Story – Rumi Spice

Our Story

Veterans on a Mission

HOW IT
STARTED

Our founders were a team of military veterans who served in Afghanistan with the US Army. While in Afghanistan, they got to know the amazing spices that grew in the region but also the challenges faced by the farmers - more specifically, gaining access to markets outside of their own country. They started bringing saffron threads on trips back to the US to share them with chefs. These chefs confirmed what they believed - this was some of the highest quality saffron.

With that knowledge, they worked to create a modern-day spice route to connect the farmers to the US market. They developed our strong Afghan networks and on-the-ground understanding of how business is conducted. With this knowledge, we built the critical relationships, partnerships, and organizational infrastructure necessary to operate within and out of Afghanistan.

LEARN MORE

With the help of our
on-the-ground partners
, we are able to navigate the Afghan
business landscape, which is built on
trusted relationships.

MILESTONES

From saffron to spices, blends, and more - thank you for being a part of our journey to cultivate a more equitable spice trade.

2015

Rumi began with a
network of 34
farmers

2016

Sold 100 kg of
Saffron

2018

On shelf at Whole
Foods Market

2019

Launched Black
Cumin and 4 Cumin
Spice Blends

2020

350 network farmers;
introduced fennel,
coriander and cumin
seeds & 5 new blends

2021

Launched Za'atar
and 3 other
new blends

2022

Dill Seed and
Seasoned salts

HOW IT’S GOING

You Help Us Make A Difference

Every day we work to drive more demand for the incredible agricultural products from Afghanistan to support our mission. Each bottle that is purchased or dish ordered at a restaurant that uses our spices means more people that we include as part of the spice farming, harvesting and processing.

OUR MISSION