Raw spices

United States exports of spices in 1992 totaled 87.7 million up from 85.2 million in 1991 (Table 4). Dehydrated onion was the most important export spice product at 36.1 million followed by dehydrated gadic, 7.5 million capsicum peppers, 8.9 million black and white pepper, 5.8 million and prepared mustard products, 4.8 million. Canada, Japan, and Germany are the principal markets for United States spice exports. The production in the United States of temperate 2one spices is increa sing every year some of this output is exported as raw spice. 

Many imported raw spices are processed and packaged in the United States and then exported. Because of strict United States food laws, many foreign purchasers prefer spice available from the United States, whether domestic or imported. Thus imported products may end up as a significant part of the export Hst. 

More and more raw spices are converted to finished products near the growing sites. This saves shipping costs of bulk vs concentrate. Rapid processing also assures less loss of flavor volatiles resulting from evaporation, reduction of colored components due to oxidation or isomeri2ation, and reduction of losses due to insect and rodent infestation. 

Paprika was studied along with several other spices by the same group [49] with particular reference to use in canned and salted fish instead of the raw spices. 

Economic Market. The spice trade is controlled by many direct elements and responds slowly to supply and demand fluctuations. Resupply depends on growth to plant maturity, which for certain items, such as black pepper or nutmeg, can be several years. The raw material is directly affected by climate, adverse weather conditions, and control of plant diseases and insect and animal pests. Limited agricultural scientific advances are appHed to the cultivation of the botanicals, and there are many grades of product and degrees of quahty caused by different growing or processing conditions, sometimes by unknown factors as well. 

On Wednesday night, designer fragrances perfumed the air like incense. Packed to its imported worm-eaten raw-wood rafters, Spice Market reminded me of the banquet scene in The Temple of Doom, when Willie Scott, Indy s blond nightclub singer sidekick, declines a platter of insects by saying, No thanks, I had bugs for lunch. ... 

Rockwell, P., and I. Raw. A mutagenic screening of various herbs, spices and food additives. Nutr Cancer 1979 1 10-15. 

A prerequisite for any quality control is the definition of how the characteristics of a specific raw material, an intermediate product or a final product of a manufacturing process should be described. This means that all characteristics for every single product have to be defined in adequate standards and specifications so that the results obtained can be compared with these data. Numerous standards and specifications have been established in more or less official specification collections, for example pharmacopoeias, the aforementioned ISO or DIN standards, standards of the Essential Oil Association or the American Spice Trade Organization (ASTA). 

Over the last few decades, safety has become one of the most important topics related to food. From this view, quality control of vegetable raw materials has at first to cover the following issues natural and anthropogenic contaminants (e.g. heavy metals, pollution from industrial and private combustions, not professionally deposited waste products, radionuclides), residues of fertilisers (e.g. nitrate), plant-conditioning and plant-protective agents, filth, pests, the microbial status and the occurrence of microbial toxins. It is not possible to discuss all these aspects in detail however, with a focus on herbs and spices, two of them should be stressed more thoroughly. For further information, see [8]. 

Another decision for the design engineer is the selection of the operation mode, whereby he can choose between the single- and cascade-mode of operation. In principle this is valid for multipurpose plants of medium scale, such as plants to extract spices and/or herbs. Fig. 8.1-6 gives data on the different production costs for a plant with a total extraction volume of 600 1, operated in different modes, but with the same capacity. The investigation is based on equal batch times (in our case 4 hours), equal mass-flow per kg of raw material and, of course, equal extraction- and separation conditions. 

Flavoring substances can also be added to opium, including spices, sugar, and/or honey to disguise its bitter taste. It is also mixed into opium wine mixtures, some of which are called Yen Shee Suey. Dross, the residue remaining in the pipe after prepared opium has been smoked, may be mixed with raw opium. Re-using this dross is a cost-cutting measure in opium production. 

Farm-level processing operations are the most important unit operations for value addition and product diversification of spices. It is essential that these operations ensure proper conservation of the basic qualities like aroma, flavour, pungency, colour, etc. Each of these operations enhances the quality of the produce and the value of the spice. The clean raw materials form the basis for diversified value-added products. 

Coriander oleoresin is prepared by solvent extraction of the spice. The oleoresin contains the volatile oil, fatty oil and some other extractives, but their relative abundance is dependent on the raw material, the processing procedure and the particular solvent used. Coriander oleoresins commonly contain about 90% fatty oil and about 5% steam-volatile oil. 

Water is the main constituent in peppers. In chilli, the amount of water is dependent on the age and type of pod harvested. Spice varieties allowed to dry on the plant may contain 70% water. Chilli fruits contain sugar, pentosans and raw fibre. Glucose accounts for 90-98% of the sugar content of red mature paprika pod. The amount of sugar in a pod varies by cultivar, agroclimatic conditions and type. Total and reducing sugars are at maximum levels in red succulent fruits. 

A. C. Marsh, M. K. Moss and E. W. Murphy, Composition of Foods, Spices and Herbs, Raw, Processed, Prepared, Agriculture Handbook No. 8-2, United States Dept, of Agriculture, Washington, D.C. Revised 1977. 

The Dutch were the first to challenge Portugal s domination of the East. Late in the sixteenth century, the Dutch East India Company established its overseas headquarters at Batavia on the island of Java. From this outpost, it quickly took control of the spice trade and deliberately destroyed plant life in the East Indies to dry up supply sources. The effect of an increasing demand for sugar, cinnamon, and other spices, and a market deliberately crippled through manipulation of raw materials, was a skyrocketing increase in prices. The wealthier the Dutch became, the harder they tried to keep other nations from securing a foothold of their own in the rich spice lands of the East. 

American Spice Trade Association. 1995. Raw Cassia and Cinnamon Sampling and Testing, Technical Bulletin 950522. 

Size and separation capacities of the extraction units have to be determined arithmetically. Knowledge of the required amount of solvent is not only important for processing, but also for the subsequent work-up of the extract. Since natural spices and drug extracts constitute complex mixtures, a significant constituent is here selected for calculation purposes and is determined in raw material, extract and residue. 

The examples discussed above clearly demonstrate that C02-extraction is a more gentle procedure than steam distillation. The smaller processing stress widely avoids the formation of artefacts. Therefore C02-extracts often have a better efficacy or a richer aroma profile reflecting the complete flavour or fragrance spectrum of the herbal raw material. This is also confirmed in the literature where professional fla-vourists have compared the aroma profiles of C02-extracts, essential oils and oleores-ins for a range of different spices [7]. Moreover C02-extraction is carried out under precisely standardised and controlled conditions which allow reproducible results. Since C02-extracts have their own character different from the usual distillates, they are new and powerful means for flavourists and food technologists to modify, improve or boost existing products or to create new premium flavour qualities. 

---