, lily-shaped flowers contain orange stigmas (part of the pistil) and red style branches, which are collected to produce the spice saffron. Mature stigmas are collected by hand during a short blooming season. More than 200,000 dried stigmas, obtained from about 70,000 flowers, yield 0.5 kg of true saffron. Saffron commands as much as per ounce in the American market.
True saffron should not be confused with American saffron (safflower, Indian safflower), Carthamus tinctorius (family Asteraceae), that is produced from the tubular florets and is a lighter red than true saffron. The 2 often are used for the same purposes, and the less expensive American saffron sometimes is used to adulterate true saffron.
Scientific Name
Crocus sativus
SAFFRON IN AFGHANISTAN IN HERAT
Saffron is the world’s most expensive spice in terms of weight. The spice is actually the dried stigma (tiny threadlike strands) of the “Crocus sativus Linnaeus”. Each stigma is very small, and tens of thousands of individual strands go into a single ounce of the spice; since the stigmas are hand-picked from the individual flowers, saffron high cost becomes more understandable
Saffron is originally native of the Mediterranean area, Asia Minor, Iran, and Afghanistan. Nowadays many farmers cultivate saffron and some private companies work on processing, packing and exporting of Afghan Saffron.
The main saffron cultivation areas in Afghanistan is in western parts of the country, The Herat province has managed to achieve an excellent position on the production and export of saffron over these years, To the extent that some 90% of saffron production in Afghanistan is obtained from there .The Ghoryan and Pashtun Zarghon region in this province is well known for its quality saffron.
The western part of Afghanistan has an especially suitable environment for its cultivation. The land area under cultivation in Herat Province is estimated 1500 hectares. In Afghanistan Farmers don’t use the Chemical material for cultivation and it is 100% organic production.
Women implement most of this works, since 80% of saffron works are being done by women because they do this works better and with lower price.
