ENTER A PRODUCT: Submission #52

General Info
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Product name: Salti Grapes
Scientific name (for reporting plants, animal breeds, insects, etc.): Vitis Vinifera L. Salti 
Category:
Category: Frutta fresca,  secca e derivati

Geographic area:
Geographic area: al-Salt, Giordania
Latitude: 32.0345794
Longitude: 35.7269079
Location: 32.034579,35.726908
Formatted Address: al-Salt, Giordania
Locality: al-Salt
State/Province: Governatorato di Balqa
Country: Giordania
Country Code: JO


Product description
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Product description:
The grapevine was among the first fruits to be cultivated in the Middle East and the Mediterranean periphery. It is estimated to have originated in the Levant in the second half of the 4th millennium BC. The presence of various fruits, grape seeds and wood remains during the Chalcolithic period (or Copper Age) at sites located outside the distribution area of wild grapevines, such as at Tell Shuna, proves that viticulture was already practised at that time. Later, vine cultivation appears to have gradually spread westwards from the eastern Mediterranean areas.
The harvest period for the Salti grape is between mid-July and mid-October.

Gastronomic use:
The grapes of this cultivar are consumed as table fruit and can also be made into sultanas, jam, treacle or a kind of grape skin called khabeesa.

Relationship with the local ecosystem and processing:
The custom of harvesting and preparing grapes is deeply rooted in the local community. Traditionally, families would move during the harvest season and camp in tents by the vineyards. Locals said they have many memories that lead them to recall the times when they moved, worked hard and celebrated the season. Few families still maintain this tradition, which is currently in decline, as is the grape production itself. The tradition has also changed due to the availability of means of transport that allow inhabitants to reach the vineyards in the day and return to their homes in the evening.

Culture and history:
Throughout history, the Salti grape has been vital to the area. The ‘Research on Agriculture in the Levant during the Umayyad Period (661-750 A.D.)’ indicates that it, along with figs and olives, was the most important fruit tree in the Levant, including Jordan and Al-Balqa. The document also reports that grapes were consumed fresh or processed into molasses, vinegar, khabeesa, wine and zabeeb (dried sultanas) during this period.
Another research on agriculture in Jordan and Palestine between 1864 and 1918 indicates that Salti grapes were considered the best of the products that Al-Salt exported to Palestine. Research also proves that during Ottoman rule, dried Salti grapes, called Sultana, were exported from Al-Salt to Palestine, Europe, Egypt and the American continent. Molasses and grape jam, known as Ma’akoud, were well-known products in the country.
After the Ottoman rule, while the area was part of the Emirate of Transjordan, in the records of the Municipal Council and the Chamber of Commerce (1923-1930) the Salti grape gained great fame both within the emirate and outside it. Large areas were cultivated with vines, which in 1929 were estimated at around one hundred and fifty thousand acres. The city was surrounded by vineyards that produced large quantities of grapes.
Due to the abundance of grapes in the city, food production of Salti grape products, such as khabeesa and sultanas, also flourished and became very popular, especially abroad.
The wide availability of the product also boosted the spirits industry, with four distilleries using around 80 tonnes of grapes in the production process. Many investors, also from abroad, were attracted by this and opened new factories for the production of spirits and vinegar.

What are the conservation risks?:
Over the years, the production of Salti grapes has decreased and many new varieties have been introduced from abroad, such as seedless grapes, which have affected the production of the local grape. The current percentage of local grape production is less than one per cent of the total production of rain-fed trees. Today, most farmers grow grapes around their homes or in vineyards on the edge of town, and the harvests are either used for home consumption or sold directly by the farmers on the roadsides in the area or in the central market in the city of Salt.

IS IT PRODUCED BY AN INDIGENOUS PEOPLE / COMMUNITY?: NO

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