For centuries, Kashmir has been a center of saffron production, one of the world's costliest and rarest spices. But now production of 'red gold' is in decline due to changing weather patterns. Scientists are working to see if saffron can be genetically altered to make it more climate-resilient.
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00:00 Vibrant purple as far as the eye can see.
00:05 We're right near Pampur, known all over the world as the saffron town of Kashmir.
00:11 Around 30,000 families here earn their living by growing saffron crocuses,
00:17 a tradition often going back generations.
00:21 Faroz Ahmed's family is no exception.
00:24 When the crocuses are harvested in the fall, his young daughter helps him,
00:29 just like he used to help his parents.
00:32 But Faroz is worried about the future of saffron, known here as kesar.
00:57 So a lot more land is needed to produce the same amount of saffron.
01:02 At the Indian Institute of Integrative Medicine in Srinagar,
01:06 the development is also raising concern.
01:09 Researcher Nashiman Ashraf is working to safeguard the future of saffron in Kashmir.
01:15 Here in this mountainous territory, the spice is not only a cultural asset,
01:20 it's also an important source of income.
01:23 Since the last 13 years, I've been working on different aspects of saffron biology.
01:28 And the feedback we received from the farming community was that
01:33 there are three major reasons for declining saffron production.
01:38 One is unavailability of quality planting material.
01:43 Second is comrade disease. And third, lack of irrigation facilities.
01:49 More than 10 years ago, she created a large gene database,
01:54 detailing over 60,000 sequences of saffron crocuses.
01:59 The aim is to develop a plant that can withstand the new conditions created by climate change.
02:05 We have identified the genes.
02:08 We are in the process of coming up with improved, smart saffron,
02:14 tolerant to drought and many other abiotic stresses, and tolerant to comrade as well.
02:20 India is the world's second largest saffron producer after Iran.
02:26 It takes skill to remove the stamens of the flower that are the precious red spice.
02:31 For just one kilo of pure saffron, you need between 200 and 300,000 crocus flowers.
02:38 That's why the spice is so expensive, at around 2,000 euros a kilo.
02:43 Nashiman Ashraf is visiting the Yarikar Tangmaag region of northern Kashmir.
02:49 The crocus tubers here in the field were cultivated by her team in the laboratory,
02:54 to help them withstand climate change.
02:58 The plants should now be able to cope well with long periods of drought and sudden heavy rain.
03:04 And they should be resistant to the notorious corn rot too.
03:10 We could grow saffron successfully in all the 10 districts,
03:13 but this time we thought we'll expand the area, we'll collect flowers from here,
03:20 and then we will do quality analysis in our Jammu quality analysis division,
03:25 so that we see if the compounds which saffron is known for
03:29 are present in equal amounts in saffron grown here.
03:33 No saffron has grown up here for a long time.
03:37 But the new climate-resistant bulbs are thriving.
03:42 Recent heavy rainfall has not affected the plants, and they also remain disease-free.
03:50 It's a surprise even for the workers on the test field.
03:55 We never imagined this crop would be so successful in this area.
04:00 This has been a successful trial. The blossoms are excellent as well.
04:05 The crop provides better economic returns for farmers than other crops,
04:11 which is why nearby farmers are also coming here to express interest in cultivating the crop.
04:20 It's encouraging news for Nashima and Ashraf.
04:25 More test fields are due to be added in the next season.
04:30 This is the legendary traditional crop of Kashmir Valley, so we don't have to lose this crop.
04:35 We have to do every bit of our effort to preserve this crop.
04:40 In 2019, India produced 22 tonnes of saffron.
04:45 Only a fraction of that went for export.
04:48 That amount could increase significantly if saffron crocuses throughout the region can be made more resilient.
04:55 For most people here, that would be a dream come true, and mean they could soon increase their earnings.