Sunflower seed

Sunflower seeds are actually the fruit of sunflowers. A sunflower alone can contain 2000 seeds. Sunflower seeds are among the fat kernels that are eaten fresh, dried and roasted.

Types of Sunflower Seeds

Sunflower oil seeds are divided into two general types:

 Confection sunflower seeds:

Confection sunflower seeds, like the kind we eat, have white stripes on them. These seeds are thinner and larger and are used as a snack food, confectionery, and even bird food.

 Oilseed sunflower seeds:

Oil-type sunflower seeds are all black, and are generally smaller. Sunflower oilseeds have more oil content in their seeds than the confection type and are usually smaller and darker than edible seeds. The sunflower meal, obtained after the oil is extracted from the seed, is also very good and nutritious food for livestock and poultry.

Types of sunflower seeds

Sword seed: It is black, elongated and large and is one of the best types of sunflower seeds.

Kalehghouchi seed: It is black and shorter than a sword, and it is fat and full of nuts.

Round white Sanghari seed: It is two-tone, white and black. The middle part is gray with a white border. And in the Iranian type, the size of the seeds is different and not the same size.

Oil-type seed: It is very small and slightly larger than wheat and black to grayish, due to its high oil content, it is used for oil extraction.

Chinese white round seed: It is short and fat in color and size, and it is completely uniform, and it is white and black, which is white, and it has the same size as the Iranian varieties, and it does not have empty seeds. Of course, it does not have an attractive taste.

Canadian-Argentinean seed: Similar to Chinese, but larger in size and more uniform in color and is gray.

Senator seed: This type of seed is colorless and has bone white color. In fact, it is the same sunflower seed that is soaked in lemon essence and its skin and black color are faded.

Small brown and white seed: It is larger than oil-type seed and smaller than other types of seeds and is often used to feed birds as poultry feed.

Sunflower seed kernel: Sunflower kernel is Chinese, white, or bone in color and is imported as a kernel. This seed kernel is mostly used in industry and has been used in confectionery and chocolate making.

Grades of sunflower seeds

One of the influential activities in product quality and processing has been the separation of grains based on size. The seeds are divided into three different sizes, large, medium and small, based on the volume, by means of advanced sorting machines. The only difference between the 1, 2 and 3 ratings is their size.

Sunflower seed size: 7/8, small; 8/10, medium; 10/14, large (sizes in millimeters.)

Imported sunflower seeds have a size that starts from the 200 largest and as this number goes to 230 and higher, the size of the seeds becomes smaller. According to this sizing, the number of seeds is counted in 50 grams of seeds.

Types of Sunflower Oil

Sunflower oil is a type of seed oil that is available in three main types: high oleic, medium oleic and linoleic. The difference between the three is not in their taste or physical properties, but in their composition and the balance between linoleic acid and oleic acid. One of the types of sunflower oils available in the market also contains stearic acid and high oleic acid, which is solid at room temperature and has various uses in cooking.

In general, some different types of sunflower oil are used not only in home cooking but also in the following industries:

 Food industry: sunflower oil, sauce, infant formula

 Medicine and pharmacy

 Soap production

 Cosmetics industry

 Application in nanoparticle synthesis

 The price of sunflower seeds

Many factors affect the price of seeds. These factors include:

• Seed type

• Raw or roasted

• Seed taste

• Peeled or shelled

• Flavored or plain peeled

• Seed quality

Iran seed center

The largest market for buying and selling sunflower seeds is in Khoy; Which is known as the city of sunflower and pumpkin. This plant exists in most parts of the world and is mostly cultivated in Iran in the province of Azerbaijan and the cities of Khoy and Sanghari.

According to Jalili, head of the Agricultural Jihad Organization: 25,000 families in the villages and cities of West Azerbaijan Province earn a living directly by growing pumpkin seeds and sunflower seeds and selling these two products.

Import of sunflower seeds

In 2019, world production of sunflower seeds was 56 million tons, led by Russia and Ukraine with 55% of the total world. Argentina, Romania and China also accounted for a significant volume, of which China is the largest exporter of this product to Iran with sales of more than 82,000 tons.

Types of HS code for sunflower seeds

Tariff code 12060010 for oil extraction has 10% import duty

Tariff code 12060020 for seed cultivation has 5% import duty and

Tariff code 12060090 for confectionary has 55% import duty.

The difference between Iranian and foreign seeds

Iranian seeds are different in terms of shape and variety. Porcelain seeds are often white round and no other species are imported.

But what is present in Chinese and foreign seeds is uniformity in size, so that it is traded based on size. Another point is that there is no seedless seed among the foreign seeds. But in Iranian seeds, although in first-class and excellent ones, there are some are hollow and brainless seeds. Of course, in good seeds, the share of empty is less and in poor species, the share of empty is more.

Types of Chinese seeds, with different quality and price, are available in the Iranian market, and Chinese seeds are divided into 240 seeds, 280 seeds and 320 seeds based on quality, and the fewer seeds, the better the quality of the seeds.