The World's Leading Poppy Seed Producing Countries

Poppy seeds are tiny, kidney-shaped seeds harvested from dry seed pods which are obtained from the poppy plant. Poppy seeds are usually one millimeter in length. They grow well in any condition and are harvested when they are ripe after the seed pod has dried. Some poppy seeds are grown to be eaten whereas others are cultivated for the flowers they produce. Poppy seeds thrive well in dry, warm climates. Poppy seeds are harvested when the poppy flowers wither and the plant forms a seed pod. The seed pod is then cut once it turns light brown and placed in a warm room or outside with low humidity in the sun to dry for one to two weeks.

The Leading Producers of Poppy Seeds

Czech Republic

The leading producer and export of the poppy seed is the Czech Republic. In this country, poppy seeds are consumed locally and are majorly exported to other countries, especially to European countries. The amount of poppy seeds produced by the country is approximately 28,574 tonnes which is exported to other parts of the country and around 5,000 tonnes is consumed locally. The main reason behind this massive production is the local cuisine which favors a significant amount of usage. Due to the availability of land for planting and also ready market around the continent.

Turkey

Turkey comes in as the second with the production of poppy seeds reaching 18,205 tonnes. These poppy seeds are produced by both small-scale and large-scale farmers. In this country, there is an availability of land that is about 700 million hectares and readily available farming resources that farmers use to grow their products.

Spain

Spain produces about 13,337 tonnes of poppy seeds which makes it the world’s third leading country in poppy production. The country exports about 93% of their product to other countries and consumes the rest. The country earns a significant amount of revenue from exporting poppy seeds.

Others

The other leading countries in the production of poppy seed include Hungary which produces about 8,948 tonnes of poppy seeds, France which produces 5,777 tonnes of poppy seeds, Slovakia which produces 3,354 tonnes yearly, Germany which produces 3,082 tonnes, and Croatia which produces 2,897 tonnes annually.

Increase in Poppy Production

Poppy seeds are one of the few crops that are produced by few countries and supplied to the whole continent. The world’s volume on poppy production is increasing annually due to the massive production of poppy from the leading nations.