1. Spices of the World
An Overview

2. Spices Drove Exploration
Major voyages of exploration in search of spices
Pepper and Clove
High demand in Europe
Very valuable commodity
Find and control source
Columbus voyage was to find a better route to Asia
Vasco da Gama’s circum navigation of Africa to Malabar coast of India in 1498 was major reason Portugal sent him, at that time the coast of Malabar produced 2/3 of pepper supply
Price of pepper was set at 11.5 g of gold per quintal (100 kg)

3. Spices Important in World Trade 75% of World Trade
Pepper
Capsicums
Cinnamon
Ginger
Turmeric

4. Percent of World Trade for Important Spices
Pepper
33%
Capsicum
22%
Seed spices
15%
Tree spices
14%
Turmeric 8%
Ginger 6%
Cardamon 4%
Vanilla 2%
Weiss, 2002
Tree spices – clove, nutmeg, cinnamon
Weiss Spice Crops. CABI Publishing

5. Tropical Spices imported in the USA
USA imports
Producing countries
Cardamon
3,200
Guatemala, India
Chilli
54,000
India, Morocco, Sri Lanka, Tanzania
Cinnamon
19,500
Madagascar, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Seychelles
Clove
1,200
Indonesia, Madagascar, Sri Lanka, Tanzania
Cumin
7,200
India
Ginger
14,000
India (91,000 to Japan)

6. Tropical Spices imported (tonnes) in the USA
(Weiss, 2002)
Spice
USA imports
Producing countries
Mace
200
Indonesia, Grenada, Sri Lanka, India, Malaysia
Nutmeg
1,500
Pepper
42,500
Brazil, India, Indonesia, Madagascar, Malaysia, Sri Lanka
Tumeric
2,300
India
Vanilla
1,900
Madagascar

7. FAO Production Statistics (FAOSTAT, 2000-2004)
1,000s MT
% of World Production
World
Africa
Asia
Latin America
Oceania
Clove
118
26%
74%
<1%
Cinnamon
121 1%
98%
Pepper
344 3%
79%
17%
Nutmeg 74
70%
28%
Vanilla
6.5
45%
49%

8. Origin of Spices Vanilla Pepper Cinnamon Clove Nutmeg
Clove, S. aromaticum and species, center of origin is Papau New Guinea,
Arab traders brought nutmeg to Europe from Moluccas via India, kept origin secret to avoid competition, in 1300 AD Arab Kazawini revealed origin, well known in Europe by 12th century, 1498 Vasco da Gama reached west coast of India in search of the spice islands, by 1512 the Portuguese found the Moluccas and they dominated the nutmeg trade for the next century, replaced by the Dutch in early 17th century who dominated trade for next 200 years, they restricted production by destroying all tress every where except for the islands of Banda and Amboina, when found on island of Run an English island they traded it fro Mahattan island, birds who ate fruit also spread the seed to other islands, in their monopoly, they restricted supply to maintain high prices
In mid 1700s the French obtained 32 trees and established 5 of these in their islands (Mauritius, Ile de France, Reunion Island, Seychelles and began to harvest in 1778 in 1818 introduced into Zanibar
During British occupation of Moluccas ( ), sent to Penang and other countries under British control
Weiss, 2002

9. Spice Origin Habitat Clove Cinnamon Pepper Nutmeg Vanilla
Moluccas (Indonesia)
Evergreen tree, tropical maritime climate
Cinnamon
Sri Lanka, India, SE Asia
Tree of the wet tropics
Pepper
Hills of western India
Tropical woody vines, wet tropics
Nutmeg
Papua New Guinea
Evergreen trees, tropical lowland, dioecious
Vanilla
Mexico
Fleshy herbaecous vine, hot, moist climate

10. Clove - Syzygium aromaticum
Evergreen tree
Up to 15 m
Glossy green leaves
Fragrant red flowers
Purple fruit
Harvest
Inflorescence
Buds at full size but before they open
Leaves
Leaf oil
Zanzibar, July-September and Nov-January are flowering seasons
Madagascar July-August, India Sept-Oct
Cloves grown either for cloves as a spice or for leaves but since the cultural practices are different one tree is not grown for both reasons

