Saffron farmer and exporter examining stored threads before the next harvest

Ali Hosseini argued that saffron prices in both Iranian and export markets were unfair because growers received too little of the value created by their crop. His historical report described a market with old saffron still in storage, the next harvest less than three months away, slow exports and high export costs.

At the time, Hosseini put saffron at 6–11 million tomans per kilogram. He said the range had changed little from the previous year and was lower than two years earlier. These are dated market statements from 2020–2021, not current price quotations.

The article’s deeper question remains useful: what makes a saffron price fair to farmers, traders and buyers? A fair market cannot be defined by one high number. It needs reliable grade information, manageable production and export costs, genuine demand, transparent inventory and a payment that keeps competent growers in business without pricing customers out.

Old stock was approaching a new harvest

Hosseini said a substantial amount of the previous crop remained in farmers’ hands and warehouses. With fewer than three months before the new harvest, slow movement became a risk. If buyers expect both old and new saffron to be offered at once, they may wait or bid lower.

In the destination report, he expressed hope that export growth during the pandemic would move the remaining stock before harvest. He warned against relying on assumptions rather than actual production, warehouse and export figures. Farmers and exporters make planting, storage and contract decisions from those numbers; inaccurate estimates can encourage too much inventory or unrealistic price expectations.

Exports were slow and expensive

The companion report was blunt: saffron exports were moving slowly and their cost was “staggering.” Hosseini did not provide a cost breakdown, so the phrase remains his assessment rather than a measured percentage.

Export costs can include testing, documentation, compliant packaging, finance, freight, insurance, customs handling and the cost of meeting a buyer’s specification. Some are necessary to protect food safety and traceability; others may reflect inefficient processes or market access barriers. The solution is to identify each cost, not treat every requirement as waste.

Hosseini also said target markets were experiencing relative recession. When foreign demand slows while stock accumulates at home, raising the asking price alone does not create a sale.

Why price rumours did not change the underlying market

Hosseini described reports of sudden saffron price increases or decreases as largely psychological. According to him, comments by people without sufficient market knowledge stirred prices for a few days before the market returned to its earlier state.

That does not mean sentiment is irrelevant. Rumours can change short-term offers in a thin market. But a durable move still needs a change in available supply, real buying, export orders, costs or expected harvest. This is why a quotation should be accompanied by a date, grade, lot size and evidence of completed trade.

Drought still matters to a low-water crop

Hosseini identified drought as a major problem for growers. Saffron is adapted to dry regions and its active season differs from many summer crops, but it is not unaffected by water stress. Soil moisture, timing, corm health and local climate still influence flowering and the next generation of corms.

The UN Food and Agriculture Organization’s profile of Gonabad’s qanat-based saffron system describes the crop as suitable for a water-scarce region while emphasising the role of reliable qanat irrigation. That distinction matters: lower water demand is an advantage, not permission to ignore drought or field-specific water management.

FAO’s Gonabad saffron profile provides the official water-scarcity and livelihood context.

The harvest bottleneck weakened small growers

Saffron flowers arrive in a short, labour-intensive period and need prompt handling. Hosseini said the large volume of flowers and limited collecting and processing equipment created an opportunity for brokers to buy flowers cheaply in the field.

A broker is not automatically harmful. Aggregation, transport and rapid processing can be valuable services when growers cannot handle every flower themselves. The problem is weak bargaining power: a small farmer with a perishable flower crop and no processing capacity may have only one immediate buyer.

Cooperative collection, clean local separation facilities, transparent daily bids and prompt payment could give growers alternatives. Any mechanisation or processing investment still has to protect the delicate stigmas and food hygiene.

Fair prices have to consider both producer and buyer

Hosseini said saffron should not be so cheap that production becomes uneconomic, nor so expensive that the market disappears. This is a more useful definition than simply asking for the highest possible price.

For a producer, the relevant cost includes labour, corms, land, water, nutrition, harvest, separation, drying, storage, quality loss, finance and a return for risk. For a buyer, the lot must deliver the agreed grade, safety, traceability and quantity at a price that can be supported in the next market.

When these elements are hidden, “fairness” becomes a slogan. When they are documented, participants can see whether a low offer reflects poor quality, excess supply, high transaction costs or unequal bargaining power.

Inputs should be affordable and appropriate

Hosseini called for fertiliser, pesticides and other agricultural inputs to be supplied at reasonable prices so production costs would not rise further. Affordability matters, but low price should not encourage unnecessary use.

Inputs should follow a soil or pest diagnosis, local agronomic guidance, approved labels and food-safety requirements. Healthy corms, drainage, sanitation, monitoring and integrated pest management can prevent problems that a routine chemical application may not solve.

Real statistics are part of market fairness

Hosseini urged institutions to consult people with knowledge across production and export, including the National Saffron Council. The specific governance arrangement is a matter for the relevant authorities, but the information principle is sound.

Useful market reporting should distinguish:

  • estimated production from harvested and tested output;
  • farmer-held stock from cooperative, processor and exporter inventory;
  • signed export contracts from shipments that cleared customs;
  • asking prices from completed transactions; and
  • grade-specific prices from a broad headline range.

Without those distinctions, a rumour about shortage or surplus can become self-reinforcing.

A modern quality chain can return more value

FAO’s current saffron work in Iran brings farmers, processors, cooperatives, traders and experts together around production practices, post-harvest handling, safety, traceability and marketing. It treats competitiveness as a farm-to-market system rather than a price intervention alone.

FAO’s 2025 value-chain update explains the official programme and the importance of smallholder livelihoods in Khorasan Razavi and South Khorasan.

A fair saffron price therefore depends on more than clearing old stock. Growers need viable costs and more than one route to market. Exporters need predictable, efficient compliance. Buyers need reliable quality and origin. Accurate data lets all three judge the same market instead of reacting to rumours.