Sumac
Sumac is the dried, ground or whole crushed drupe (berry) of Rhus coriaria, a shrub in the cashew family native to the eastern Mediterranean and Middle East. The dried fruit has a tart, lemony flavour from its high malic and tannic acid content and is used as a table and cooking spice, most visibly as one of the base spices in za'atar blends, and as a natural souring agent in Levantine and Anatolian cooking. It is sold both as whole dried berries and as a coarse or fine ground powder, with the powder form being the more common retail product. The plant also has a documented history of use in leather tanning and natural dyeing on account of the tannin content in its leaves and bark, separate from the culinary fruit trade.
Listed sumac markets
Each line is a grade at a delivery point. Open one for its full specification and terms.
Grades
A sample is assessed on moisture content, colour (deep maroon-red indicating a fresh, properly dried lot versus a faded brownish older lot), foreign matter/stem content, and particle size (whole berry versus coarse or fine ground). The commercially decisive test is an independent HPLC (high-performance liquid chromatography) assay screening for illegal synthetic red azo dyes (Sudan I, II, III, IV and related colourants such as Para Red), which are sometimes added to mask a faded or lower-quality lot; this is the same analytical method used to police the EU's Sudan-dye ban on other red-coloured spice products and is not detectable by visual inspection alone.
Sudan-dye HPLC screen
2 grades
| Grade | Definition |
|---|---|
| PASSConfirmed non-detect | All screened Sudan dyes below the laboratory's stated limit of quantification |
| FAILDetected adulteration | Any screened Sudan dye at or above the laboratory's stated limit of quantification |
Moisture and foreign-matter grading
2 grades
| Grade | Definition |
|---|---|
| WHOLEWhole dried berry | Intact dried drupes, not milled; moisture and foreign-matter percentage confirmed by lab or inspector on the specific lot |
| GROUNDGround/milled powder | Whole berries milled to a coarse or fine powder; moisture and foreign-matter percentage confirmed by lab or inspector on the specific lot |
Grades outside this list, including washed/de-stoned lots or a specified particle-size mesh, trade on request.
Locations
| Country | Region | We trade it as |
|---|---|---|
| Turkey | Southeastern Anatolia (Gaziantep, Sanliurfa, Diyarbakir, Mardin) | Origin |
| Iran | Western Iran | Origin |
| Syria | Northern Syria | Origin |
| Italy | Sicily | Origin |
| United States | National | Destination |
| United Kingdom | National | Destination |
| Canada | National | Destination |
| Germany | National | Destination |
Origins and destinations outside this list trade on request.
Timing
Sumac berries are harvested once a year when the drupe clusters ripen to deep red in late summer, then sun or mechanically dried before sale; arrival windows at destination follow shortly after origin drying and export clearance since the dried product is shelf-stable and not held back for a separate curing season.
HarvestArrival
| Origin | J | F | M | A | M | J | J | A | S | O | N | D | Window |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Turkey | Harvest | Harvest | Arrival | Arrival | Harvest Aug to Sep, arrival Oct to NovSoutheastern Anatolia (Gaziantep/Sanliurfa) harvest window; arrival estimate assumes prompt drying and export clearance, must-verify against the specific season's crop timing |
Timing outside the stated harvest and arrival pattern trades on request.
Common questions
What grades of sumac does SIP Global trade?
We quote 4 published grades of sumac, including PASS - Confirmed non-detect, FAIL - Detected adulteration, WHOLE - Whole dried berry and GROUND - Ground/milled powder. Every grade is tied to a delivery point and a settlement route. Grades outside the published list are priced on request.
How is sumac graded?
A sample is assessed on moisture content, colour (deep maroon-red indicating a fresh, properly dried lot versus a faded brownish older lot), foreign matter/stem content, and particle size (whole berry versus coarse or fine ground). The commercially decisive test is an independent HPLC (high-performance liquid chromatography) assay screening for illegal synthetic red azo dyes (Sudan I, II, III, IV and related colourants such as Para Red), which are sometimes added to mask a faded or lower-quality lot; this is the same analytical method used to police the EU's Sudan-dye ban on other red-coloured spice products and is not detectable by visual inspection alone. Grading runs on 2 systems: Sudan-dye HPLC screen and Moisture and foreign-matter grading.
Where does SIP Global trade sumac?
We trade sumac in Turkey, Iran, Syria, Italy, United States, United Kingdom, Canada and Germany. Origins and destinations outside this list trade on request. We are not limited to the locations shown.
When is sumac harvested and when does it arrive?
Typical windows are Turkey: harvest aug to sep, arrival oct to nov. Harvest is when the lot is taken at origin, arrival is when a shipment from that origin lands in a consuming market. Windows outside this pattern, including carry, trade on request.
How do I get a price for sumac?
Send the grade, the origin and the delivery window to the SIP Global desk. That is enough for a trader to come back with a level and a settlement route. 1 listed sumac market is published on this page, each with its full specification and terms. We take both sides, physical and financial, prompt to long dated.
Standards and data sources
The grading language on this sheet follows published standards. Trade volumes and tariff lines are public record. Verify anything here against the source.
- UN ComtradeOfficial international trade statistics by HS code
- ITC Trade MapBilateral trade flows and tariff data
- FAOSTATFAO production and trade series for agricultural commodities
Price this with our desk
Grade, origin and window if you have them. If what you are carrying does not fit the sheet above, describe it in your own words and a trader will take it from there.