The International Taste Institute in Belgium, announced on Tuesday that after laboratory evaluations, Herat saffron was ranked first in terms of taste.

The Taliban's Ministry of Agriculture also stated that Afghan saffron has achieved the top rank for best taste for the ninth time.

The International Institute of Taste annually assesses the quality of food products from various countries and ranks them following laboratory tests.

On Wednesday, the Taliban's Ministry of Agriculture announced that Herat saffron, representing Afghan saffron, was evaluated in the laboratory of this institute and Afghan saffron has achieved the top rank for best and highest quality taste for the ninth time.

The ministry, citing statistics from the Agricultural Statistics and Information Directorate for the year 2023, stated that a total of 8,304 hectares of land in 26 provinces of the country were under saffron cultivation. From this total land, over 23 metric tonnes of saffron were collected, with 22 metric tonnes harvested from Herat province.

Earlier, the Taliban's Ministry of Industry and Commerce announced that in 2023, Afghanistan exported 67 tonnes of saffron worth USD 49 million to nine different countries.

The Taliban stated that following the prohibition of poppy cultivation, saffron cultivation has increased in 26 provinces of Afghanistan.