Black pepper. Besides salt, it's the most widely used seasoning in the world. You'll find a pepper shaker on every restaurant table and in every household. Almost every recipe ends with the phrase 'season with salt and pepper.' But this wasn't always the case. In the past, pepper was only affordable for the elite. The increasing demand for pepper caused many military conflicts and human suffering. A dark history that we often fail to reflect upon.

The Pepper Trade

The spice trade greatly influenced world history. In the Middle Ages, pepper was a highly sought-after and scarce spice in Europe. Pepper had many uses, both in cooking and in medicine.

The first resurgence of pepper use and trade occurred in Roman times when Egypt became part of the Roman Republic in 30 BC. After the fall of the Roman Empire, trade routes suffered a significant blow. Trade stagnated, meaning only the wealthiest still had access to spices. Asian spices often appeared alongside jewels and other valuables in inventory lists.

From the fifteenth century onwards, voyages of discovery were organized from Europe to explore new trade routes. In 1498, the Portuguese Vasco da Gama reached Calicut, the most important trading center on the southwest coast of India. The Portuguese then violently forced their way to islands and places where spices originated. This paved the way for the Dutch East India Company (VOC).

Both the VOC and the English East India Company fought with the Portuguese to gain control of the pepper trade. Neither succeeded in achieving a complete monopoly on the trade. The area where pepper was cultivated had become too large. Both companies oppressed local rulers and enforced price agreements. They pulled out all the stops to achieve sole trading rights for the black peppercorns. This involved much violence and oppression. A history with many dark chapters.

The end of the pepper trade came into sight when the VOC suffered greatly from the Fourth Anglo-Dutch War (1780-1784). The English seized several trading posts, and full merchant ships were hijacked. After the establishment of the Batavian Republic (in 1795), the VOC was disbanded.

How Black Pepper Grows

Black pepper comes from the climbing plant Piper nigrum and grows mainly in tropical areas near the equator. This plant thrives particularly well in India and Southeast Asia. It takes about four years for a pepper plant to yield its first harvest.

Peppercorns are actually berries, growing in small clusters on the plant. The berries are initially green and slowly turn red. Often, the green berries are harvested (as soon as the first berries start to turn red). Through the drying process, they turn black, et voila: black pepper. The berries can also be harvested when red. These will be black with a reddish sheen after harvesting. So you still get black pepper, but the taste is somewhat fruitier and sweeter. White pepper is created by removing the outer skin of the dried red peppercorns.

The Effect of Piperine

The quality of black pepper is partly measured by its piperine content. Piperine causes a pain stimulus in your mouth, contributing to the pepper's sharp taste. Piperine is also often attributed medicinal benefits; for example, in Ayurveda, pepper is a beloved spice due to the health benefits black pepper is believed to have.

Piperine provides energy and has a thermogenic effect. This increases the basal metabolism, which can lead to burning more calories. Pepper is also said to act as an enhancer for other beneficial substances, allowing other substances to be absorbed better or even remain available to the body for longer. Within Ayurveda, a spice blend called Trikatu is therefore popular. This consists of black pepper, long pepper, and ginger. We are not experts on the health benefits of spices and don't know much about Ayurveda; we primarily choose spices for their taste. But it is certainly interesting, as this is a recurring topic, even in the Middle Ages, pepper was already known for its medicinal properties.

(Re)experience the Flavors of Black Pepper

We have had the honor of meeting several very passionate pepper farmers. They dedicate themselves wholeheartedly to reintroducing indigenous pepper varieties. Over the years, the pepper trade has increasingly focused on maximizing profits. For example, many chemicals and pesticides are used during pepper cultivation, but there is also a lot of food fraud within this trade chain. Regularly, pepper harvests are supplemented with cheap and tasteless papaya seeds, for instance!

The indigenous pepper varieties grow well in their place of origin and therefore do not require chemicals and pesticides. The farmers work in harmony with nature, combining traditional techniques they know with sustainable innovations. They pass this knowledge on to small farmers within their community. They also buy their pepper harvests at a fair price and process them all in a consistent and effective way. This allows them to guarantee sustainable and high-quality pepper.

To guarantee a living income, it is important that pepper is purchased at a fair price. Unfortunately, in the spice trade, powerful traders with a large market share still exist, influencing market prices. The result: farmers are underpaid, and their products are undervalued.

We do things differently! We know all our farmers personally and engage in dialogue with them about what they need to grow their businesses and earn a living income from them.

The pepper varieties we discovered, which are truly unique!, we purchased in small quantities and bundled them into our pepper experience set. We are the first to bring Trang Pepper to Europe. And of this year's Adi Pepper harvest, only 6 kg was available. We bought those 6 kilos on the spot and brought them back to the Netherlands in a large bag. Fortunately, we didn't have much other luggage during our trip to India.

The pepper experience set therefore contains not only three unique pepper varieties, all of which taste very different, but also an information leaflet and a tasting form. Learn to recognize flavors and discover which flavors combine well with each other. This way, you'll get the most out of these pepper varieties in the kitchen. It's a great gift to give (to yourself ;-))! With this beautiful handy mortar and pestle, you can make it an even more complete gift package.