Eastern group on the trail of Kerala spices

KOCHI: The Kochi-based Rs 800 crore Eastern group has announced a novel competition to discover the origins and the lost traditions about various spices in Kerala.

Through the initiative titled 'Eastern Spice Route', the contest aims to revive the traditional qualities of spices and record them for future generations by utilising the social media, said Navas Meeran, chairman of Eastern Condiments, the flagship company of the group.

The programme intends to discover and compile all available details about Kerala spices, including their entry and exit into Kerala cuisines, medicines among others, and compile them into a book, he said.

Kerala was discovered as the spice garden of India by as early as the 3rd millennium BC. Several of these spices occupied an important position Malayali customs and in traditional medicines. However, over the years their importance has either diminished or completely lost.

"Our attempt is to revive the lost glory of Kerala spices and protect them through the 'Eastern Spice Route'. The competition will also explore the spices that have gone out of the state and those that have come in to occupy an important place in the state's recipes. This is a search to discover the tales behind the entry and exit of our spices into our land, culture and our cuisines," said Firoz Meeran, managing director of Eastern Condiments.

Every month, Eastern group will select a spice and participants are required to provide all details of that particular spice, their use, different names in different countries/cities etc through the competition. Those providing the full details will be chosen for prizes.