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The importance of spice in Zanzibari society reaches out much farther than the economy. For centuries, the Arabs, Indians, and Europeans have fought to have control over the spice trade and its valuable products, thus making it a very political issue. Spice also has an effect on the local level in which the use of spices and the types of food cooked can be indicative of one’s social status. Rice, which is a common staple in the coastal area, is often made with such spices as cloves and can be considered the food of the wealthy. People of the different ethnic groups in Zanzibar also have different uses for spices. An Arab might use cloves for its original purpose of curing toothache, while a Swahili person is more likely to use it in a rice dish. These different uses can sometimes create tension between the ethnic groups, and in the worst case, violence due to the different perceptions of who the spices actually belong to.
The tropical island of Zanzibar, located off Africa’s eastern coast, is widely known for its spice trade. The island, located 40 kilometers off Dar es Salaam, is a part of Tanzania and it is made up of two islands, Ugunja and Pemba. Zanzibar’s climate of average temperature (25-35°C) and its ideal amount of rainfall make it a perfect place to grow such spices as cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon, and black pepper. For this reason, it has been coined “The Spice Island.”
Zanzibar, also known as the “spice island”, is a group of small islands located about forty kilometres off the east coast of Africa. The main island is Unguja which is commonly known as Zanzibar Island. The other is Pemba. The islands are part of Tanzania. The term “spice island” comes from the fact that the islands grow the most valuable and aromatic crops in the world. Some of these crops, such as cloves, were introduced in the early 19th century by the Omani Arabs, who ruled Zanzibar at the time. Previously, other islands in the Indian Ocean (such as Moluccas in modern-day Indonesia) were famous for their spices. These spices were grown on plantations using slave labour which was a thriving industry in Zanzibar in the 19th century as the islands were at the base of the trade route for slaves from Africa, whose destinations were often plantations in higher price. Today, spices are grown mainly in small family plots. Zanzibar has always had an association with the exotic and it has been a popular tourist destination. The Stone Town (located in Zanzibar City) is particularly of interest and is listed as a World Heritage site, but the whole island has beautiful beaches and a rich culture, having attracted tourists for centuries. Today, tourism is one of the major industries in Zanzibar. Unfortunately, poverty is widespread and income from tourism is seldom spread equally among the population which creates problems of social disruption. Fishing and farming are the two main occupations, with the majority of the population being subsistence farmers living in rural areas. A lot of foreign aid is put into Zanzibar.
Spices are a part of at least 80 percent of Zanzibar’s population’s daily life based on an average individual consumption of at least 10 grams per day. This is a very high percentage for global standards, signifying the socioeconomic significance and cultural value of spices. Over 3000 smallholder farmers are engaged in the cultivation of cloves and other agricultural products and it is this community on which the industry significantly relies. With the abolition of the state marketing authority in 2001 and an increase in private sector-led business, the spice industry is beginning to show signs of stabilization but still remains vulnerable. This is a comparison to the effects following the collapse of commodity prices on the world market which resulted in a rather drastic decline in farmers’ incomes.
Spices are a rather significant zest to life on the Zanzibar Islands. They have shaped the islands’ history, their cultures, and the cuisines. The Arabs, Chinese, Indians, Indonesians, and the British have all influenced the islands and contributed to the spice trade. Zanzibar is now said to be the world’s capital for cloves and amongst the main producers for many other spices, encompassing a variety of crops, livestock, a strong fishing industry, and an emerging tourism sector. This assignment will delve into the types and production of cloves, the history of the clove industry and will consider its future in the enhancement of rural livelihoods, sustainable land use, and poverty alleviation in Zanzibar.
Black Pepper: Zanzibar’s unique type of black pepper was first introduced by the Portuguese from India and is sometimes regarded as being the best in the world. It never became an important export, as the Omani Arabs prevented cultivation due to its competition with cloves, which were more valuable and easier to cultivate. Today, the cultivation of black pepper is increasing and is another source of income for rural farmers.
Nutmeg: Cultivated in Zanzibar’s cool highlands, though not a major export, nutmeg is a source of cash income for many rural farmers. The nutmeg is a staple for use in Zanzibari cooking and is used as an ingredient in many mixed spices.
