New Emerging Trends on Production Technology of Saffron
F.A. Nehvi, S.A.Wani, S.A. Dar, M.I. Makhdoomi, B.A. Allie, Z.A. Mir
K. D. Research Station
Sher-e-KashmirUniversity of Agricultural Sciences & Technology
Kashmir
India
Keywords: Crocus sativus, declination, genetic improvement, quality improvement, yield enhancement
Abstract
Owing to incredible utilization of saffron, the world production is not sufficient enough to meet the growing global demand because most of the European countries have abandoned the saffron cultivation due to high cost of production and urbanization of rural areas and as such chances of it’s horizontal expansion are very slow. However, in India there is a tremendous human resource base as such saffron industry has an ample scope to expand provided saffron in India is cultivated on scientific lines and replantation in the traditional & non-traditional areas is taken up. Keeping in view a strong association of more than 95,000 farm families with this crop directly or indirectly in IranIndia efforts are to be made to safeguard the interests of growers by making the industry more profit oriented. Lack of availability of high yielding saffron cultivars, high input cost due to non availability of planting material, lack of mechanization, dry land farming, spreading inoculum of saffron corm rot, post harvest losses and poor market due to involvement of agents and middlemen are the major causes of saffron decline. The possibility of improving yield per se through genetic manipulation have been showing encouraging results in recent years. However, sustained efforts are required towards genetic improvement of saffron to develop high yielding varieties through mutual exchange of germplasm base across saffron growing countries of the world, followed by their molecular characterization. In order to increase the productivity and the fertility of these soils, there is a need to adopt the integrated nutrient supply and management (INSAM) practices. Introduction of post harvest technology for flower picking, separation of pistil and quick reduction in moisture have potential to bring about improvement over strenuous traditional practices and returns to the growers from the superior quality product.
INTRODUCTION
Saffron (Crocus sativus L.) has a considerable place as spice for the last 3500 years (Plessner et al., 1989). Odor (safranel), taste (picrocrocin) and pigment (crocin) components constituting the spice “Saffron” are localized in the red stigmatic lobes of the C. sativus flower (Himeno and Sano, 1987; Neghbi et al., 1989; Plessner et al., 1989). Saffron is currently being cultivated more or less intensively in Iran, India, Greece, Spain, Italy, Turkey, France, Switzerland, Israel, Pakistan, Azerbaijan, China, Egypt, United Arab Emirates, Japan, Afghanistan Iraq and recently in Australia, (Tasmania). While the world’s total annual saffron production is estimated at 2.05 t per year, Iran with more than 47,000 ha, of land under saffron cultivation is said to produce 80 percent of this total i.e., 160 t. Khorasan province alone accounts for 46,000 ha and 137 t of above mentioned total, respectively. (Parviz et al., 2004). Iran exported 147.3 t of saffron valued at 81.282 million dollars during the first tenth months starting from March, 20, 2004 registering a rise of 47 per cent (IRNA, Tehran, Feb,9). 75 percent of the aforesaid amount was exported to United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Spain. Saudi Arabia, France and India were among other destinations of Iran’s saffron export. The Kashmir region in India produces between 5 to 6 t mostly dedicated to Indian’s self consumption. Saffron export from India declined from 9.7 t (1998-99) to 8.7 tons (2000-01) associated with a decline in spot price of saffron from Rs. 32,936/Kg ($ 866) in 1997-98 to Rs.17,500 ($ 374) in 2004-05.
Sterility in saffron which limits the application of conventional breeding approaches for its further improvement is one of the main reasons for its low productivity. Systematic clonal selection and induction of genetic variability through physical mutagens using Co60 radiation sources has lead to the identification of elite clones suitable for the region. Traditional practices of saffron cultivation which ignore importance of water requirement, manural requirement, management of weeds, pests and disease and post harvest processing has been a matter of great concern particularly in Kashmir. The ignorance limits the benefits resulting in low I/O ratio. Non availability of saffron quality planting material has been another area which has affected the replantation and area expansion as the availability of quality planting material in India is less than 10 %. Since more than 95,000 farm families are associated with the crop directly or indirectly in major saffron growing countries particularly in Iran and India, therefore, efforts are to be made to safeguard the interests of saffron growers by making the industry more profit earning.
