Ignoring red gold’s value

Welcome to the official neglect of color and smell that is of high value and refer to it as red gold, makes this valuable plant production in Iran several thousand years old, has been forgotten and in contrast, other countries the loans are saffron from Iran, the world’s recognized as the main producer of this product.

Despite the high price of saffron, from stage to separate the flowers from bulbs to dry up the roots of the agriculture and health in any monitoring and farmers are not to all of these steps supply in the market with his family at the home of he is doing it.

Gholam Reza Miri, chairman of Saffron Mashhad Retailers’ Association, in an interview with ISNA, said that the saffron harvest of cultivated land in the traditional way and is done manually, said: Saffron agricultural land is not suitable for mechanized devices.

He said the saffron bulbs are planted at a distance of 20 cm from a distance of 50 to 60 cm for the use of these devices is needed, in addition to the wheels of the machineries that walk the earth, causing the pressure to come to the damage of saffron bulbs arrives.

Miri said that 700 thousand to a million dollars per kilo of saffron flowers from root to separate fees be paid as follows: the separation of traditional crafts by 120 thousand family farmers and why the infection and foreign substances to the there.

Regarding the use of mechanical devices to isolate the root saffron flower stated are devices for separating root saffron flower market which, if these devices are used, reduce the cost of sorting and hence the cost small. As a saffron both for consumers and for the benefit of developing exports.

President of the Union of Saffron Mashhad dealers pointed to other advantages of these devices said foreign materials and contamination does not enter into the saffron crocus that the buyer wants us to.

He pointed out that each type of crocus that in laboratory tests, can be painted between 300 and 325 units, he said, any more color saffron is the unit price and more buyers there. Iranian saffron is known in the world because of its color.

Miri said another advantage of using a single color mechanization is being held up while the traditional method of color saffron is 220 to 230.

Miri said that if not dried saffron, mildew causes, said his dry the saffron farmers and manual methods. The unions that saffron crocus begins his career when brought to market before it is southern Khorasan the farmer and the organization.

President of the Union of Saffron Mashhad vendors emphasized that supply 92 percent of the world’s saffron Iran, said in the last 6 months of the year exports increased 5.7 percent over the previous year and every year an average of 15 tons of saffron have been packaged in 47 countries the world is exported.

He said that 94 thousand hectares of agricultural land in Khorasan saffron and saffron production in Torbat most played, noted: 75 percent and 25 percent by South Khorasan Razavi Khorasan saffron is produced by. In addition to these two provinces, 22 provinces are doing saffron.

Miri said, saffron use in most industrial countries and in toiletries, drugs, alcohol and alcoholic use of saffron.

He stressed that the arrival of saffron in any form is forbidden in Iran, said Iran packaging capacity is 450 tons and more than 50 brands in Iran confirmed that any offer saffron for internal and external.

Saffron Saffron Mashhad on counterfeit sellers president said there are more than 50 quality control department and those who wish they have bought saffron, rest assured to buy because if saffron crocus with standard symbols poor quality or have a problem, be this track was otherwise not held accountable.

He said that if asymptomatic saffron standard is introduced to the sanctions, said the 7000 package of saffron in the past year from the market due to fraud or the presence of foreign chemicals have been collected.

He said the saffron problems: the volatility of prices on the market exporters is a major problem, because when exporting to foreign countries deal with than he would as a supplier during a specific time of saffron is sold at a fixed price that unfortunately such an approach can not be used in Iran. As well as political problems into the economy reduces been issued.