The most expensive spices in the world are saffron and vanilla. But why?

Saffron (dried stigmas of Crocus sativus, a plant of the Iridaceae family) is also called “red gold”, thanks to its excellence. It takes more than 150,000-200,000 flowers to obtain 1 kg of product and is therefore counted among the most expensive spices ever (10 times more than vanilla, the second most expensive spice in the world). Its high cost also derives from the fact that the saffron harvest is very labor-intensive (the stigmas must be harvested strictly by hand and with great delicacy) it takes place for a few weeks a year and only in the few places in the world with the right climate.

Vanilla, on the other hand, native to South and Central America, has been cultivated for hundreds of years. Prized for its smooth and rich flavor, it is one of the most sought-after spices worldwide. The orchids
from which vanilla is derived are slow-growing and difficult to grow, which means that demand for this product often outstrips supply. With most of the crop grown in locations prone to extreme weather events, the market could become increasingly unpredictable with climate change. Vanilla is the second most expensive spice in the world, after saffron.

(Source: www.worldwildlife.org)

In rural Sri Lanka, where Podie producer groups are located, women don’t have much opportunity to have their own income and work, either for reasons of caste or because they are women. Podie’s impact in this context has been and continues to be huge.

Thanks to the “leadership training programs” promoted by the organization, for example, many female farmers have been able to take on leadership roles in the groups. Today, women are treasurers, secretaries, in short, they do jobs that were unthinkable for them until a few years ago.

But there is another aspect in which the role of women is fundamental: the packaging of spices. Podie’s spices come to us at Altromercato already packed in paper bags, made from natural fibers such as banana leaves, “savanna grass” and ginger cane leaves, handcrafted by women. And that’s not all. The center where the packaging takes place is located in Negombo, a fishing town on the west coast of Sri Lanka, where about forty women, daughters of fishermen, are employed.

Spices, like many other commodities and food products in the world, are at risk due to climate change.

Several factors – in particular temperature, precipitation, hours of lighting, hours of sunshine, wind, etc. – directly or indirectly influence the different stages of physiological growth, such as flowering, fruit set (initial stage of fruit development after flowering), fruit development and the final reproductive or vegetative yield of spice crops.

The prolonged dry season can cause reduced pollination and failure to grow cardamom flowers, while arid conditions and violent winds are harmful to the growth of vanilla plants. The famous Madagascar vanilla,
for example, is at risk because the flowering of the orchids from which it derives is threatened by unpredictable weather conditions. Finally, the high rainfall and humidity create the proliferation of pests such as aphids and diseases, such as powdery mildew (a fungal disease in which the pathogen steals nutrients from plants), for most spice seeds, namely, coriander, fenugreek, and cumin.

(Source: www.researchgate.net)

In Sri Lanka, due to climate change, rainfall no longer occurs only in the rainy season, but also occurs in the dry season, altering cultivation cycles. Moreover, when the rains are too abundant, they have negative effects on fruiting and spice harvests, with consequences on the activity of many small villages that live off of the cultivation of spices. The technical support to farmers by Podie’s experts has been fundamental in recent years and many concrete actions have been tested.

To cite a few examples, the Wanniamunukula group of farmers depends mainly on seasonal rains for the cultivation of chili, sesame and mustard and relies on a few irrigation tanks built decades ago, which over time have been buried and would now require maintenance by the municipality.

Podie financially helped this group of farmers restore one of these reservoirs, a large and efficient reservoir that allows water to be stored during the rainy season, so that it can be used for cultivation during the dry season.

Podie has also supplied biomass dryers for cardamom to the Kothmale Farmer Group, the Kolugala and Matale Grower Groups.