Red gold: Climate change plays role as saffron cultivation comes to Nova Scotia

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When Matthew Roy moved from New Hampshire in 2020 to start a farm in southwestern Nova Scotia, one of the new crops he zeroed in on was saffron.

A spice so expensive that it has been dubbed red gold, saffron is traditionally grown in Iran, India, Afghanistan, Spain and a handful of other countries.

"It's not just 'Oh, it's warmer in the winter or hotter or drier or wetter in the summer,'" Skinner said."It's more that we're having extreme weather events. When we have a drought, it is really dry for a long time. When it gets hot, it gets really hot for us. When it rains, it is often a deluge." "Farmers are adapting to that change," he said."Maybe the crops that we currently grow in these places, we can't keep growing them. Maybe farmers will switch to growing different crops, crops that are more suited to warmer climates."

Usually harvested from mid-October to mid-November, the purple crocus flowers are picked by hand. The petals are separated — also by hand — and the three tiny, delicate stigmas are carefully isolated, then dried in the sun, becoming one of the world's most expensive and sought-after spices.

 

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Red gold: Climate change plays role as saffron cultivation comes to Nova ScotiaWhen Matthew Roy moved from New Hampshire in 2020 to start a farm in southwestern Nova Scotia, one of the new crops he zeroed in on was saffron. A spice so...
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