Could growing saffron be a game changer for Georgia farms? Researchers aim to find out

Saffron hand-plucked from many plants at the Rodale Institute. (Matthew Pearson/WABE)

John Raoux / John Raoux

Sharma Acharya kneels down in a little patch of grass. During a few weeks in late fall, he and his colleagues watch this little part of the field like hawks. 

What he’s standing in front of doesn’t look like much more than regular grass. But in it, Acharya says there’s something really special: saffron. 

“You may not notice where the plant is until you see the flowers,” Acharya said. 



Peeking out of the grass, he points to a little purple flower. He plucked out a tiny red string from the center — the spice itself. 

A blooming saffron flower in Chattahoochee Hills. (Matthew Pearson/WABE)

“It’s one of the most expensive spices by weight,” Acharya said. “It’s mostly labor intensive.”

Farmers have to gently harvest these little red strings by hand, ideally the morning the flower blooms. The human touch and incredible time commitment are some of the reasons saffron is so expensive.

Acharya said a gram of those red threads can cost anywhere from a few bucks to $200, depending on the quality. They’re used in all sorts of products, from cooking to medical research.

Acharya said it doesn’t take up much space, and once you plant it in the ground, it doesn’t need much watering or weeding.

Sharma Acharya points to a patch of saffron plants interspersed with other grass and small weeds. (Matthew Pearson/WABE)

That is why Acharya is trying to determine how well saffron grows in Georgia. He works with the Rodale Institute, an organization that researches regenerative organic agriculture, at its farm in southern Fulton County.

Rodale has a two-year grant for this project to see if a high-value crop like saffron can be successfully grown. He and his team are testing different methods, like putting some flowers under plastic tents versus out in the open.

Acharya said he is not expecting giant saffron farms to pop up all around Georgia, but he said farmers could benefit by adding it as a horticultural side hustle.

“If farmers can grow saffron, if they can diversify their farm, it can be an alternative source of income,” Acharya said. 

A saffron flower blooming in a patch in Chattahoochee Hills. (Matthew Pearson/WABE)

He said that in the U.S., about 89% of farms are small family operations, and smaller farms often face more challenges supporting their businesses than their corporate counterparts. 

Tim Coolong, a professor of horticulture at the University of Georgia, says that those small farms can be more vulnerable financially, and there’s a lot of incentive for farmers to consider adding additional crops. 

“Let’s say you have a complete failure in one crop. Well, if you’re only growing one or two crops, you’ve got a problem. But if that is spread out over a dozen crops, it can help mitigate some of that risk,” Coolong said. 

And he said with the storms and changing temperatures Georgia has experienced in recent years, it’s more important than ever for farmers to build resilience into their business models. 

Small purple saffron flowers in a small patch are photographed underneath an opaque, white grow-tent propped up by u-shaped PVC pipes.
Saffron flowers bloom underneath a plastic tunnel. (Matthew Pearson/WABE)

This is why many farmers turn to specialty crops—products other than peanuts and cotton, Georgia’s main money-makers. Some specialty crops are big in the state, like peaches and blueberries, while others are niche, like saffron.

“The scale of specialty crops, even though we use them every day in our lives, is just much smaller in terms of acres,” Coolong said. Some farms specialize in just growing a single type of specialty crop, whereas other farmers have them as just one of several produce items in their fields.

He said the amount of labor involved in saffron makes it a real challenge, which could turn off farmers. Some other specialty crops have the same problem.

Back in Chattahoochee Hills, Acharya said last fall was their second growing season and their last funded by the research grant. This year, they plan to present their findings.

A wilted saffron flower grows between small brush and weeds.
A wilting saffron flower grows among weeds and dirt. (Matthew Pearson/WABE)

“Even if our project is ending, we still continue with the work,” Acharya said. 

He and his team will keep farming saffron to learn more about how well it grows here. And, he said, they want to tackle their next question — just how profitable saffron could be for Georgia farmers. 

Note of clarification: A previous version of this story referred to the Rodale Institute as focusing on regenerative agriculture. This story has been updated to reflect that it works on regenerative organic agriculture, which includes farming methods required for USDA organic accreditation.