About

Kerala has been a major spice exporter since 3000 BCE and it is still referred to as the “Garden of Spices” or as the “Spice Garden of India”. Kerala’s spices attracted ancient Babylonians, Assyrians and Egyptians to the Malabar Coast in the 3rd and 2nd millennia BCE.Around the 15th century, the Portuguese began to dominate eastern shipping, and the spice-trade in particular, culminating in Vasco Da Gama’s arrival in Kappad Kozhikode in 1498.

The story of Kerala’s spices dates back to many thousands of years into the past. Kerala is famous in the world due to total monopoly overspices. “Idukki” is known in many names as “God’s own district”, “land of spices”, the second largest district of Kerala where 90 percent of land is covered by forests and plantations. This land is the primary producer of Pepper and centre of production and marketing cardamom, ginger, cocoa, clove, Tea and coffee.Spices still dominate the commodities trade in Kerala. Three-fourths of spice exports from India are sourced from Kerala.