Cinnamon: Grown in Zanzibar for over 2 centuries, the spice was initially used to fumigate the rooms in which slaves were kept prior to their export to the Middle East. The cinnamon would mask the smell of the slaves, and Zanzibar became internationally notorious for this. The spice is not a major export and is usually consumed locally.
Cloves: One of the main exports since the 18th century, when the Sultan of Oman controlled the island and Zanzibar held a monopoly in the clove trade, which was controlled by the Omani Arabs. Today, cloves are still essential to Zanzibar’s economy.
In 1818, the first clove trees were introduced to the islands by Frenchman Admiral de la Cour. The current clove plantations are a legacy of the Sultan of Oman in the 19th century, who moved the seat of his empire from Oman to Zanzibar and clove (his favourite spice) became the leading export. It is said that the best clove oil in the world comes from Zanzibar. The oil is distilled from the leaves, wood and stalks which are left over after the cloves have been picked, in an attempt to maximise revenue from the clove plant. Clove has for many years been recognised for possessing a myriad of medicinal qualities and it is the world’s most recognisable spice. The dried flower buds are the cloves for which the plant is famed. Cloves are taken from the initial fruit of the tree before they mature and turn pink, and it is one of the only spices that can be readily found in its whole form in supermarkets today. Clove is commonly used in cooking across Europe and Asia and is an integral component in a wide range of spice blends from curry powder to Chinese 5 spice. In Zanzibar it is often used by locals to flavour a hot and sweet chai tea, which is said to remedy minor ailments and the common cold. After experiencing clove trees around the islands it is apparent that it is a resilient tree, with twisted, gnarled and almost ancient looking trunks, often grow to more than 30 feet in height and can continue to fruit for more than 100 years. Cloves are generally harvested twice a year and a good tree can produce anything from 5 to 20 pounds of dried buds annually.
It should be remembered that cinnamon is the dried bark of an evergreen tree which grows 6-12m in height and is indigenous to the islands of the Indian Ocean and the South Sea, as well as East Africa. Currently, the only place it is grown in any quantity is in Indonesia, with the Seychelles and Madagascar also producing some. The tree is harvested after 2 years, but it is only at the age of 10-15 years that it reaches full maturity. It is at this stage that the quality of the bark for spice extraction is at its best. From then on, the tree is harvested every 2 years for up to 60 years. Zanzibar actually grows a small quantity of cinnamon, often in home gardens, but production has declined with a drop in demand and a preference for imported and cheaper cassia. True cinnamon, Cinnamomum zeylanicum, has a sweetly delicate and complex flavor, and it is a shame that it is no longer widely available in East Africa. A study by the Spice Board of India found that a specific hybrid of the tree known as Cinnamomum verum 4M-Sel was suitable for Zanzibar’s climate and produced good spice; they concluded that there may be a possibility of reintroducing cinnamon to the spice farms on the island. Cinnamon is harvested from the rainy season bark of the tree; this inner bark will be 0.5cm thick and can be up to 3m in length when extracted in one piece. High-quality bark is carefully hand-crafted with a pointed tool to check and separate the outer and inner layers, leaving a scroll which on drying will curl into the familiar cinnamon quills. The outer layers are distilled to produce cinnamon leaf oil (Hasan et al., 2006).
Nutmeg is known as “the nut” of the nutmeg tree. An oval-shaped seed, it actually begins life inside a yellow fruit resembling an apricot. Once fully ripe, the fruit splits in two and reveals the seed, covered in a bright red, lacy membrane. This is the source of another spice, mace. The seed and membrane are dried separately, and the seed develops into the nutmeg. Nutmeg has a pungent, distinctive aroma and is warm to the taste. It is used in many recipes in the culinary world and is a popular choice in Africa and Zanzibar, including many Swahili recipes. In Zanzibar, nutmeg is believed to be a cure for an upset stomach, cold, or flu in the form of a concoction with hot water and honey. It is also somewhat of a tranquilizer when drunk with a concoction of coffee. High amounts of nutmeg can be toxic, and it is advised not to drink more than one cup of nutmeg coffee per day.
