A total 37.64 tons of saffron worth $38.58 million were exported from Iran to 52 countries during the first quarter of the current Iranian year (March 20-July 20), according to the spokesman of the Islamic Republic of Iran Customs Administration.
“Hong Kong with 12.73 tons worth $14.4 million was the main export destination followed by Spain with 9.19 tons and the UAE with 3.48 tons,” Rouhollah Latifi was also quoted as saying by IRNA.
Other customers of Iranian saffron in Q1 were Italy, South Korea, Sweden, France and China, he added.
Latifi noted that 115,000 hectares out of the 122,000 hectares of land under saffron cultivation in the world are located in Iran.
“We account for 94% of the global saffron output. Last [Iranian] year [March 2019-20], some 500 tons of the crop were harvested, 80% of which were exported,” he said.
This year's saffron exports have come to a halt following the outbreak of the virus in mid-February.
Gholamreza Miri, the deputy head of Iran's National Saffron Council, said earlier this month that Iran has resumed saffron exports.
In an interview with Mehr News Agency, the official said the current price for each kilo of saffron hovers around 65 million rials ($292) to 120 million rials (about $540).
Iran accounts for 94% of the global saffron output
“Iran’s saffron export destinations are struggling with the novel coronavirus just like we are. The international markets are in doldrums and demand for this Persian delicacy has fallen. As a result, saffron prices have dropped,” he said.
The official told Young Journalists Club that Iran exported 251 tons of saffron during the last fiscal year that ended on March 19, registering no significant change compared to the year before.
“We are hoping that after the pandemic is over, markets are back to business and the decline in exports we have experienced so far this year can be compensated.”
The lion’s share of Iranian saffron is exported by air.
“Land under saffron cultivation has increased in Iran,” Miri said, adding that the crop is being cultivated in 23 provinces across the country.
“Due to favorable weather and high precipitation levels, an ample harvest is on the horizon.”
The saffron industry in Iran has created around 200,000 jobs along the pre-harvest, harvest, post-harvest, processing, sorting and packaging chain. The livelihoods of these people, farmers in particular, depend largely on exports.
Deputy Agriculture Minister Ali Tahmasebi said Iran’s area under saffron cultivation is 20 times bigger than the total land dedicated to growing saffron in the whole world, adding that Iran is annually increasing the area by 5,000 hectares.
Tahmasebi said planting saffron is no longer restricted to the three provinces of North Khorasan, South Khorasan and Khorasan Razavi.
“Farmers now also harvest saffron in various parts of the country, including Chaharmahal-Bakhtiari Province, a cold and mountainous region in central Iran, as well as in Khuzestan, a southern province known for its hot and humid climate,” he said.
Per capita consumption of saffron in Iran stands at 1 gram. Annually, 80 tons of saffron are consumed domestically.
