Saffron production increased by 20% in the current Iranian year (to end March 19, 2016), compared to last year, to reach 300 tons, a saffron exporter said. “Price fluctuations have, however, caused impediments to saffron exports,” Ali Shariati Moqaddam added in an interview with Forsat-e Emrouz newspaper. “The drastic price swings we faced in the current year have had a detrimental effect on the export market, which needs stability to thrive. When prices go up, exporters are incapable of trading,” he said. The exporter further said Iran holds 90% of the world saffron market, “yet we are liable to lose our position if the current unstable domestic market persists”. According to Shariati Moqaddam, the Union of Iranian Saffron Exporters, together with the ministries of industries and agricultural jihad, is planning to list saffron in Iran Mercantile Exchange to prevent middlemen from manipulating the prices. “Farmers can directly sell their products to exporters,” he said. Almost 90,000 hectares of farmland are dedicated to the cultivation of saffron in Iran, with Khorasan Razavi and South Khorasan provinces accounting for the lion’s share of the domestic production.
