Annex White book.pdf

Separation in Castile-La Mancha (UCLM)A2.3 DRYING OF STIGMASDrying is the most important part of the whole procedure and avery precarious one, during which stigmas lose 20% of their initialweight and turn into the saffron spice. Generally, drying can take placeby two different ways: according to the first, as applied in India, Iranor Morocco, the stigmas are spread out on large surfaces and left todry at the temperature of the existing environment (under the sun orin shadow, in sufficiently ventilated rooms). The other way of dryingis to apply high temperatures on the stigmas either through hot airstreams or by toasting them or by placing them in rooms with controlledtemperature.The latest of these techniques is used in all three European regionseven if some procedures differ slightly according to local experience.The producers of all three regions agree on the point that the stigmasshould be dried on the same day after harvesting before separation.If separation can not take place on the harvesting day, the stigmasshould be spread on the ground, on plastics, in sufficiently ventilatedrooms and on a layer of 10 cm or less (in order to avoid flower stickingand damage of the stigmas).125