It takes 150 crocus flowers to make just one gram of saffron. For comparison, a spice like cumin, gets you hundreds of kilos per acre whereas saffron yields barely two.
Despite getting a prestigious GI tag from the Indian government and even a National Mission dedicated to its revival, Kashmir’s saffron production has plummeted:from 8 tonnes in 2011 to just 2.7 tonnes in 2024.
So what’s going wrong? And can India learn something from Iran, which currently dominates 90% of the global saffron market?
Reporters Mehroob Mushtaq and Numan Bhat, traveled deep into saffron country, met the farmers, walked the fields, and came back with a story that’s rich in detail, visuals, and hard truths.
Tune in.
Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India’s first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.
If you are a student who wants to participate in The Ken's case build competition, or if you simply want to read the case, you can do that here:
What is Daybreak?
Business news is complex and overwhelming. It doesn’t have to be. Every day of the week, from Monday to Friday, Daybreak tells one business story that’s significant, simple and powerful.
Hosted from The Ken’s newsroom by Snigdha Sharma and Rahel Philipose, Daybreak relies on years of original reporting and analysis by some of India’s most experienced and talented business journalists.