Editor’s Note: Writer Kristen Hampshire originally interviewed Mohammad Salehi prior to the fall of Kabul, which occurred Aug. 15, 2021. After the Taliban regained control of the country, Hampshire reached out to Salehi to find out how current events might affect his family, Heray Spice and the farmers he works with. The story has been updated with that info. We will continue to update this story as events unfold.
Deep-orange strands from delicate violet saffron flowers are good as gold to Mohammad Salehi.
To him, it’s a sacred spice that promises opportunity for farmers in his home province of Herat, Afghanistan, education for children who benefit from some of its profits and a culinary delicacy for United States chefs who can buy it from his company, Heray Spice.
“The saffron is not appreciated in the local [Afghani] market — no one cares for the farmers,” Salehi said, noting how farmers are limited in the crops they can grow. They are constantly influenced by Taliban insurgents who want them to grow opium since the drug trade finances its insurgency activities.
In 2002 after the fall of the Taliban, when the U.S. and United Nations (U.N.) extended support to cultivate other products such as saffron, some farmers in Salehi’s home region of Haret, which borders Iran, took advantage of the opportunity.
Some members of Salehi’s family began farming saffron after the fall of the Taliban, finding the spice more profitable than other crops. Meanwhile, Salehi, who was an interpreter for the U.S. Army in Afghanistan, relocated to Chicago in 2014 under a program offered to those who risked their lives to fight terrorist organizations. After working several jobs to make a living, he returned to his home country to visit and hatched a plan to start a business.
Heray Spice — essentially a farming co-op — was born in 2017 with three farmers involved and six seasonal women who harvested and processed the saffron. Since that time, it has grown to 28 farmers and about 20 seasonal workers, all of whom are paid 30-50% more than market value. Ten percent of the proceeds go toward schools in the Herat province.
“I wanted to do something in connection with my country — to say, ‘This is from my land, this is what my family is doing,’ ” said Salehi.
In August 2021, the Taliban regained control of the country after the U.S. withdrawal. Salehi said businesses, such as his, are worried about the stability of the country and their operations. He also said he is worried about whether the Taliban will continue to allow women to work because they account for 80% of Heray’s operations and labor during harvest season.
“We are hopeful and fearful at the same time,” he said.
Meanwhile, Salehi remains highly motivated to create an entrepreneurial venture that can give…