Himachal Pradesh becomes first state in India to begin organised cultivation of true dalchini

Realizing that people in India have been consuming inferior quality cinnamon (dalchini) having serious ill effects on health, the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) -Institute of Himalayan Bioresource Technology (IHBT) has, for the first time, begun organized cultivation of ‘true’ variety of cinnamon plant in the country.

The cinnamon derived from Cinnamomum cassia (commonly sold in the market ) was used in large quantities while making cakes or pies . Even many people consume large quantities of dalchini for medicinal purposes which indirectly causes much harm than doing any good.

India imports 45,318 tonnes (worth Rs. 909 crores) of cinnamon annually from China, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Indonesia, and Nepal. Of the 45,318 tonnes of imports, astonishingly, India imports 37,166 tonnes of Cinnamomum cassia (species banned in several countries) from Vietnam, China, and Indonesia.

With the cultivation of Cinnamomum verum , HP has become the first state of India to have organized cultivation of cinnamon .