India - Land of Spices.
Being bestowed with Kerala as its rich spice bowl, no country in the world produces as many varieties of spices as India.
India is the world's largest producer of spices.
The fifth edition of International Spice Conference will be held at Kochi, India. Kochi is known by a lot of nicknames such as God's Own Country and the Queen of the Arabian Sea. It has also been known as the Spice Capital of the world, since ancient times.
During classical antiquity and the Middle Ages, Kozhikode was dubbed the “City of Spices” for its role as the major trading point of Eastern spices.
Black pepper is known as ''King of Spices''. Black pepper is produced from the still-green, unripe drupes of the pepper plant.
Cinnamon is an ancient spice that predates the recorded history of culinary applications of all spices. As such, it has been dubbed the “world's oldest spice”, which may be a warranted title, knowing that because it was found to be included in Egyptian embalming recipes.
Khari Baoli is a street in Delhi, India known for its wholesale grocery and Asia's largest wholesale spice market selling a variety of spices, nuts, herbs and food products like rice and tea.
Saffron (Crocus sativa) is a spice that is worth more than its weight in gold. Over the past three decades there has been renewed global interest in saffron cultivation for use in cosmetics, the food industry and for its health benefits, which is why this spice has been coined “Red Gold”.
Ancient Times
In fact, black pepper was so coveted in the Ancient World that it was known by merchants as “black gold”. The global popularity of pepper followed the rise of the Roman Empire. The Romans brought pepper from the East to the western shores of continental Europe to use as an exotic, if expensive, spice.
Cardamom or Elettaria Cardamomum Maton is one of the most highly prized and exotic spices and rightly deserves the name “queen of spices”. It is also commonly referred to as the “green cardamom” or the “true cardamom”, and belongs to the family of ginger.
The Kerala state is 'Spice Trade Hub'. Kerala is referred to as the spice garden of India as it has a variety of spices and is popular in the entire world. Idukki and Wayanad are the major locations for the growth of spices in the entire state.
Indian spices are known the world over for their aroma, texture and taste. India produces about 75 of the 109 varieties of spices listed by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). The varying climatic conditions in India provide ample scope for the cultivation of a variety of spices.
Moluccas, Indonesian Maluku, also known as Spice Islands, Indonesian islands of the Malay Archipelago, lying between the islands of Celebes to the west and New Guinea to the east.
Indian spices reach almost to the entire world while the main importers include the US, UK, Germany, France, Italy, Canada, Australia, UAE, Iran, Singapore, China and Bangladesh, among others. The demand for India spices has increased significantly since the Covid pandemic.
India is the world's largest producer, consumer and exporter of spices; the country produces about 75 of the 109 varieties listed by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and accounts for half of the global trading in spices. In FY20, spices worth US$ 3.62 billion were exported.
Ginger. Ginger is a delicious spice that researchers believe can improves your gut health, and is particularly beneficial for your stomach and intestines. Ginger may help to settle an upset stomach, which is why it's often used to combat nausea.
Beluga caviar
Iranian Beluga caviar is officially the world's most expensive – a kilo will set you back 20,000 pounds. If you're up for a splurge, a 30g tin from The Truffle Man costs a whopping $157.
Most expensive spice
Across the world, saffron is used in products ranging from food to medicine and cosmetics. A kilogram (2.2 pounds) requires the stigmas of about 150,000 flowers and can easily sell for $3,000-$4,000.