Spices
Turmeric
Ethiopia turmeric (Curcuma longa) is a spice of the same family as ginger that thrives in warm subtropical temperatures of at least 20° Celsius. It also requires a high level of rainfall to grow well which conforms to the agricultural south of Ethiopia.Turmeric (Curcuma longa L.) is one of the most widely grown spice crop in southwestern part of Ethiopia. It is a versatile remunerative cash crop and their primary product is the cured dried rhizome.Turmeric is receiving worldwide interest, due to the many health-giving properties being debated by scientists, and natural health practitioners.
Origin of Turmeric
Turmeric is not known in a truly wild state and is believed to have evolved from wild Curcuma through a process of continual selection and cultivation by vegetative propagation of the fingers. Curcuma is indigenous to Southern Asia, where it was domesticated and featured prominently in both medicinal and religious applications there.
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Turmeric was listed in an Assyrian herbal in 600 BC as a colouring and had reached China by the seventh century AD. Marco Polo described it as occurring at Koncha in China in 1280, noting its similarity to saffron. One wonders whether the young Marco had been sampling some more interesting substances to come up with such a deduction, for besides colour, there is little saffron and turmeric have in common. Even the bright yellow of turmeric is quite different to the golden orange–yellow of infused saffron.
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​Turmeric was known in the Malagasy Republic (Madagascar) in the eighth century and by the 13th century was being used as a dye in West Africa. Turmeric is a spice that features in Ayurvedic medicine, the traditional ‘natural’ medicine of India, and is said to be a mild digestive.
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Ointments based on turmeric are applied as an antiseptic, and turmeric water is an Asian cosmetic that is said to be good for one’s skin. Turmeric is used extensively as a colouring in foods (including confectionery and pharmaceuticals) in response to the increasing consumer demand for natural colours.
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Yellow turmeric paper can be used as a test for alkalinity, which turns it brown. The textile industry has also used turmeric for many years as a dye, even though by today’s standards it is not at all fast. It is likely that as the price of turmeric is pushed up with greater culinary use, longer-lasting synthetic dyes will replace it.
Origin of Black Pepper
​Ethiopia black pepper piper nigrum origin dates back almost 4000 years ago from the Western Ghats of Kerala State in India. The local name for the crop is kundo berbere.Globally the plant is so important that it makes up a quarter of the worlds spice trade annually.
​The crop is said to have found its way to the African via Portuguese explorer, Vasco de Gama during the 18th century. The spice is one of the most important pulses within the country’s borders with cumin coming second. Ethiopia
Exports of black pepper were worth $3.4 million last year. Locals use it to cook their dishes. During the ancient times, it was so valuable to an extent
Ethiopians used it as a currency. They would clear rents, debts, taxes and even pay dowry using its seeds which explains the origin of the name black gold. Non-farmers of this crop obtain its seeds from the open market as well as varying retail outlets around the country.
