Turmeric processing
Practical Action
Good
Same
3
1.5 1
3
Fair Hard
5 2 1.5 5
Rajapore fingersb
Special
Hard to touch,
3
132
metallic twang on
break
Good
Same
5
1.5 5
3
Fair Hard
7 275
Non-
-
-
4-
-
specified
Bulbsc
Special
-
- 11-
Good
-
-
1.5 3
-
Fair -
- 25-
Table 1. Agmark standards for turmeric rhizomes (www.turmeric.8m.com/standards.html)
a Fingers shall be of secondary rhizomes of Curcuma longa L.; shall be well set and close
grained; free from bulbs; be perfectly dry and free from weevil damage and fungus attack and
not be artificially coloured with chemicals.
b. Same as (a); have the characteristics of the variety; admixture of varieties of turmeric allowed
at a maximum of 2%, 5%, 10% and 10% for the four grades respectively.
c. Bulbs shall be primary rhizomes of Curcuma longa L.; shall be well developed, smooth and free
from rootlets; have the characteristics of variety; be perfectly dry and free from weevil damage
and fungus attack; not artificially coloured with chemicals.
Varieties of turmeric
Alleppey
Madras
West Indian
Comes from Kerala. Has a deep yellow colour with a high pigment content (6.5%
curcumin). This type is popular in the USA.
Comes from Tamil Nadu. Is a mustard colour with a lower pigment content
(3.5% curcumin). This type is popular in the UK.
Comes from the Caribbean. It is a dull yellowish brown colour.
Table 2. Varieties of turmeric.
Grinding
Grinding can be a method of adding value to a product. However, in general it is not advisable
to grind spices as they become more vulnerable to spoilage. The flavour and aroma compounds
are not stable and will quickly disappear from ground products. The storage life of ground spices
is much less than for the whole spices. It is very difficult for the consumer to judge the quality
of a ground spice. It is also very easy for unscrupulous processors to contaminate the ground
spice by adding other material. Therefore most consumers, from wholesalers to individual
customers, prefer to buy whole spices.
Turmeric is one of the few spices that is usually
purchased in a ground form. The whole rhizome pieces
may be exported and then ground in the country of
destination. Alternatively, the dried rhizomes may be
ground at the place of origin.
Grinding is a very simple process that involves cutting
and crushing the rhizomes into small particles, then
sifting it through a series of screens of different mesh
size, to get a fine powder. There are a range of grinding
mills available, both manual and powered, of different
capacities and which work in different ways. The
traditional way to grind would be between two stones.
The advantage of this method is that the turmeric does
not get too hot during the grinding process. With some
Figure 5: Ground Turmeric Photo
credit: Practical Action / Neil Noble
4