The black pepper is a very popular and most used spice almost all over the world. Black pepper is native of the forests of the Malabar coast in South India, an area that in this century has been devastated for agriculture of many kinds. Pepper has been used as money, and ransom through the ages, and was an important article of the overland trade between India and countries as far away as Egypt, Greece, and Rome, the most fabled of all trade routes to the western world. And it was the search for this king of spice that was one of the main factors in the establishment of direct trade with India. The coastal plains of Tanzania provide excellent land for the production of black pepper, and because it needs the support of trees, it can be mixed with other crops like sisal, coconut, or fruit trees. And one method of clearing the land for planting is to allow runner-stems to grow over cleared trees area. The trees are then felled and burned, and after planting the pepper, the trees are allowed to grow again. The spice is obtained from the dried berry of the pepper plant, an evergreen climbing vine, usually in small plantations. The sparser the better, since it needs sun and supports, and it is during the dry seasons that the work may get really laborious. The pepper plant begins bearing small round berries after about 3 to 4 years and normally can be effective for about 7 or 8 years, and the peak harvest season is usually two. The spice is marketed in many forms – green pepper, white pepper, and black. The green is the whole unripe fruit, and is preserved in brine or vinegar. White pepper is the ripe fruit, the berry with only the seed kernel removed, and black is the berry dried in the sun for several days during which time it shrivels and the skin turns dark brown to black and becomes a wrinkled thin shell.
The favourable climate and suitable soil is what makes the spices popular. This is what encourages farmers to grow the spices despite the hard work needed. Different spices require different climate conditions and soil. For example, cloves and nutmeg, which are the most notable of the Zanzibar spices, can only grow in temperatures which range from 20-30 degrees and require substantial rainfall. For cloves, the best rainfall per annum would be between 1500-2500mm, so they are usually grown in areas with a bimodal rainfall pattern. Nutmeg, as well as other spices like cardamom and pepper, can be cultivated in areas offering less humidity. Allspice and cinnamon, on the other hand, require warm rather than hot temperatures and less rainfall. Low humidity yields better quality cinnamon bark, and for this reason, a trial project of cultivating cinnamon was conducted at the Zanzibar cinnamon research station at Kibwe Zalambo, which showed positive results. Spices can be grown in a small farm or garden or on a larger plantation. Because spices are often inter-planted with other crops such as coconuts, citrus, or even coffee, they can be a convenient source of additional income. For small-scale farmers, inter-cropping can be better than mono-cropping as it ensures food security and a marketable surplus. But as a general rule, it takes about 3-4 years to get a first harvest from spices; therefore, a farmer needs other stable income sources. Cloves, however, are planted as a long-term crop and thus are the main crop in an area. For example, at the time of writing this content, there has been a lot of concern over the future of the clove industry due to an influx of cheap clove imports from countries such as Indonesia and Madagascar, which are harmful to Zanzibar’s economy.
Zanzibar, which with the adjacent Pemba and Mafia Islands is the largest single producer of cloves, affords in its climate and soil a typical example of the requirements of spice trees. These are most pleasantly situated. Cloves, like all the finer spices, thrive best on hilly country and do not bear the full heat of the sea level tropics. At an elevation of about 1000 feet, the stately spice tree flourishes exceedingly, but it attains its best from about 1500 to 2500 feet, particularly on well-drained slopes where it is sheltered from the direct force of the wind. High hills are the natural habitat of the clove, and a very light and rather dry soil is the most suitable. Clove is a shallow-rooting tree and requires a good deal of moisture but not stagnant water at its roots; to this extent, the soil should be well-drained. A watercourse which dries up part of the year and permits the land on each side of it to be cultivated canals to transport the water are essential is the best irrigation for all upland spice plantations.
During the nineteenth century, considerable information was collected at suitable sites around the world to discover in trial plots which were the best conditions for growing different spices. Much of this work was undertaken by the British planters in their colonies, and among the best results are Lockhart’s experiments in Penang, where the best clove trees were found to grow on the ‘pepper hills’ at an elevation of about 1100 feet above the sea, and Mason’s investigations in Seychelles and Zanzibar. These investigations have shown that the best quality of a spice is usually obtained when the natural conditions are as nearly as possible imitated. This is especially the case with Maldive arrowroot, whose cultivation has undergone a remarkable revival in recent years. Nutmegs and mace grow only under tropical conditions, but trees from which the best quality of products is to be obtained do not thrive at a lower elevation than 500 feet above the sea. A full discussion here of the best locations for growing different spices would be out of place; it will be more convenient to explain the natural and artificial conditions of climate and soil under separate heads.
