Safran de l’Aveyron
Originally from the Middle East, saffron is a spice that is made from the three red stigmas of the Crocus sativus. In the month of October, this crocus develops its flowers that are the same colour as the lilac. Every flower must be hand-picked in the morning when it starts to dry and is just opened. The red stigmas of the flower are picked around a table, eliminating the petals and stamens and left to dry. Left to rest, the saffron develops its aroma after around a month: a flavour that is reminiscent of hay and slightly bitter. Two hundred flowers are required to collect a gram of saffron.
Since the 13th century, Aveyron was a land suitable to the cultivation of saffron because of its height. The saffron roads of the ancient region of Rouergue passed to the south and north of the department, in a triangle between Rodez, Albi and Saint-Antonin. It is said that every farmstead had a saffron cultivation in the 19th century. A festival for the product is held every year in July in the town of Saint-Cyprien sur Dourdou.
The cultivation of saffron plays a highly important role in the agricultural heritage of the region and has given rise to a dish, the Mourtayrol, a type of ""Pot-au-feu"" typical of Rouergue. Served in two stages, it consists of a soup based on bread, milk and saffron broth (made by placing the red filaments in an infusion) and another dish of mixed beef, pork and chicken. Saffron is an embodiment of its territory. It is frequently used by the Michelin starred chef Sébastien Bras in his restaurant “ Le Suquet” in Laguiole.
The cultivation of saffron in France is now subject to difficult competition with the version that comes from countries where the production costs are very low (such as in Iran and Kasmir, the largest producers in the world). France produces only 100 kilos a year, compared to the 120 tonnes produced around the world. There are only 4 producers of saffron in Aveyron today.
La culture du safran fait partie intégrante du patrimoine agricole de cette région, et elle a donné naissance à un plat, la Mourtayrol, un pot au feu typique du Rouergue. Servi en deux temps, il se compose d'un potage à base de pain, de lait et de bouillon safrané (où des filaments de safran auront été infusés) puis d'un plat composé de viandes. Safran de terroir, le safran cultivé dans l'Aveyron est aujourd'hui couramment utilisé notamment par Sébastien Bras (par exemple avec les endives pochées au safran, l’omble mariné ou l’oeuf à la coque au safran et mouillette aux épices).
La culture du safran en France est mise en compétition avec le coût de production moindre des pays en voie de développement ou des deux plus gros producteurs mondiaux : l'Iran et le Cachemire. Estimé réellement à 120 tonnes par an, la production mondiale de safran se répartit comme suit : l'Iran (80 tonnes), puis le Cachemire (20 tonnes), la Grèce (6 tonnes), le Maroc (2 tonnes), l'Espagne (1 tonne), l'Italie (1 tonne) et enfin la France (environ 100kg).
On compte quatre producteurs de safran aveyronnais aujourd'hui
