Thyme is each a medicinal herb and a spice that provides taste to dishes. Türkiye, the world’s largest producer of thyme, has 77 completely different varieties, and in 2024, it exported $62 million value of thyme.
Thyme, recognized since historic instances, particularly within the Mediterranean area, shouldn’t be solely a spice used to boost meat dishes but additionally has fragrant properties, making it useful within the pharmaceutical and beauty industries. Türkiye is the world’s largest producer and exporter of thyme, which can be an important a part of Turkish delicacies.
Agricultural engineer Dr. Çiğdem Bozdemir, an skilled on thyme, explains, “Due to the valuable essential oil it contains, thyme has never lost its importance.”
Thyme is usually discovered within the Mediterranean area but additionally grows within the Americas. Out of 306 recognized species belonging to 5 major genera, 77 species naturally develop or are cultivated in Türkiye. Therefore, many nations buy thyme from Türkiye as a uncooked materials for natural medicines, meals, and cosmetics.
There are subgroups throughout the 5 genera of thyme: Thymus, Origanum, Satureja, Tymbra, and Coridothymus. Among these, 65.2% of Origanum species, 52.6% of Thymus species, and 28% of Satureja species are endemic to Türkiye, that means they solely develop there.
Türkiye has not left thyme in its pure state. To enhance high quality, yield, adaptation, and selection, the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry’s Agricultural Research and Policies General Directorate (TAGEM) conducts analysis.
Five completely different forms of thyme have been developed at 4 institutes. Additionally, there are ongoing initiatives to check varied thyme species at establishments just like the Eastern Mediterranean Transition Zone Agricultural Research Institute and the Aegean Agricultural Research Institute. These initiatives have led to the registration of thyme varieties with names like Ceylan 2002, Tayşi 2002, Winter, Timo, Tınmaz, Başer, Oğuz, Tekin 2017, Uluğ Bey, and Arımaz77.
Dr. Bozdemir states that Türkiye has a big share in international thyme exports, surpassing nations like Greece, Spain, Chile, Mexico, and Syria. By the top of 2023, over 17,000 tons of thyme had been exported, producing greater than $55 million in income. In 2024, over 18,600 tons of thyme have been exported, incomes $62.3 million.
These figures embrace unprocessed thyme (crushed or floor), processed thyme, and thyme important oils. Turkish thyme is thought for its high quality and is wealthy in carvacrol, making it internationally famend as “Turkish Oregano.”
In 2018, thyme manufacturing happened on 139,000 hectares, yielding about 15,000 tons. By 2023, the world expanded to 216,000 hectares, with manufacturing exceeding 30,000 tons. Dr. Bozdemir highlights the worldwide curiosity in varieties like İzmir Thyme and Istanbul Thyme and stresses the significance of sustaining Türkiye’s fame for high quality.
“As global consumers become more educated and aware, the demand for healthy, pure, and natural products in sectors like perfume, pharmaceuticals, and cosmetics increases. This drives the demand and price for thyme. To maintain Türkiye’s leadership in the global thyme market, it’s important to produce high-quality spices and essential oils that meet market demands and standards.”
One of probably the most studied areas of thyme is its use within the pharmaceutical sector. Dr. Bozdemir explains that thyme’s antiviral properties have been studied for his or her results on rhinoviruses and influenza viruses, that are answerable for many acute viral respiratory infections. Recently, analysis has targeted on creating efficient preparations for COVID-19 and SARS-CoV-2 utilizing pure compounds from thyme.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has listed thymol, an important oil from thyme, as a disinfectant for COVID-19, for use on exhausting surfaces and fingers. Previous research have proven that thyme important oil is efficient towards varied RNA viruses, together with human and feline coronaviruses. Thyme can be concerned in ongoing analysis for treating several types of most cancers.
Dr. Bozdemir reminds that thyme is usually used as a spice, but it surely may also be utilized in salads and pickles. To get probably the most profit from its important oil, she suggests including thyme simply earlier than turning off the warmth. She additionally recommends brewing thyme tea by steeping dried or contemporary thyme in sizzling water for a couple of minutes.
With its sharp taste, thyme could be diluted with liquids reminiscent of water, fruit juice, or tomato juice. However, people with persistent circumstances or those that are pregnant ought to seek the advice of a physician earlier than utilizing thyme, particularly in steam or different medicinal kinds.
Source: www.anews.com.tr