In the cultivation and growing of spices, the methods used have not changed much since cultivation began. The success of many of the spices is partly due to the conditions in which they grow and also the organic farming techniques used. These techniques prevent soil erosion in the often hilly or mountainous areas to which they are native. This helps to prevent deforestation or loss of arable land through farming. For example, in the planting of cloves, the first step is to find the right conditions. The plant flourishes best at around 30°C and with a reasonable amount of moisture in the soil, this could explain why clove plants of Zanzibar in the past have been very successful. The clove is usually planted in shaded areas, in between other trees to prevent damage from the sun or heavy rains. Because the clove tree is quite delicate, the best way to propagate it is to plant the seed in a polythene bag, in fertile soil and when it has reached a suitable height it can be transferred to an open hole. Alternatively, it can be grafted onto other plants of the same species. Pepper, on the other hand, grows at its best in humid conditions and requires a lot of water. It is best grown at higher elevations and needs some kind of trestle or tree to climb up. The pepper vine takes about 3 years to start bearing fruit but can continue to do so for the next 30 years. Planting a vanilla vine requires a partial shady spot with plenty of rainfall and a high level of humidity. The plant flowers annually and it must be hand-pollinated in order for it to produce a fruit. This type of farming is particularly good for Zanzibar because this native forested environment suits the vine’s method of climbing and propagation, with good conditions yielding a successful crop.
When the spices are mature, the harvest can be done. The ripe fruits or vegetation of the various spices are handled differently. Removal of cloves from the clove tree should be done by hand, taking care not to damage the buds or surrounding vegetation. Nutmeg and mace are removed through hand picking the fruits, and the outer husk of the fruit is removed to reveal the mace which is then separated from the nutmeg. Both nutmeg and mace are sun dried for 5-8 weeks before further processing. The mace is dried until it becomes brittle, while the kernel of the nutmeg rattles around within the shell. After sun drying nutmeg and mace are separated from their outer shells which is a simple process by cracking the shell and removing the kernel and mace. Cocoa harvesting is the most labour-intensive task. After the ripe fruits are cut from the trees, the seeds and surrounding pulp are removed and fermented in heaps or baskets covered with leaves for 3-7 days. Fermentation gives the cocoa its familiar taste, and destroys the seed’s embryo so that it cannot germinate. After fermentation, the cocoa is spread out in the sun to dry for at least a week, and during this time it must be turned regularly to ensure uniform colour and quality. Dry cocoa beans are bagged and sold for processing into the final product of chocolate. Black pepper can be harvested at different times for a variety of spiciness. Fully mature green peppers can be preserved by canning or freezing, and are processed into the familiar black pepper when removal of the outer layer is done at a later time. This outer layer is removed by hand or machine and the remaining dried seeds are used to produce white pepper. Sun drying of fresh green peppers yields the dried product known as green peppercorns. Processing of spices may be required to add value before they are sold; in terms of changing physical characteristics, protecting from contamination, improving hygiene or making the final product more convenient to the consumer. This value can be added by processing of a lower grade spice into a higher grade; cinnamon is such an example. Lower grade cinnamon can be processed into quills from the thicker bark strips, and also by the removal of the outer undesirable rough surface of the quill. This rough surface is removed by scraping with a knife and the quills are then rolled together to produce a finer, more delicate, thinner quill. The highest grade cinnamon is obtained from the inner, thinner bark of the trees shoots. This bark is left to dry in curled up stick forms and is the most delicate of the cinnamon types.
These are only a few examples of the many spices and herbs used in Zanzibari traditional medicine, and the traditional healers of the Isles possess a wealth of knowledge on the natural treatment of a wide variety of conditions. Unfortunately this knowledge is under threat as younger generations do not wish to spend the years of apprenticeship required to learn the intricacies of the art, and would rather take a course of modern medicine. It is likely that the previous combination of the two will be lost, although modern scientific research is now beginning to confirm the value of many traditional remedies. This may be Zanzibar’s contribution to the world’s herbal knowledge: that the past may yet have something to offer the future.
