Cardamom from Farm to Market
Tour Overview
Cardamom - Farm to Market is a day tour program organized from Beaumont Plantation Retreat nestled in the cardamom hills of Kerala. The program is designed for guests who would love to know and understand more about Cardamom. You get to know more about the history, the plant, the harvest, the processing, grading, auctioning and finally how it is distributed all across the world. Cardamom from the Cardamom Hills of Kerala in Southern India is known for its top quality, aroma, liter weight, size, and shape. The history of cardamom export to different civilizations from the Malabar Coast of South West India is as old as maritime trade. The Romans, Greeks, Egyptians, Mesopotamians, and Arabs used cardamom for multiple purposes including as a medicine. It was used for mummification by Egyptians, as an ingredient in coffee by Arabs, as a medicine by Greeks, as a perfume by Romans and a lot more. In many ancient Indian books, cardamom is identified as a "green pearl" found on the banks of the river in the hills of the South.
Tour Program
Tour Starting and End Point - Beaumont Plantation Retreat, Chellarkovil - Thekkady (13 Kilometers from Kumily Town center.
09:30 hours - Start the tour to a nearby plantation where the guide would explain you about the cardamom hills of Kerala and how the Travancore Kingdom identified cardamom as a great source of revenue for the Kingdom.
10:00 hours - On reaching the plantation, which could either be a large one or a small one. The guide would be explaining about the is story of cardamom from being a wild plant in the forest to a high valued commercial product.
10:35 hours - Drive to a nearby Cardamom store where the harvested cardamom is processed, extracting its water level and making it dry. The step by step process will show the complete drying process.
11:15 hours - You will be taken to a cardamom auctioning center at the Spices Park. Now, the auctioning takes place only on selected days of the week. We will visit the auctioning center and explain the auctioning process. However getting to see the auctioning process is very much subject to availability and cannot be guaranteed at the time of booking.
12:00 hours - We reach back to Beaumont Plantation Retreat or you can straight ahead for your next plan.
Notes
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Starting from 2 adults, we could organize a single tour with a maximum capacity of 12 adults. More than 12 adults will be considered as a second group.
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The program pattern is subject to change if there are unavoidable circumstances, or we would be modifying it for the best experience of the guest.
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One guide would be there for up to a group size of 12 adults.
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Children will be charged at half the price.