Spices have enlivened civilizations for aeons. These fragrant aroma have added zing to food, zest to life, enhanced the lifestyles with magical flora of whole races and regions and changed the history of the modern world. Commissioned by the Spices Board of India, Spice story is a richly-illustrated journey through each of the unique spices that can be found throughout Asia. The spice trade developed throughout the Indian subcontinent by at earliest 2000 BCE with black pepper and cinnamon , and in East Asia with pepper and herbs .The Egyptians used herbs for mummification. Their demand for exotic spices and herbs helped stimulating world trade. By 1000 BCE, medical systems based upon herbs could be found in India, China, Korea . Early uses were connected with medicine, magic, tradition, religion and preservation.
In India spices are called as “masala” in Hindi. We cannot even think our breakfast, lunch and dinner would be completed without spices. Spices are so interwoven with Indian culture and history that even Indian films are referred to as "masala movies"(This is because of many Bollywood movies are spicy blend of drama, humour, action and romance). Every year, India produces more than 2 million tons of spices. India is one of the top spice exporter in the world , accounting for more than 40% of the global spice trade.
Indian spices abound in the tropical ,highlands, marshes, rain forests, marshy woods, fertile valleys, and lush green fields. The history of Indian spices is rooted in Mother Nature's kindness and richness
Spices from China, Indonesia, India and Sri Lanka were formerly transported by camel caravans and donkey from one location to another. The Arabs dominated the spice trade for about 5000 years until Europeans could discover a maritime route to India.
Herbs and Spices such as black pepper, turmeric ,cinnamon, and cardamom have been used by Indians for thousands of years for both culinary and health purposes.
Spices such as black pepper ,cardamom, ginger, cumin, and mustard seed were included in ancient herbal medicines for various health benefits. In Ayurvedic medicine, spices such as cardamom and cloves were wrapped in betel-nut leaves and chewed after meals to increase the flow of saliva and aid digestion.
The mostly found chemicals in spices are arsenic, lead, cadmium, capsaicin. Canning, drying, freezing, smoking, salting, pickling, and curing are some of the most popular and widely used food as well as spice preservation techniques. Spicy food having chemicals that trick the body into cranking up its internal air- conditioning system, triggering responses from head to toe and involving everything from the respiratory to the circulatory system. The presence of various chemicals in spices cause several diseases and problems in our body and very harmful to our health.
A burning sensation starts across the lips and ignites the tongue also. Mucous membranes, which protect the lungs from harmful inhalable, go into overdrive, making the nose run. A surge of blood travels through dilated vessels and body temperature goes up, triggering a full on sweat meant to evaporate the heat away. The lungs used to send an alert to the diaphragm to hiccup quickly and repeatedly in an attempt to evict the fiery invader. A full-blown reaction due to spicy food is born.
The culprit is often capsaicin, among the most potent of the spicy molecules, found in most of the hottest peppers, including habanera and cayenne, but also in much smaller amounts in things like cinnamon and cilantro.
Capsaicin starts to release as a fine spray when you bite into foods that contain it, then triggers heat receptors in the skin, tricking the nervous system giving the feeling you’re overheating. In response to it, your brain cranks up all of your body’s cooling mechanisms.
In short, you don’t taste spicy food. You feel it.
As per test of some products it’s found that roughly a third had combined levels of arsenic, lead, and cadmium that were high enough to raise health concerns, and in few products the levels of lead were to high that they exceeded the maximum amount anyone should consume in a day. Oregano and thyme were found to be the most troublesome, with all of the products tested. The American Spice Trade Association says it’s almost impossible to rid spices of all heavy metals because of “the unavoidable presence in the environments where they are grown.
Spices and herbs such as cinnamon, black pepper, cardamom and turmeric have been used by Indians for thousands of years for both culinary and health purposes. Spices indigenous to India such as turmeric and cardamom were cultivated as early as the 8th century BC in the gardens of Babylon.
The main reasons for what Portuguese navigator Vasco da Gama sailed to India in 1499 are the control of trade routes and the spice-producing regions. When da Gama discovered the pepper market in India, he secured peppers for a much cheaper price than the ones demanded by Venice.
Some of the oldest spices during the spice trade were cumin, black pepper, cloves, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg.
The environment of India is absolutely perfect; heavy humidity, high rainfall, hot and dry weather favors the conditions for growth of different spices. Due to such a huge range of spices like black pepper,turmeric, cinnamon, clove, coriander and red chili, the taste of Indian food never changed.
India is a great producer of huge of spices. Among 80 types of spices grown in the world , approx 50 types are grown in India.
Black Pepper is the 'king of spices' . The origin of black pepper is Kerala – a state in South India.
Kerala, one of south Indian state is called as the land of spices.
With an estimated production volume of over 3 million metric tons, the state of Madhya Pradesh was the largest producer of spices across India in 2021. Gujarat and Rajasthan were the other major producers that year.
Out of 109 spices listed by ISO (International Standards Organization), India used to produce around 75 spices in its various climatic regions. India is one of the largest producer, consumer as well as exporter of spices in the world.
While Black Pepper is considered the King of Spices, the little green pods called 'Cardamom' is known as the Queen of Spices.
Andhra Pradesh is well known as India's largest spice producing state.
The infographic shows that, surprisingly, cumin is the most popular spice in the world, and coriander (or cilantro) is the most commonly used herb. In Africa and Europe, garlic is the most common among all dishes , and—no surprises here—oregano is common in the Mediterranean regions.
India is the highest contributor to 75% of global spice production.
Saffron is the most expensive spice across the world, it is used in products ranging from food to medicine and cosmetics. A kilogram means 2.2 lbs requires the stigmas of about 150,000 flowers and can easily sell for
The infographic shows that cumin is the most popular spice in the world, and coriander (or cilantro) is the most commonly used herb. In Africa and Europe, garlic is the most common among all dishes considered, and—no surprises here—oregano is common in the Mediterranean regions.