Cinnamon is considered a great snack for the brain, and students often take cinnamon tea to improve their powers of concentration. It is also burnt as an incense in the sick room, as its sweet fragrance is believed to attract the attention of guardian spirits, who will then assist in the healing process. (Cinnamon was considered so precious a gift for a monarch in ancient times, that in Sri Lanka the king of Kandy traditionally held his weight in cinnamon and gave it away to the poor.) Ginger and garlic are both used to expel demons from the possessed, and cloves are used to fix the personality back into the body, which is believed to be the cause of various mental disorders. Clove tea is also a common remedy for lethargy, and is given to new mothers to expel the blood released during childbirth. Turmeric, aside from its common use as a cheap dye, is an extremely popular remedy for jaundice.
Medicine and magic are often combined in the herbal knowledge of a culture, and this is certainly true of Zanzibar. Ailments are understood as having physical and spiritual causes, and medicinal plants are chosen not only for their efficacy in treating symptoms, but for their ability to address the underlying condition. Spices and herbs play a major role in the prevention and treatment of physical and mental imbalances. Because there is no hard and fast division between food and medicine, all spices have some medicinal value, but some are used more specifically.
Spice farming and trading has continuously provided employment opportunities for Zanzibaris. Direct beneficiaries include the tens of thousands of smallholder farmers and their families, but also those involved in the transportation and trade of spice. In 1999, it was estimated that there were 152,000 clove farmers in a total population of about 800,000. This steady income from spice helps to raise the standard of living, boost education, and health. The latter can be seen by the progressive improvement in the diet of Zanzibaris as greater income has allowed for the consumption of more imported rice and maize instead of cassava and sweet potatoes. The link between spices and improved living standards can be seen in Pemba, where the ratio of people below the poverty line is much higher than in Unguja due to the greater rural diversification in farm activities away from dependence on cloves. Migrants or ‘shamba workers’ from rural areas have for a long time moved to areas with large commercial estates (whose main crop for export is cloves) to earn cash wages. This form of employment accounts for 5% of all wage-earning employment in Zanzibar. It was estimated in 1990 that 43% of the paid work on clove farms was carried out by migrants. Although the establishment of large commercial estates is perhaps not environmentally sustainable, this form of labor has frequently provided an important source of foreign exchange. The new excitement in spice as a unique tourist attraction may encourage a shift of the sector towards more sustainable forms of agriculture to meet the expected increases in demand for high-quality spices from tourists and development projects.
In this time, clove plantations spread to all parts of Zanzibar. This was to be the start of a type of production system based on revenue earning and tax collection. What is significant about this time in Zanzibar is that the rate of taxes imposed was not as ridiculous as the colonial period. In some places, less than a third of the harvest was the tax. Taxes were usually paid in cloves, and the rate was fixed. This gave some form of security for the peasantry, and there was even government control over the clove prices. Taxes were used for public works such as roads, schools, and hospitals. The indirect result was that the reverence of the clove as the tree of blessings was heightened.
Over time, in Zanzibar, there have been many different forms of spice production. The form of production which is carried out depends largely on external demand for spices and the need for fluctuating the labor to income ratio. In the early 19th century, when cloves were in great demand, Zanzibar’s economy at the time relied heavily on slave labor. In 1822, the foreign exchange value of cloves was approximately 270,000 pounds. By 1876, it had shot up to 2,500,000 pounds. The vast increase in the value of cloves led to the transformation of the system of government in Zanzibar. From this time, the sultans became mere puppets of the British. Their one concern was to maintain power, and thus to do so, they abolished the export duty and in some places even forced village communities to devote up to a third of their land to clove growing.
Here we will see how the spice trade in Zanzibar has affected the working class within the last 200 years. We will discuss the social organization of labor, the difference between male and female employment, and the changes in employment practices and the overall increase in the standard of living. The impact of the spice trade on Zanzibar’s economy is significant, and this can be seen through the impact that it has on employment and income generation.
Periods of liberalization have resulted in increased export of cloves and production levels. During the 1990s, when the world prices of cloves and other traditional spices have been low, Zanzibar’s primary response has been to diversify into the production of non-traditional spices such as black pepper, essential oils, and seaweed. This has been vital in ensuring through difficult times for the industry. The spice sector has contributed substantially to foreign exchange earnings.