DECLINATION OF SAFFRON
In Kashmir decline in saffron area has been observed from 5704 ha (1997-98) to 2742 ha (2004-05) which amounts to 52 %, whereas, in 1971 saffron cultivation in Spain was 6000 hectares while at present the surface area is 200 ha showing a decline of 97 %. Decline in area reflected in low saffron production is attributed to low I/0 ratio due to intensive and expensive cost of cultivation and low market price. In Kashmir low productivity of saffron (1.88 Kg/ha) and high cost of cultivation has been primer concern which lead to low I/O ratio of 1:0.69 (Anonymous, 2004). The input items are procured by the growers either against cash payments or on loans from government or cooperative agencies or supplied from home by way of human labor, animal labor, manure etc. Labor constituting around 64 % of the operational cost and 62 % of the total input cost occupies the prominent position among all the inputs under traditional practices. During 2004, the average output value per ha has been of the order of Rs.24087.22 against the total input cost of Rs.35067.68 and two have resulted in the I/O ratio of 1:0.69. The study conducted on the same crop during Kharif, 1998 have thrown an I/O ratio in the vicinity of 1:2.49. Low I/O ratio of 1:0.69 sounds an alarm of danger for the cultivation of saffron crop and conveys signal of caution for the Government. The ratio suggests that saffron cultivation have suffered losses of the order of 30 percent on their investment on cultivation. Obviously this cannot be sustained by them for long (Table1).
Lack of high yielding cultivars adopted to diverse growing conditions; large area under rainfed cultivation; biotic and abiotic stresses; poor plant stand, moisture stress at terminal growth stage; inadequate seed replacement rate, poor crop management; resource poor farmers; Low risk bearing capacity; inadequate input and technical support; poor infrastructure and institutional support; inefficient technology delivery system; limited policy directives and incentives and crop damage due to menace of corm rot are the important production constraints which need to be taken care off.
Poor marketing structure which is susceptible and vulnerable to the on slaught of middleman and commission agents has been another important issue in saffron decline. More than 67 % of the saffron growers sell their produce to the middleman and commission agents, whereas, percentage of farmers selling their produce directly to whole sellers in Delhi, Amritsar, Calcutta, Mumbai, etc. is 1-20 % and through cooperative societies is only 10 % (Munshi, 2002).The involvement of two many Dalal’s/Agents/Brokers in the marketing system results in quality deterioration of saffron due to addition of adultrants thus reducing the spot price of saffron. Difficulty in saffron marketing and fast migration from rural area to cities has been the causes of saffron decline in Turkey which has come to an end (Vurdu, 1993).
EMERGING TRENDS
To boost the saffron industry and to revive its cultivation in traditional saffron growing countries of the world the best resource available is to improve the productivity level of this crop so as to make it more remunerative and cost effective. In India there is a tremendous human resource base as such saffron industry has an ample scope for expansion. Vertical saffron expansion is possible through the development of high input responsive cultivars with multiple resistance against corm rot and drought, whereas, for horizontal expansion there is an immediate need of intensive cropping systems and extension of saffron in non-traditional areas as a substitute for low value crops.
Genetic Improvement
Traditionally plant breeding techniques are based on a massive selection of the best samples among natural cultivated populations, genetic breeding with wild ancestral species, and spontaneous induced mutations. Absence of seed formation due to triploidy in saffron is a limitation for application of conventional breeding approach for further improvement. The actual genetic variability present in Crocus sativus L. at world wide scale is currently unknown, however, there has been efforts by different researchers to this effect using non conventional breeding techniques (Estilai, 1978; Dhar et al., 1988; Bagheri, 1989; Nehvi et al., 2003). Examination of saffron corms from different countries (Italy, Israel, Spain, andHolland) revealed differences in respect of flower size, tepla shape and colour intensity (Grilli Caiola et al., 2001). Barring little efforts no germplasm collection of saffron in the world has been created and there is no list of descriptors published by the IPGRA. There is an immediate need to construct a list of morphological, molecular, phonological, agronomical and biochemical descriptors valid for the genus crocus besides descriptors of susceptibility to stress factors, resistance to plagues, diseases and abiotic factors. The creation of collection will contribute not only to slow down the intense genetic erosion but also will make available a wide variety of crocus genotypes of potential carrier of interesting genes for plant breeders, e.g., resistance to biotic and abiotic stress, reserve accumulation, biosynthesis of secondary metabolites etc.
