Cuminum cyminum Identity & Plant Part
The botanical entity is Cuminum cyminum L., cumin or jeera, a slender annual of the Apiaceae. The part used is the dried seed, botanically a small fruit. Leaves, stems and roots are not part of this ingredient.
The identity point buyers meet most often is the name. Black cumin, Nigella sativa, belongs to the buttercup family and is a different seed, and caraway, Carum carvi, looks similar but is a different plant. Cumin seed holds a volatile oil dominated by cuminaldehyde, plus fatty oil and phenolic compounds. Most of the oil leaves the extract, so the powder is defined by water-soluble phenolics and flavonoids, named only as families.
Cumin seed is usually sold as a spice, so a specification that says cumin extract needs to name the water-extracted powder form.