Since the colonial period, there have been wide fluctuations in the world prices of spices. When prices have been low, Zanzibar’s government has been influenced to store spices in an attempt to raise world prices. This has had implications on the level of export. Storage of spices has subtly been a form of export restriction, and the government has been put under pressure from donors and the IMF to liberalize the trade of spices and abolish the monopoly on cloves.
Export of Zanzibar’s spices has been influenced by various factors, including the world prices of spices, the production levels of spices, government policies, trade liberalization policies, the emergence of non-traditional or new spices, and increased competition from other spice-producing countries and from synthetic substitutes.
Zanzibar has a very rich cultural heritage; spices form a very important part of it. Since the construction of the clove industry, it has been closely associated with the events from Omani period. Omani imams and sultans linked clove production with the building of a new capital in Zanzibar Town, establishing plantations and building many fine clove-drying houses. Zanzibar town still retains much of its old Arabian influence in the architecture so the look of the capital and the ruins in the vicinity give a unique insight into this early period of the clove industry. The third phase – Shirazi revival – saw the greatest cultural impact of the clove industry. The huge rise in the price of cloves from 1902 onwards led to vast increase in wealth from landowners and a property boom, reflected in the extravagant buildings of Stone Town and the development of Nungwi and Kiwengwa. At this time the sultans developed formal clove plantations, as it was considered the crop most suitable for provision of tax revenue and proved to be the undoing of the industry in the long run, as it always depended on world prices and the global events. In the post-independence era it was the government rather than individual farmers who undertook cultivation on small holders and the crop has never regained the prosperity of this age.
Globalization has brought in a new way of thinking, and the younger generation aspires to the modern way of life, considering farming as part of the olden days. Setting up the modern village becomes the future goal for current farming families. The younger generation that is not very much involved in farming often opts to sell their land for the construction of modern houses, contributing to deforestation and habitat loss. A large part of the forest has been replaced with cloves farming, where maximum deforestation takes place. The complete loss of habitat has forced certain animals to move out to the adjacent forest in search of a new home and new feeding ground. Highly poached animals such as the Zanzibar Red Colobus find it difficult to survive with the village neighboring the forest. Increased human activities such as logging, land clearing, and hunting have put this monkey on the list of endangered species. WWF, through the National Geographic Society, has established a project that helps to monitor the Zanzibar Red Colobus off the southern coast of Zanzibar. A study on the activity and behavior of this monkey has been done for a better understanding in preserving them. Currently, WWF is running a program to create awareness among the local villagers on the importance of protecting this monkey and its habitat. A campaign has been created with a signboard that shows road crossing of the Zanzibar Red Colobus, hoping the driver will slow down, giving way for the monkey to cross the road. Steps to conserve it are highly recommended and encouraged by the author to avoid this species from suffering the fate of the Zanzibar leopard.
Commercial vanilla plantations began to be established by the French in the mid-19th century. An ever-increasing output was seen in subsequent decades, when the output from Zanzibar and Indonesia both dropped despite a number of initiatives to grow vanilla elsewhere. These initiatives included such diverse places as India, Hawaii, and the Polynesian islands. As it happens, it is unlikely that without changes in the industry in these countries, the poor farmers in Zanzibar and Indonesia will be able to survive for much longer. In Hawaii, vanilla growing has declined in the past few decades because of the high cost of production. Labor is the most significant expense, an input of nine hours of labor per vine per year has been suggested. Disease damage by both the Vanilla Virus and root rot and sun damage have inflated labor costs in Hawaii. The expenses in Zanzibar and Indonesia are much greater still, disease and damage from severe weather can destroy crops entirely, and any harvest is susceptible to market fluctuations that seldom benefit the farmers. In recent years, the competitive price of cheap vanilla from Madagascar and India has forced many farmers in the traditional growing countries out of business. Even for the fortunate few who have contracts to sell to a major distributor such as the Totonac cooperative in Papantla, current prices are less than half the price at its peak prior to tropical cyclone Hudah in 2000. At the age of retirement, a Zanzibari vanilla farmer is likely to have a tale of better times in the industry, some will continue to grow small amounts to sustain a culturally important activity that ties them to the land, though it is rarely profitable. With more productive land use for food crops and chronic poverty, there is an alarming rate of conversion of fields and clove forests to housing and charcoal; it is now a rare sight to see the vine growing in its home country.