11. Clove Branch

12. Clove Branch and Flower

13. Adaptation Lower montane forests
Partial shade
Below 300 m
Precipiation: 2,000 to 3,600 mm
Dry season needed for best production
Flower bud initiation
High humidity at flowering reduce yields
3 month dry season (60-80 mm) for better quality

14. Early Trade and Use Chinese, 200-206 BC India, 2nd century AD
From Philippines
India, 2nd century AD
Egypt, 1st century AD
Regular imports by 2nd century
4th century, traded around the Mediterranean
13th century
Major source for Europe was Venice
Via Alexandria supplied by Arab sailors
Source of cloves was unknown in Europe until the voyages of Marco Polo and publication of these in 1298 AD. This lead to the beginning of the Spanish and Portuguese searches for the Spice Islands (Moluccas)
Took Vasco de Gama to India in 1498 and within 20 years to the Moluccas

15. Origin of Clove China 220 BC Arabs 1512 Portuguese Clove 1600s Dutch
Mid 1700s French
1796 British
Clove
Clove, Syzygium aromaticum and species, center of origin of species group is Papau New Guinea,
True clove native to 5 small islands of the Moluccas (east of Papau New Guinea), Bachain, Machain, Mutir, Ternate, Tidore
Arab traders brought nutmeg to Europe from Moluccas via India, kept origin secret to avoid competition, in 1300 AD Arab Kazawini revealed origin, well known in Europe by 12th century, 1498 Vasco da Gama reached west coast of India in search of the spice islands, by 1512 the Portuguese found the Moluccas and they dominated the nutmeg trade for the next century, replaced by the Dutch in early 17th century who dominated trade for next 200 years, they restricted production by destroying all tress every where except for the islands of Banda and Amboina, when found on island of Run an English island they traded it fro Mahattan island, birds who ate fruit also spread the seed to other islands, in their monopoly, they restricted supply to maintain high prices
In mid 1700s the French obtained 32 trees and established 5 of these in their islands (Mauritius, Ile de France, Reunion Island, Seychelles and began to harvest in 1778 in 1818 introduced into Zanibar
During British occupation of Moluccas ( ), sent to Penang and other countries under British control
Weiss, 2002

16. Trade Arabs – traded with Europe Portuguese – 1512 found Moluccas
Dutch – early 1600s
French –
Mauritius, Ile de France, Reunion Island, Seychelles
Introduced to Zanzibar in 1818
British
Occupation of Moluccas ( )
Penang and other British colonies
Arab traders brought nutmeg to Europe from Moluccas via India, kept origin secret to avoid competition, in 1300 AD Arab Kazawini revealed origin, well known in Europe by 12th century, 1498 Vasco da Gama reached west coast of India in search of the spice islands, by 1512 the Portuguese found the Moluccas and they dominated the nutmeg trade for the next century, replaced by the Dutch in early 17th century who dominated trade for next 200 years, they restricted production by destroying all tress every where except for the islands of Banda and Amboina, when found on island of Run an English island they traded it fro Mahattan island, birds who ate fruit also spread the seed to other islands, in their monopoly, they restricted supply to maintain high prices
In mid 1700s the French obtained 32 trees and established 5 of these in their islands (Mauritius, Ile de France, Reunion Island, Seychelles and began to harvest in 1778 in 1818 introduced into Zanibar
During British occupation of Moluccas ( ), sent to Penang and other countries under British control
Weiss, 2002

