Many countries and brands prefer organic and hand-picked Ceylon spices for purity and authenticity. Although Hand-picking is labor-intensive, it is a crucial method in the spice industry because it ensures quality, purity, and sustainability. Unlike machine harvesting, hand-picking allows for better selection, careful handling, and minimal damage to the spice crops which is practised by the few suppliers in the Sri Lankan spice industry.
- Hand-picking ensures the Superior Quality of Spices
Only the ripest and best-quality spices are picked when harvesting, ensuring a richer flavor and aroma. It prevents mixing with unripe, damaged, or inferior spices and foreign materials. The essential oil content of spices like cloves, pepper and cinnamon is conserved at careful handling due to the preservation of their potency.
- 2. Hand-picking protects Delicate Spices
Cinnamon bark must be hand-peeled for high-quality product. Some spices like Cardamom, vanilla, saffron, and cloves are fragile and require gentle handling to maintain their value.
- 3. Hand-picking creates Sustainability
Hand-picking prevents soil & air contamination and chemical residue, which is possible in machine harvesting. Also, Sustainable harvesting prevents over-harvesting and ensures continued production while supporting rural economies by providing jobs for local villagers in Sri Lanka.
Due to the above factors, Premium hand-picked Ceylon spices (e.g., Ceylon Cinnamon, Cloves, Cardamom and Pepper etc.) command higher prices in the world spice market.