The research work on saffron has relied on clonal selection for development of high yielding cultivars. High yielding potential of saffron clones under trial in Iran and Kashmir with a distinct yield advantage over the existing natural population offer’s a tremendous scope for yield enhancement. Studies in Iran revealed superiority of 3 accessions including Shahr-kord, Birjand and Ghaen with 3.62, 2.67 and 2.26 Kg/ ha dry stigma yield (Parviz et al., 2004). Similar studies in Kashmir by Sher-e- Kashmir Agricultural University has confirmed yield superiority of 10 genotypes viz., SMD-3, SMD-11, SMD-31, SMD-45, SMD-52, SMD-68, SMD-79, SMD-81, SMD-211 and SMD-224 with 4.3, 4.2, 4.8, 7.6, 4.4, 5.3, 4.4, 4.2, 5.06 and 4.5 Kg/ha dry pistil yield showing high crocin content ranging from 13.89 percent to 17.10 percent (Table 2)
Sustained efforts are required towards genetic improvement of saffron to develop high yielding cultivars through mutual exchange of germplasm base across saffron growing countries of the world, followed by their molecular characterization. Detailed genetic maps to be developed would provide valuable tool for the identification of important genes. The establishment of markers for important genes should enable the selection of superior types and the pyramiding of genes from several genetic backgrounds. Efforts to this extent have already been initiated by several workers (Zanier, 2000; Julia Parda et al., 2004). The techniques of cell culture and somoclonal variation to select variants mutants for various biotic and abiotic stresses would be fruitful. It is expressed that biotechnology will find higher application in saffron improvement. In vitro mass production of pathogen free corms offers a tremendous scope in saffron. However, the present protocol available for in vitrocorm production (Piqueras et al., 1999; Blazquez, 2004; Karamian, 2004) is not effective in the production of flowering corms. To make technique commercially viable and productive there is an immediate need to improve the protocol so that mass production of pathogen free corms is taken at an earliest.
Because of triploidy mutagenesis offers another platform for genetic restructuring of saffron plants morphologically and physiologically with high stability. Preliminary results of induced genetic variability through gamma irradiation and induction of polyploidy through colchinization are not completely hopeful and probably would require further work (Akund-Zade and Mazaferova, 1975; Laneri et al., 1983; Khan, 2004; Gull et al., 2004)
Yield Enhancement
For any crop the success in terms of productivity is determined by its technologies and the extent to which they are farmer’s eco friendly. Horizontal expansion in saffron is possible only when quality planting material is available so that the traditional as well as the non-traditional saffron belts in different countries are brought under replantation. In Kashmir 16,195 t of quality saffron corms are required to replant 3239 hectares of saffron area in traditional areas. Just as in other horticultural crops nursery management for raising planting material has to be introduced in the cropping system, as otherwise, under present production system growers cultivated saffron only for the economic product (Pistil) and ignore the importance of corms as a major factor of returns in saffron. Studies in Kashmir by SKUAST-K reveals a significant impact of nursery management system on the production of corms in the ratio of 60:40. Management involves planting of non flowering corms weighing less than 7g @ 50 q/ha accompanied with pre and post winter weeding under a carpet of well rotten FYM @ 20-30 t/ha. Availability of corms at cheaper rates will ensure low initial cost of inputs which otherwise is very high.
The sustainability in saffron cropping system is the most vital aspect to improve the status of the crop and economy of the growers. In order to increase the productivity and the fertility of these soils, there is a need to adopt the integrate nutrient supply and management (INSAM) practices. Researchers have recommended application of FYM and inorganic fertilizers; however, the adoption level of this technology particularly in Kashmir is meager due to non availability and high cost of FYM. Present studies in Kashmir suggest application of biofertilizers viz., Azospirilum in combination with Pseudomonas or VAM@ 250 g mixed in 10 l of water alongwith 1 kg of sugar as a seed dip for half an hour followed by shade drying. Microbial inoculation enhance saffron yield on account of increased number of flowers to the tune of 15%. Beneficial effect of organic and inorganic fertilizers through IPNS has been reported by several workers (Behnia,1994; Hosseini,1997).