17. Recent Production History of Clove
Zanzibar, now part of Tanzania, was for a long time the world’s largest exporter of cloves
Production slumped after revolution of 1964 –
Plantations split to small 1.5 ha plots
Government paid 4% of export price to growers – probably lots of smuggling
Production slumped to 1,000 mt (official w/o smuggling)
Production increased in Indonesia and Madagascar
In 1997, market manipulations (Pres. Suharto’s son) caused a market collapse and now Indonesian govet has program to replace clove acreage with coffee, vanilla, and food crops
Internal market in Indonesia is at 80,000 mt! Mainly used for kretek (crackling) cigarettes whose production in 2000 was 225 billion units
Zanzibar (part of Tanzania)
Largest exporter until revolution of 1964
Plantations split
Government prices very low (4%)
Production
Pre 1960s – 20,000 mt
Fell to less than 1,000 mt (smuggling common)
1998 has increased to 9,000 mt
Indonesia
1952 – 3,000 mt, 1962 – 7,000 mt, 1972 – 15,000 mt, 1982 – 25,000 mt, 1997 – 110,000 mt
Madagascar
1968 – 6000 mt, ,000 mt
Other new producers are Brazil and Sri Lanka but given current surplus of cloves both are unlikely to expand much beyond domestic demand

18. Propagation Traditional from seed New plantations need
Seed orchards from selected trees
Nursery production – 12 months
Transplant to field
1-2 seedling per space
8-9 m for clove production
1 m in row to create hedge for leaf harvest
New plantations need
Windbreaks
Shade
Beginning with clonal but not common, can do via in vitro propagation
Clove is outcrossing so seedling variation can be a problem if seed taken from normal orchard
Seedling variation is minimized by the narrow genetic base of clove popualtion in Zanzibar etc.
Branches tend to be brittle
Grow best with some shade – especially important in establishment stage

19. Harvest Production Varies tremendously from year to year
Begins to bear 4-5 years
Full production at 20 years
Bear for 100 years
Varies tremendously from year to year
Average 4-5 kg/tree (0-50 kg/tree)
Climatic conditions
Shoot and flower initiation
Fruit set
Variation in yield is not well understood
Long term avaerage is probably 4-5 kg/tree but with an orchard it can vary from 5 to 50 kg per tree,
This could be in part due to genetic variability of trees within orchard

20. Harvest Clove clusters Buds full size Calyx base pink flush
Do not ripen uniformly
5-8 hand harvests per tree
25-55 kg of wet cloves per day
Zanzibar 2 flowering seasons but other places only one
Bud initials visible 6 months before harvest

21. Commercial leaf oil production
Hedge row planting
Only in Madagascar
Yield 2-3 mt leaves/ha
Picked every 2-3 weeks
Harvest from clove orchards
Cut foliage off and strip off leaves
Top to encourage branching
Lower clove yields
Collect fallen leaves every 2-3 weeks

22. Processing Cloves Leaves Buds separated from peduncles and pedicels
Dried
Leaves
Oil extracted via steam destillation
Stems = peduncles and pedicels, these are dried and sold as inferior spice or distilled

23. Uses Cloves Domestic cooking – whole cloves
Pies, stews, soups, ham, pork
Industrial food processing – powder
Baked goods, proceesed meats, pickles
Cigarettes
Indonesian Kretek cigarettes up to 8%

24. Uses – Oil Main component is Eugenol
Sources
Bud, stem, leaf
Bud is highest quality
Uses
Seasonings and processed food (bud only)
Perfumery
Some in pharmaceutical and dental products
Antimicrobial, antioxidant, and insecticidal activity
Stem oil used mainly to adulterate other types of oil
Leaf oil used mainly for eugenol production and its by product caryophyllene
Rectified oil is used in less expensive perfumes, soaps, and similar products, generally not used in food flavorings as it has a harsher flavor that is generally not acceptable

25. Pepper
Piperaceae
Piper
nigrum

26. Pepper Perennial glabrous woody climber
Can climb up to 10m sometimes longer
Variable in appearance
Virtually dioecious in the wild but commercial cultivars are generally hermaphroditic

27. Piperaceae Piper species Peperomia and 10 other genera
nigrum, Black/white pepper
Most important
cubeba, Cubeb pepper
longum, Long pepper
Peperomia and 10 other genera

