Saffron (trade) world trade. The cultivation of saffron in the Americas was begun by members of the Schwenkfelder Church in Pennsylvania. In recent decades cultivation has spread to New Zealand, Tasmania, and California. Iran has accounted for around 90–93 percent of recent annual world production and thereby dominates the export market on a by-quantity basis. Almost all saffron grows in a belt bounded by the Mediterranean in the west and mountainous Kashmir in the east. All other continents except Antarctica produce smaller amounts. In 1991, Some of whole threads and powder are gleaned yearly, of which is top-grade "coupe" saffron. Iran is
Timeline of the Saffron Revolution Timeline of the Saffron Revolution This article details the chronology of events in the 2007 Burmese anti-government protests. Prior to the summer protests, there had been growing unease in the population regarding the economic distress of the country which has stagnant economic growth and is ranked among the 20 poorest countries in the world according to the United Nations. Many, including the United Nations have blamed the economic problems on the inept leadership of the military junta that spends large amount of money maintaining one of the world's largest armies (said to total more than half the country's annual budget).