Scarcity of water during active stage of crop growth has been a matter of great concern for the saffron crop in all the saffron growing countries. Iran is mainly, an arid and semi arid country, Greece and Spain receive 400-500 mm rainfall annually, whereas, saffron in India is exclusively cultivated on elevated topography (kerawas) without any water source. Therefore the myth that saffron can be cultivated with high productivity without water is no longer true, as present investigations in Kashmir have indicated increase in saffron yield by a margin of 40% by supplementing water to saffron in the month of September and October (Pre-flowering) and November and December (Post flowering) through sprinklers @ 700 m 3/ha (Nehvi et al., 2004). Importance of water in saffron has also been reported (Sadeghi, 1988; Koocheki, 1996; Mosaferi, 2001; Shirmohammadi, 2003).
Growth and development of saffron is badly affected by the saffron weeds. In Kashmir weeding in saffron fields is not generally practiced during the crop growth as a result the saffron crop is deprived of nutrients resulting in retarded growth as well as ill effect on growth and multiplication of corm. Survey reports from Kashmir identifies 21 species viz; Tulipa stellata, Erodium cicutanium, Lithospermum arvense, Aegilops tauschi, Salvia moorcroftiana, Thymus linearis, Poa bulbosa, Crepis saneta, Descurainea Sophia, Chonspora tanella, Galium tricorne, Geranium pusillum, Euphorbia helioscopia, Chonspora tanella, Papaver sp., Lepidium virginicum, Ranunculus arvensis, Medicago lupilina, Valerianella dentate, Polygonum aviculare and Chenopodium album belonging to families Liliaceae Geraniaceae, Boraginaceae, Poaceae, liariatae, Lamiaceae, Poaceae, Asteraceae, Brassicacae, Rubiaceae, Geraniaceae, Euphorbiaceae, Papaveraceae, Ranunculaceae, Papilionacea,e Valerianaceae, Polygonaceae, Chenopodiacaee. In Iran 184 species of weeds were reported to grow in saffron farms (Rashed Mohasel, 1990; Abbasi, 1997). Menace of weeds in the saffron fields encourages rodent population leading to heavy reduction in corm population. Therefore, control of weeds is imperative as manual weeding is time consuming and labour intensive. For control of summer weeds with saffron dormancy Glyphosate and 2,4-D @ 1 Kg/ha are recommended, whereas, broad leaved weeds are controlled by Metribuzin 70% @ 1 Kg/ha as pre and post emergence and narrow leaved weeds by Pendamethalin 33% @ 3 l/ha.
Saffron corm rot which is a great threat to the saffron industry particularly in India has to be controlled as 21% of the saffron area in Pampore of Kashmir is highly infected with inoculum of Fusariummonliformi var inter medium Naish & laggett. Longer planting cycle and replanting of unsorted corms has been the main cause of increased disease incidence. Jafarpur (1991) reported corm rot as an important disease of saffron in Iran. Crop management based on shorter planting cycle and initial corm treatment with cabendizine 50 WP @ 0.1% with Mancozeb 75 WP @ 0.03 % has been found effective in control of disease in Kashmir (Nehvi, et al., 2004).
Quality Improvement:
Post harvest losses on account of prolonged separation of pistil, drying and packing has been a cause of low spot price due to poor quality on account of high microbial load. Separation of pistil from flowers within 6-8 hours of picking followed by drying using dryers (Solar/Hot Air) improves quality by 60% (Nehvi et al., 2005). Drying at 40 + 5 0C takes 4-6 hours for drying and show’s pigment concentration very close to that found in fresh saffron (13-14% on dry weight basis). Traditional shade drying which takes 27-53 hours and is common in Kashmir is responsible for biodegradation of crocin into Crocetin thus lowering the quality of product which otherwise is high because of high crocin and saffranal content. Due to constraints in quality control, saffron traders blend the saffron with the number of adulterants, therefore, there is immediate need to upgrade and strengthen the quality control laboratories so as to maintain quality of the product.
CONCLUSION
Scientific technologies developed by SKUAST-K in Kashmir to enhance saffron productivity suggest an I/O ratio of 1:1.39. Adoption leads to output per ha to the order of Rs.3,16,910, as against the total input cost of Rs.1,32,650. The productivity level through adoption of scientific technology is expected to rise to 7-8 Kg/ha, which in turn will enhance production from 5.15 t to 19.9 t giving an additional exchequer of Rs.36 crores to the State. If the recommended technology is adopted in Kashmir over an area of 5707 ha which has declined to 2742 ha the projected figure shall be 39 t with total revenue of Rs.104 crores.
AcknowledgementS