BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 9
By Fidan Babayeva – Trend:
About 150-200 kilograms of saffron were grown in Azerbaijan in 2019, Chairman of the Azerbaijani Association of Saffron Producers and Exporters Adalat Abdullayev told Trend.
“A small volume accounted for the share of export of saffron in 2019,” Abdullayev added. “But saffron production is planned to be increased in 2020, which will directly affect the export volume.”
"Most of saffron is sold to Arab tourists,” the chairman said. “This can not be called export. A total of 0.5 kilograms per year is exported. The export to more countries depends on the quantity of the produced saffron and its quality."
“The quality of Absheron saffron is the best in the world on the basis of the analysis carried out in the US, France and Iran,” Abdullayev said. “But most manufacturers do not properly dry saffron and use herbal additives, which greatly impairs its quality.”
“After the establishment of the association, the saffron production and sale volumes in both domestic and foreign markets sharply increased,” Abdullayev said.
The Association of Saffron Producers and Exporters was established in Azerbaijan on June 4, 2019. To date, about 15 hectares of land were sown with saffron in Baku’s settlements, while during the Soviet period, the area sown with saffron reached several hundred hectares.
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