How to tell real saffron from fake
Saffron is the most adulterated spice in the world. It is also one of the easiest to check, if you know what the thread is supposed to do. Five tests you can run at home, and the one number on a label that actually means something.
The one number worth asking for
Colouring strength. It measures crocin — the compound that carries saffron’s colour — and it is read on a spectrophotometer, not decided by a marketing team. Anything below 190 is not ISO 3632 Grade 1. Baby Saffron measures 200 or above, and the figure for your specific batch is printed on the back of the tin.
“Premium” and “pure” are not defined terms and no test sits behind either one. A grade and a number are.
Five tests you can do at home
None of these is conclusive on its own — a determined adulterator can beat any single one. Together they are hard to fool.
1. The water test
Put a few threads in room-temperature water — not hot, which forces colour out of anything. Watch for ten to fifteen minutes.
Real: colour bleeds slowly, gold deepening to amber, and the threads stay red. Fake: the water goes red at once and the threads turn pale.
2. The thread test
Look closely at a single strand. Saffron is a stigma, so it has a shape: narrow at the base, flaring to a trumpet at the tip, with a fine serrated edge.
Real: trumpet-shaped, deep red, uneven lengths. Fake: uniform little sticks, blunt ends, suspiciously consistent.
3. The smell test
Warm a thread between your fingers and smell it. Saffron's aroma comes from safranal and is unmistakable once you know it.
Real: honey and dried hay, with something faintly bitter underneath. Fake: sharp, sugary perfume — usually a sign it has been treated.
4. The rub test
Rub a thread between damp fingertips.
Real: a faint yellow-orange stain that takes a moment to appear. Fake: an instant red or orange smear — that is dye, not crocin.
5. The taste test
Put one thread on your tongue. This is the one most people get backwards.
Real: smells sweet, tastes slightly bitter. Anything that tastes sweet has had something added — sugar or honey is a common carrier for dye.
What ISO 3632 actually measures
ISO 3632 is the international standard for saffron, and it grades on three attributes, each read on a UV-visible spectrophotometer at a fixed wavelength:
- Crocin — colouring strength. How deep the colour is and how fast it releases.
- Picrocrocin — flavour. Saffron’s characteristic bitterness.
- Safranal — aroma. The honey-and-hay smell.
Grade 1 (Category I) requires the highest scores on all three. Grade 2 and Grade 3 fall progressively below. A grade quoted without a colouring strength number is worth very little — the number is what the instrument actually produced.
Saffron sold in India must also meet the standards set by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), which is what makes added colour a legal matter and not merely a quality one.
What saffron is adulterated with
The usual substitutions are safflower petals, dyed corn silk, marigold florets and shredded coloured plant fibre — sold on their own or mixed into real saffron to add weight. Powder is easier to adulterate than threads, because grinding hides the shape of whatever went in. If you are unsure of a source, buy threads: the shape of a stigma is difficult to fake and easy to check.
Price is the other tell. A gram of saffron is the hand-picked, hand-separated stigma of about 150 crocus flowers, each yielding exactly three, harvested in a window of roughly two weeks a year. There is no machine-harvested saffron. A price well below the market is not a bargain — it is the arithmetic telling you something has been added.
How Baby Saffron tests its own
Every batch Baby Saffron packs is tested for ISO 3632 Grade 1 in the company’s own NABL-accredited saffron laboratory — NABL being the Indian government’s accreditation body for testing labs. The certificate ships with the order, and the colouring strength of that specific batch is printed on the back of the tin, so the number in your hand refers to the saffron in your hand.
The saffron is graded by hand, packed against moisture at a humidity-controlled facility in Neemrana, and sealed tamper-evident. Baby Saffron has been a family business in saffron since 1840 and has sold under this name since 1965.
Baby Saffron is packed by USMS Saffron Co. Inc. under FSSAI Central Licence 12217010000080, which covers the Khari Baoli head office in Delhi and the Neemrana manufacturing premises. Anyone can look the number up on the government’s own register at foscos.fssai.gov.in and see the licensee, the premises and the expiry date — a claim you can verify is worth more than one you have to believe.
Common questions
How can I tell if saffron is real?+
Drop a few threads into room-temperature water. Real saffron releases its colour slowly — golden tendrils deepening to amber over 10 to 15 minutes — and the threads themselves stay red. Dyed or fake saffron bleeds red almost immediately and the threads go pale or fall apart. Real threads are trumpet-shaped with a tiny serrated tip, not uniform little sticks, and they smell of honey and hay with a faintly bitter note.
What does ISO 3632 Grade 1 mean?+
ISO 3632 is the international standard that grades saffron on three measurable attributes: colouring strength (crocin), flavour (picrocrocin) and aroma (safranal), each read on a UV-visible spectrophotometer at fixed wavelengths. Grade 1, or Category I, requires the highest scores on all three, including a colouring strength of 200 or above. Grade 2 and Grade 3 fall progressively below those thresholds. Baby Saffron releases a lot only after it clears Grade 1 limits.
What is colouring strength, and what number should I look for?+
Colouring strength measures how much crocin — the compound that carries saffron's colour — is in the thread, and it is the single most useful number on a saffron label. Anything below 190 is not Grade 1. Baby Saffron's saffron measures 200 or above, which is why a smaller pinch goes as far.
Is a label that says 'premium' or 'pure' enough?+
No. Premium and pure are not defined terms and no test sits behind either of them. The question worth asking a seller is the ISO 3632 grade and the colouring strength number, because those are measured on an instrument rather than chosen by a marketing team.
What is saffron usually adulterated with?+
The common substitutions are safflower petals, dyed corn silk, marigold florets and shredded, coloured plant fibre, sold loose or mixed into real saffron to increase weight. Powdered saffron is easier to adulterate than threads, because grinding hides the shape of what went in — which is the main practical argument for buying threads if you are unsure of a source.
Why is real saffron so expensive?+
Because there is no shortcut. A single gram of saffron is the hand-picked, hand-separated stigma of roughly 150 crocus flowers. Each flower yields exactly three stigmas, and the harvest window is about two weeks a year. There is no machine-harvested saffron, so genuine high-grade kesar costs what it costs — and a price well below the market is the clearest signal that something has been added.
Is Baby Saffron's saffron lab-tested?+
Yes. Every batch Baby Saffron packs is tested for ISO 3632 Grade 1 in the company's own NABL-accredited saffron laboratory. The certificate ships with the order, and the colouring strength of that specific batch is printed on the back of the tin.
Does Baby Saffron have an FSSAI licence?+
Yes. Baby Saffron is packed by USMS Saffron Co. Inc. under FSSAI Central Licence 12217010000080, covering the Khari Baoli head office in Delhi and the manufacturing premises at Neemrana, Rajasthan. The number can be checked by anyone on the government's own register at foscos.fssai.gov.in.
Reading further: shop saffron · full FAQ · what the research shows · the studies themselves