28. Origin of Pepper Pepper Native to hills of western India
Pepper very important – significant factor influencing world exploration and history – to find source and control its trade
Known by Greeks by about 300 BC
Well established item of commerce during the Roman empire (27 BC – 395 AD)
Widespread cultivation/trade of pepper dates back to at least 500 AD – Chinese trade well established by 1280 when Marco Polo described pepper cultivation in Java in his Description of the World
Shipped to Red Sea ports by Arabs using the Arabian seas monsoons, then to Alexandria
By Middle ages, pepper was very imp. To season/preserve meats, over come odor of rancid food
Portugal’s desire to control pepper trade lead to Vasco de Gama circumnavigation of Africa – gained control of the region and the spice trade to the detriment of Venice, Genoa, and Alexandria
Early in 17th century, Dutch sailed to Indonesia and acquired pepper producing regions in Java and Sumatra, dominated much of the trade
1797, US ships began to trade with Sumatra
Early in 19th century, British organized pepper plantings in Malaysia and Sarawak which became major producers

29. Native to Wet Tropical Forests
Commercial Production
20º of the equator
Temperature
25-35 C
Minimum C
Rain, well distributed and humid
2,000 to 3,000
If dry season, while berries maturing
Cloudy, partial but not heavy shade
Soil, well drained and slightly acid to neutral
Lots of local varieties
Most commercial plantations have are 1,500 m or lower but there are excellent at 2,000 but not above 2,500 m
Rain 2-3,000 but also yp to 4,500 mm tloerated if excellent drainage
Warm cloudy humid conditions – C, 65-95% RH
Long periods of strong sunlight can be damaginglow temperature (15-18C) affect reproductive growth more than vegetative,
Very hot dry winds inhibit growth, may kill young plants, adversely affects pollination

30. Propagation
Stem cuttings, 4-5 months in the nursery

31. Planting and pruning Planted with a support (3m x 3m) Pruning
Living or dead, 4-9 m in height
Tie 3 climbing vines to support
Pruning
Repeated head back to cause branching
Every 10 nodes prune back
7-8 prunings to top of support
Maximize # of fruiting branches
Flower spikes develop in a leaf axil so want to maximize the number of leaves
First 2 years, flower spikes are removed

32. Harvest First harvest Harvest over 3-4 months
18-20 months after planting
Flower to harvest, 4-10 months
Harvest over 3-4 months
White pepper, 1-3 berries ripe
Black pepper, berries still green
Harvest every 2-3 weeks
Time to ripen crop varies with location Sri Lanks 7-10 months and India 4-5 months and probably the differences in the local varieties used

33. Yields Well managed orchard in Sarawak
1st picking, 8,000 to 9,000 kg/ha
6th – 10th picking, 18,000 kg/ha
Small farmers – primary producers
India: ,000 kg/ha
Sri Lanka: 1, ,500 kg/ha
Brazil: 600 – 4,000 kg/ha
Generally any improvement in culture in small farms increases yield

34. Processing - Two Products
Black pepper
Mature but green
Spikes, hours to begin fermentation
Stripped off, dried to 12% moisture
White pepper (less pungent, mellow)
Ripe and red
Berries stripped, in bags in running water
Softened pericarp is removed, washed
Buff colored berries dried
Black pepper, harvested spikes are left in heaps to allo a little fermentation, this browns the berries
Then strip from spikes and put on mats for drying adn turned regularly to allow even drying and avoid fungal problems, also solar powered driers
From 100 kg of green pepper the yield is about 35 kg of dried black pepper
White pepper, ripe berries are soaked in clean running water for up to 14 days, softens and loosens pericarp, bags then placed in tank of water and trampled slowly slowly but firmly to remove any adhering pericarp and pulp, bags put back into running water to finish washing, 100kg ripe berries yiels 25 kg of white pepper, discarded hulls can beused for pepper oil extraction
Also produce a berry oil and oleoresin – but berry is most important

35. Any Questions?