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The Spice Trail

The Spice Trail

2011•1h 0m•Documentary
Similars

Kate Humble goes on the trail of some of the world's most valuable spices revealing their history, trade, mythology and usage.

Paul Sapin · Director

StatusEnded
Runtime1h 0m
LanguageEN
First Air DateFeb 17, 2011

Episodes

Episode 1 - Pepper and CinnamonE160m

Pepper and Cinnamon

The first episode sees Kate Humble retraces the steps of fifteenth century explorers as she heads for India and Sri Lanka, the birthplaces of pepper and cinnamon. On India’s spice coast, she tells the story of pepper, the most consumed spice in the world. She does the pepper dance to shake the berries from their stalks and meets farmers fighting a disease that is destroying crops. In Sri Lanka, the story moves to cinnamon and she learns how the spice is harvested and cinnamon quills are made. She also witnesses the negotiations of local farmers trying to sell the crops they rely on to make their living.

Feb 17, 2011

Episode 2 - Nutmeg and ClovesE260m

Nutmeg and Cloves

Indonesia is the setting for the second episode and the spices covered are nutmeg and cloves. These two spices, grown on an archipelago of volcanic islands, drew European explorers in search of wealth but also led to massacres of local people and the decimation of their culture. Kate Humble meets the people who rebuilt their lives and communities around nutmeg and cloves and discovers how the battle for these spices led to the beginning of the British Empire in North America.

Feb 24, 2011

Episode 3 - Vanilla and SaffronE360m

Vanilla and Saffron

The final episode takes in the Atlas Mountains of Morocco and the plains of Spain for the world’s most expensive spice, saffron, before crossing the Atlantic to Mexico in search of vanilla. In the Atlas Mountains, she joins a local saffron farmer and his family to harvest their crop. In Spain, she joins a blind tasting to sort out the genuine from the fakes and meets the man who tests the DNA of saffron. In Papantla, the birthplace of vanilla, she meets the Totonac, the original guardians of the spice. She witnesses a fertility dance and comes face to face with the people determined to keep Mexican vanilla alive in the face of competition from other producers

Mar 3, 2011

Actors

Kate Humble

Kate Humble

Herself - Presenter

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