Editing Sesame (section)

== Agriculture ==

=== Cultivation ===

Sesame varieties have adapted to many soil types. The high-yielding crops do best on fertile, well-drained, soils with a neutral pH. However, these have a low tolerance for soils with high salt and water-logged conditions. Commercial sesame crops require 90 to 120 frost-free days. Warm conditions above {{convert |23 |°C |°F}} favor growth and yields. While sesame crops can grow in poor soils, the best yields come from properly fertilized farms.<ref name="Oplinger Putnam 1990"/><ref name=Jefferson>{{cite web |title=Sesame: high value oilseed |publisher=Thomas Jefferson Agriculture Institute |year=2002 |url=http://www.extension.iastate.edu/alternativeag/cropproduction/pdf/sesame_crop_guide.pdf |access-date=2015-01-24 |archive-date=2023-03-12 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230312094714/https://www.extension.iastate.edu/alternativeag/cropproduction/pdf/sesame_crop_guide.pdf |url-status=dead}}</ref>

Flowering depends on photoperiod and cultivar. The photoperiod also affects the seed's oil content: increased photoperiod increases oil content. The oil content of the seed is inversely proportional to its protein content.<ref name="Oplinger Putnam 1990"/> Sesame is drought-tolerant, in part due to its extensive root system. However, it requires adequate moisture for germination and early growth. While the crop survives drought and the presence of excess water, the yields are significantly lower in either condition. Moisture levels before planting and flowering affect yield the most.<ref name="Oplinger Putnam 1990" /> Most commercial cultivars of sesame are intolerant of waterlogging. Rainfall late in the season prolongs growth and increases loss to dehiscence, when the seedpod shatters, scattering the seed. Wind can also cause shattering at harvest.<ref name="Oplinger Putnam 1990"/>

=== Processing ===

Sesame seeds are protected by a capsule that bursts when the seeds are ripe. The time of this bursting, or "dehiscence", tends to vary, so farmers cut plants by hand and place them together in an upright position to continue ripening until all the capsules have opened. The 1943 discovery of an [[indehiscent]] mutant (analogous to [[Shattering (agriculture) |nonshattering]] in cereals) led breeders to try to create a high-yield variety that does not drop its seeds. Despite some progress, dehiscence continues to limit production.<ref name="Oplinger Putnam 1990"/> Agronomists in [[Israel]] are working on modern cultivars of sesame that can be harvested by mechanical means.<ref>{{Cite news |title=A Global Sesame Shortage Puts Tahini in Peril. Can Israel Save It? |first=Ronit |last=Vered |date= 22 July 2022 |work=Haaretz |url=https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2022-07-22/ty-article-magazine/.highlight/a-global-sesame-shortage-puts-tahini-in-peril-can-israel-save-it/00000182-2620-dfa9-a5c7-26ec51ab0000 |access-date=2023-02-08}}</ref>

Since sesame seed is small and flat, it is hard to dry after harvest because the seeds pack closely together, impeding the flow of air in a drying bin. Therefore, the harvested seeds need to be as dry as possible, and then stored at 6% moisture or less. Moist seed stores can rapidly heat up and become rancid.<ref name="rhan">{{cite web |title=Sesame profile |first1=Ray |last1=Hansen |date=August 2011 |publisher=Agricultural Marketing Resource Center |url=http://www.agmrc.org/commodities-products/grains-oilseeds/sesame-profile/ |first2=Diane |last2=Huntrods |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160121203250/http://www.agmrc.org/commodities-products/grains-oilseeds/sesame-profile/ |archive-date=2016-01-21}}</ref>

=== Production ===

{| class="wikitable" style="float:right; width:13em; text-align:left;"
! colspan=2 |Sesame seed production<br/><small>2022, in tonnes</small>
|-
| {{SUD}} ||1,231,701
|-
| {{IND}} ||788,740
|-
| {{MYA}} ||760,926
|-
| {{TZA}} ||700,000
|-
| {{NGA}} ||450,000
|-
| {{BUR}} ||208,795
|-
| {{NIG}} ||104,088
|-
| '''World''' ||'''6,741,479'''
|-
|colspan=2 |<small>Source: [[FAOSTAT]] of the [[United Nations]]<ref name="faostat">{{cite web |url=http://www.fao.org/faostat/en/#data/QC |title=Sesame seed production in 2022, Crops/World Regions/Production Quantity from pick lists |date=2024 |publisher=UN [[Food and Agriculture Organization Corporate Statistical Database]] (FAOSTAT) |access-date=12 September 2024}}</ref></small>
|}

In 2022, world production of sesame seeds was 6.7 million [[tonne]]s, led by [[Sudan]], India, and [[Myanmar]], which together accounted for 41% of the total (table).<ref name=faostat/>

The white and other lighter-colored sesame seeds are common in Europe, the Americas, West Asia, and the Indian subcontinent. The black and darker-colored sesame seeds are mostly produced in China and [[Southeast Asia]].<ref name="feedipedia">{{Cite web |title=Sesame (''Sesamum indicum'') seeds and oil meal |url=https://www.feedipedia.org/node/26 |access-date=2023-02-08 |website=www.feedipedia.org}}</ref>

In the United States most sesame is raised by farmers under contract to Sesaco, which also supplies proprietary seed.<ref>{{cite web |last=Latzke |first=Jennifer M. |title=Tiny sesame seed offers big returns for Southern Plains growers |url=https://www.hpj.com/crops/tiny-sesame-seed-offers-big-returns-for-southern-plains-growers/article_bf192233-34e2-539d-b316-b817e1b473fa.html  |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180910195546/https://www.hpj.com/crops/tiny-sesame-seed-offers-big-returns-for-southern-plains-growers/article_bf192233-34e2-539d-b316-b817e1b473fa.html |archive-date=10 September 2018 |publisher=[[High Plains Journal]] |access-date=15 March 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Sesame Profile |url=https://www.agmrc.org/commodities-products/grains-oilseeds/sesame-profile |publisher=Agriculture Marketing Research Center |access-date=15 March 2021}}</ref>

=== Trade ===

Japan is the world's largest sesame importer. Sesame oil, particularly from roasted seed, is an important component of [[Japanese cuisine |Japanese cooking]] and traditionally the principal use of the seed. China is the second-largest importer of sesame, mostly oil-grade. China exports lower-priced food-grade sesame seeds, particularly to [[Southeast Asia]]. Other major importers are the United States, Canada, the Netherlands, Turkey, and France.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Japan Sesame Oil Market |url=https://www.industryarc.com/Research/japan-sesame-oil-market-report-700629 |access-date=2024-05-08 |website=IndustryARC}}</ref>

Sesame seed is a high-value [[cash crop]]. Prices ranged between US${{convert |800 and 1700 |/t}} between 2008 and 2010.<ref>{{cite web |title=Oil seed prices and futures |publisher=Commodity Prices |date=July 2010 |url=http://www.agricommodityprices.com/futures_prices.php?id=144 |access-date=2012-03-19 |archive-date=2020-08-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200807025551/http://www.agricommodityprices.com/futures_prices.php?id=144 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Sesame |first=Mal |last=Bennett |publisher=Ag Market Research Center |url=http://www.agmrc.org/media/cms/sesame_38F4324EE52CB.pdf}}</ref> Prices depend on perceived quality, based on factors such as the seed's appearance, freedom from impurities, oil content of at least 40%, and sorting by size and colour.<ref name=rhan />