KNOWLEDGE

GEOGRAPHY OF SESAME

World annual production of sesame is about 3.5 million tons. The top 3 countries are China, India and Myanmar where responsible for 55% of worldwide production. Sesame is an annual grass, the Sesamum genus of the Pedaliaceae family, native to the African savanna. It is now widely cultivated from tropical to temperate areas which has about 3,000 different types. Tropical sesame is tall and grows to almost 2 metre, while temperate sesame cultivated in Japan and other countries grows to about 1 metre. In temperate areas, the sesame seeds are sown early summer and sprout out in about 3 to 5 days. Then sesame plants grow up rapidly under the mid-summer scorching sunlight and bloom in order from their lowest buds.