Saffron: One of the most expensive spices in the world is taking back the fields of Ibiza

01/06/2021

It smells of royal saffron: one of the most expensive spices in the world is taking back the fields of Ibiza. Young farmers are following in the footsteps of their great-grandparents by growing saffron.

The Consell de Ibiza has hired Horacio López Córcoles, a saffron expert from mainland Spain, to guide interested farmers in Ibiza on how to cultivate this spice. The noble plant with the purple flowers and the red stigmas was already present in the gardens and houses in Ibiza in antiquity.

The Phoenicians already cultivated saffron here. Romans and later settlers did this too. In fact, historically, almost every finca used to have some plants for its own use. Saffron is one of the few known spices that has always been cultivated on the island and is considered a native garden plant here. Now the number of young farmers who want to bring the crocuses back to the fields in a profitable and ecological way is growing.