1218-0939 TCXCumin

Unjha Cumin

India supplies roughly 70% of the world's cumin. Gujarat and Rajasthan grow around 90% of India's crop, and almost all of it passes through one market yard in Unjha.

70%

of the world's cumin

Botanical name: Cuminum cyminum
Known as: Jeeraજીરું
Origin: Unjha, Mehsana district
Harvest: February – March

Cumin seed pouring into an open jute sack

The story

Origin23°48′ N

UnjhaMehsana

Gujarat72°23′ E

India is the world's largest producer and exporter of cumin, supplying approximately 70% of global jeera and covering 70% of world cumin seed exports. Rajasthan and Gujarat together contribute about 90% of domestic production.

The trade has a single centre of gravity. The Unjha APMC — established in 1954 as Gujarat's first — is Asia's largest spice market, spread across 36 acres and hosting around 800 commission agents. Price discovery for Indian cumin happens here first and everywhere else afterwards.

The volumes behind that are real. In FY 2024–25, Mehsana district alone exported cumin and spice seeds worth approximately ₹3,995 crore to 101 countries.

[ Why here ]

UnjhaMehsana · Gujarat

Short-day winter sowing on light, well-drained soils in north Gujarat and the Rajasthan border belt. A dry, rain-free ripening window is the whole crop — an unseasonal shower at maturity discolours the seed and drops it a grade.

Specification

Measured