Poppy Seeds - Opium Poppy - Papaver somniferum - Food - Cultivation

Poppy seed is an oilseed obtained from the opium poppy (Papaver somniferum). The tiny, kidney-shaped seeds have been harvested from dried seed pods by various civilizations for thousands of years. It is still widely used in many countries, especially in Central Europe and South Asia, where it is legally grown and sold in shops. The seeds are used whole or ground into the meal as an ingredient in many foods - especially in pastry and bread - and they are pressed to yield poppyseed oil. The cultivation of opium in India is highly regulated and monitored. Legal cultivation of opium for medicinal purposes is carried out in India, only in selected areas, under free licensing conditions. India is the world's largest manufacturer of legal opium for the pharmaceutical industry according to the CIA World Factbook. India is one among 12 countries in the world where legal cultivation for medical use is permissible within the ambit of the United Nations, Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs 1961. In India, legal cultivation is done primarily in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh. Despite producing poppy for opium production India depends heavily on imports to meet the need for Poppy seed for edible purposes and domestic Codeine demand for medical purposes (more than 30% by imports). Opium is heavily imported from top-producing nations like Afghanistan. There is also an account of Opium black marketing in India. In Indian cuisine, white poppy seeds are added for thickness, texture and flavor to recipes. Here, poppy seeds are being poured from a glass jar onto a plate to dry in the sun at Tehatta, West Bengal; India on 03/12/2024.