What is the connection between saffron, the lightweight and pricey red gold, and numbers? Like any agricultural product, saffron’s cultivation, harvest, sale, and use are governed by precise calculations. For instance, many people need to figure out how much saffron is produced from one kilogram of saffron flowers or how many corms are required to yield that amount. They might also want to know the price of 1000 grams of saffron in dirhams or dollars, or what the customs code for saffron is. Let’s dive into these calculations!
- Key Parameters in Saffron Calculations
- Saffron Corms
- Saffron Flowers
- Saffron Products
- Saffron Land
- Saffron Tariff Code
- Saffron ISO Number (Standard)
- Saffron Daily Dosage
Key Parameters in Saffron Calculations:
1 hectare = 10,000 square meters
Average weight of a saffron corm = 8 grams
Average number of corms per kilogram = 125
Average number of flowers produced by each corm = 4 (each corm can produce between 1 to 8 flowers)
Average weight of a fresh saffron flower = 0.469 grams
1 kilogram of dry Negin saffron = 90 kilograms of fresh flowers
1 kilogram of dry Pushal saffron = 78 kilograms of fresh flowers
1 kilogram of dry Dasteh or Dokhtar Pich saffron = 65 kilograms of fresh flowers
Saffron Corms
- Number of corms in one hectare (modern row planting) = 1,000,000 corms
- Number of corms in one hectare (traditional cluster planting) = 625,000 corms
- How many corms are in one kilogram of saffron corms?
100 to 150 corms
How much dry negin saffron is produced from one kilogram of saffron corms?
Approximately 0.5 to 1 grams of dry negin saffron
- How many flowers does each corm produce?
1 to 8 flowers (Average 4 flowers)
How much dry negin saffron is produced from 8 tons of saffron corms?
Approximately 5 kg and 10 kg of dry negin saffron.
Saffron Flowers
- Daily number of flowers in one hectare (modern method) = 40,000 flowers (assuming each corm produces an average of 4 flowers and 10,000 corms are planted in one hectare).
- Daily number of flowers in one hectare (traditional method) = 20,000 flowers (assuming each corm produces an average of 4 flowers and 5,000 corms are planted in one hectare).
- Daily weight of freshly picked flowers in one hectare (modern method) = 18.76 kilograms of flowers per hectare (assuming 40,000 flowers with each flower weighing 0.469 grams are picked).
- Daily weight of freshly picked flowers in one hectare (traditional method) = 9.83 kilograms of flowers per hectare (assuming 20,000 flowers with each flower weighing 0.469 grams are picked).
- How many stigmas does each saffron flower have?
One stigma with three branches - How much does a saffron flower weigh?
Approximately 0.469 grams - How much dry Negin saffron is produced from one kilogram of saffron flowers?
Approximately 12 grams - How much dry Sargol saffron is produced from one kilogram of saffron flowers?
Approximately 16 to 17 grams - How much dry Pushal saffron is produced from one kilogram of saffron flowers?
Approximately 13 grams - How much saffron is obtained from 1,000 saffron flowers?
Approximately 6.7 grams of dry saffron
Saffron Products
- Amount of Negin saffron produced from one hectare of land (modern method) = 208.44 grams, equivalent to 0.208 kilograms (18,760 grams of fresh flowers divided by 90 grams of dry saffron)
- Amount of Negin saffron produced from one hectare of land (traditional method) = 104.22 grams, equivalent to 0.10422 kilograms (9,380 grams of fresh flowers divided by 90 grams of dry saffron)
- How much does a complete fresh saffron thread weigh?
Approximately 0.0469 grams - How much does a complete dry saffron thread weigh?
Approximately 0.0067 grams - How many flowers are needed to produce one kilogram of saffron?
Approximately 90 kilograms of flowers - How much land is required for one kilogram of saffron?
0.1 to 0.2 hectares, equivalent to 1,000 to 2,000 square meters - How much saffron can be harvested from one hectare of land in one day?
Approximately 33,000 to 330,000 saffron flowers, which is about 15 to 150 kilograms of flowers per day
Saffron Land
- How much dry saffron does each square meter of land produce?
0.5 to 1 gram - How much dry Negin saffron does each hectare of saffron land produce?
5 to 10 kilograms of dry Negin saffron - How many flowers does each hectare of saffron land produce?
1,000,000 to 10,000,000 flowers - How many corms are required per square meter of saffron land?
In optimal and row planting, one kilogram of saffron corms is considered per square meter - How many corms can be planted in a 5-meter garden plot in the yard?
5 kilograms of saffron corms - How many kilograms of saffron corms are required for 1,000 square meters of land?
125,000 corms or 1,000 kilograms of corms - How many kilograms of saffron corms are required for one hectare of land?
8,000 to 10,000 kilograms of corms, which is approximately 1,000,000 to 1,250,000 medium-sized corms
Saffron Tariff Code
On a global scale, every product and commodity has an international code recognized in customs, known as the tariff code or HS Code (Harmonized System Codes).
The HS Code for saffron or the saffron tariff code is 091020.
Saffron ISO Number (Standard)
The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) has assigned saffron the code 3632. ISO 3632 is the reference for standard tests related to saffron and specifies the standard numbers related to color, aroma, taste, and more.
Key criteria for measuring saffron quality based on standard 3632 include:
- Saffron Color: Crocin is the factor related to saffron’s color, with a numerical index below 220, and at a wavelength of 440 nm, crocin absorption is maximized.
- Saffron Aroma: Safranal is the factor related to saffron’s aroma, with a number that should be between 20 and 50. Maximum safranal absorption occurs at a wavelength of 330 nm.
- Saffron Taste: Picrocrocin is the index for measuring saffron’s taste, with a numerical index of 70, and maximum picrocrocin absorption occurs at a wavelength of 257 nm.
- Saffron Moisture
- Saffron Contamination
- Saffron Size and Shape
- Saffron Transparency
| Saffron Grade | Coloring Strength (Crocin) | Bitterness (Picrocrocin) | Aroma (Safranal) |
| 1 | ≥ 220 | ≥ 85 | 20-50 |
| 2 | 170-219 | 55-74 | 20-50 |
| 3 | 120-169 | 40-54 | 20-50 |
Saffron Daily Dosage
Since excessive consumption of saffron can be toxic, it’s essential to be cautious with daily intake. It’s recommended not to consume more than 1.5 grams of saffron per day. Long-term excessive consumption can cause serious harm to the body. Consuming more than 5 grams of saffron per day can lead to severe poisoning. One teaspoon of saffron powder is equivalent to 0.3 to 0.5 grams of saffron. One tablespoon of saffron powder is equivalent to 1 to 1.5 grams of saffron. Supplement pills on the market usually contain between 15 to 30 milligrams of saffron per capsule.