Poppy seed originates from the poppy. Milk juice is gathered from the unripe capsules, from which opium is produced. Small greyish blue seeds will grow from the large white or pink flowers. These seeds are mainly cultivated for their excellent oil. The harvesting is mostly done mechanically, but sometimes manually as well. The harvesting time will differ by area. In Turkey this is June and July, while in Western Europe the harvesting is done at the end of the year.    

After harvesting the outer shell of the poppy is bruised. The seed is cleaned, removing parts of shells, sand, foreign seeds etc. It is now ready to be packed and shipped.