Taste and use

That's what these mace flowers from Kerala are all about:

• Taste: Mace has a pleasant woody to sweet aroma. They have a more delicate flavor than the nutmeg itself.
• Quality features: This spice, which is difficult to obtain in this country, is grown in the forest gardens of Kerala without the use of pesticides.
  
• Use: Mace has a delicate flavor but a similar aroma to the nutmeg it covers on the tree. As a dried spice, it goes particularly well with mashed potatoes, cauliflower, carrots and kohlrabi. It is also delicious when added to a hot punch.

Cultivation and ecology

This is how mace is cultivated:

• Cultivation method: Cultivation in multi-stage agroforestry systems, without the use of pesticides. The nutmeg grows on a large tree that originally comes from the Spice Islands in the South Pacific. The nut is encased in a yellow fruit, which is used in Kerala to make a fine, spicy "pickle" that is served with rice and curry dishes. Some of the producers also know the secret of making a sweet nutmeg apple wine... The ripe nutmeg blossoms must be harvested quickly and dried carefully so that they do not start to go moldy. To be absolutely sure that the quality is right, they are also tested in the laboratory.
• Producers: The small farms of the members of the "Fair Trade Alliance Kerala" are on average just one hectare in size. The farmers grow a wide variety of products for export, for the local village markets, but also for themselves. Many have an additional income because family members work in the city or even abroad and support the farming families.

This is how the price is made up

The producers receive USD 28 per kilogram of mace. We pay USD 80 per kilogram of mace.

Cultivation & processing CHF 1.86

• Cultivation and harvesting: Fair Trade Alliance Kerala
• Processing and export: FTAK, Elements Homestead Products

Transport & logistics CHF 1.82

• Export and logistics: Unilogistics
• Fees: Customs
• Quality assurance: SQTS laboratory
• Packaging: Zurich plant
• Shipping: Post

Procurement & distribution CHF 1.36

• Coordination, communication, online market: Crowd Container