Sprouting & microgreen seed · from origin

Cress sprouting seeds — garden cress for punnet growers and microgreen farms

Untreated · Sortex-cleaned · ISTA-tested · COA per lot · 25 kg bags · MOQ 500 kg

Garden cress is the original microgreen — the punnet of peppery green seedlings sold in British and Northern European supermarkets for over a century, and now a standard tray crop for microgreen farms the world over. Kohenoor supplies untreated, food-grade Lepidium sativum sprouting lots from Pakistan, where the crop is grown at scale, Sortex-cleaned and ISTA-tested at origin with lot-specific purity and germination on the COA.

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By Kohenoor Export Desk · reviewed by Usman Hayat, third-generation seed exporter · Updated 2026-10-01

Kohenoor food-grade garden cress seed for sprouting and microgreens

In short: Cress sprouting seed is untreated, food-grade garden cress (Lepidium sativum) seed cleaned and tested for growing peppery cress punnets, microgreens and short sprouts. Kohenoor supplies it from origin: Sortex optical-cleaned, ISTA-tested per lot with purity and germination on the COA, third-party Salmonella and E. coli testing on request, sealed lot-tagged 25 kg bags, 500 kg minimum, FOB Karachi to growers and distributors in 70+ countries.

Untreated — no coatingSortex optical-cleanedISTA-tested per lotCOA within 24 hThird-party microbial testingLot-tagged traceabilitySince 1957Reply within 24 h

Botanical nameLepidium sativum

Sprout time5–7 days microgreen (typical)

FlavourPeppery, fresh, tangy

GerminationLot-specific on COA

MOQ500 kg

Packaging25 kg lot-tagged bags

What cress is and who eats it

Garden cress — Lepidium sativum, a fast-growing annual in the brassica family — is the plant behind the punnet of "cress" or "mustard and cress" that has been a fixture of British, Dutch, German and Scandinavian supermarkets for well over a hundred years. Grown for five to seven days on a mat, a pad or a thin bed of substrate under light, it produces a dense stand of thin pale stems topped with small, deeply lobed green leaves and a flavour that is fresh, peppery and slightly tangy — gentler than mustard, sharper than alfalfa. Sold still growing in its punnet it is, strictly, the oldest commercial microgreen in the world, decades before the word existed.

The UK remains the largest single market, where salad-cress growers produce punnets by the million for supermarkets and the sandwich trade; the egg-and-cress sandwich is a national institution. The Netherlands, Germany, Denmark, Sweden and Finland have parallel traditions and strong domestic growers. Across Europe and North America cress is a standard microgreen for restaurant suppliers and a frequent component of mixed microgreen punnets. In Japan and Korea it appears in food-service microgreen ranges. The Gulf's new indoor farms grow it for hotels, and Australia, Singapore and Hong Kong buy it as a regular line. In South Asia and the Middle East the seed itself (halim, chandrashoor) has a long culinary tradition, which is a second market for the same seed.

Who eats it? Everyone who buys a sandwich in Britain; the salad and garnish customer across Northern Europe; restaurant diners who meet cress microgreens on soups, eggs and fish; and children, for whom growing cress on a damp paper towel is a first lesson in biology. For a punnet grower or microgreen farm, cress is the fastest, cheapest, most reliable tray crop in the range — when the seed is right.

Formats are well established. In the UK and Northern Europe, cress is sold living in punnets of about 50 g — alone, or as mustard-and-cress — and cut and bagged for the sandwich trade. Across Europe and North America it appears cut in microgreen punnets, living in trays for restaurants and as a component of mixed microgreen packs. Home-growing ranges sell it in pouches, often with mustard, and as a children's growing kit. Demand is continuous with a lift in the salad season, and punnet growers contract their cress seed for the year because a change of lot shows at once in the punnet.

Nutrition: why consumers want cress

Cress seedlings are typically low in calories and are known for a good content of vitamin C, vitamin K, folate and vitamin A precursors for their size, along with iron and other minerals; as a brassica they also contain glucosinolates, the compounds responsible for the peppery flavour and the subject of broad research interest across the cabbage family. Microgreens in general are known for concentrating certain vitamins and plant compounds relative to the mature plant. We make no claims about any of it; the point is that "fresh, raw, green, peppery and grown on your counter" is a story consumers already believe, and cress has been telling it since the Victorian era.

For most people the appeal is taste and habit. Cress gives a sandwich or a salad a fresh, lively bite without the sulphur of mature brassica greens. Chefs use it for the same reason and because the fine stems and small leaves sit well on a plate. The home market buys it because it is the easiest thing in the world to grow and because it looks alive on the windowsill.

Quality in cress is almost entirely a matter of the seed and the growing environment. A high-germination, uniform lot sown at the right density gives a dense, even, bright-green punnet with every stem the same height; a poor lot gives thin patches, uneven heights and a punnet that cannot be sold. For a product that is sold by the look of it and grown on tight margins in very large numbers, the germination percentage is the single number that matters most.

Shelf life is the other reason the living punnet has survived a century of retail change. Sold with its roots in the substrate and kept cool and lightly watered, cress stays fresh for a week or more at home, which no cut salad can match. That depends on a dense, even stand with sturdy stems, which in turn depends on seed that germinates together.

How cress is grown commercially

Cress is grown a little differently from the legume sprouts because of its seed. The ranges below are those growers typically report.

Seed treatment. Applied by the grower under its own validated procedure. Seed arrives untreated.
No soak. Cress seed produces a thick coat of mucilage within minutes of wetting, which makes soaking impractical. Growers sow the dry seed evenly onto a moist substrate — a cellulose pad, a hemp or jute mat, a thin layer of peat or coir, or the traditional punnet filling — and mist.
Germinate. Around 18–22 °C in the dark or low light for one to two days with regular misting. Cress is very fast; roots appear within 24 hours and the stand is up within 48.
Grow on. Move to light and grow for a total of 5–7 days to the punnet height of 4–6 cm, when the cotyledons are fully expanded. In mustard-and-cress production, cress is sown first and mustard a day or two later so the two reach the same height together.
Harvest. Punnets are sold whole, living, with roots in the substrate, which gives the product its long shelf life. Microgreen farms cut above the medium and pack the cuttings.
Yield. Quoted by tray or punnet rather than by weight ratio; it depends on seeding density and harvest height. Cress is one of the most productive seeds per gram sown because of its fast, dense emergence.

Kohenoor research plots where cress and other sprouting-seed lines are evaluated

Two points from experience. Even sowing is everything with cress — a seeder or a practised hand gives the uniform density that makes a saleable punnet, and the uniform seed size from Sortex cleaning makes the seeder's job much easier. And cress dislikes heat: above about 24 °C the stems stretch and weaken, so the best punnets come from cool, bright, airy rooms.

The common faults a grower meets with cress are easy to trace. Thin patches point to an old or fumigated lot or to uneven sowing; insist on a current test and an unfumigated declaration, and check the seeder. Long, pale, falling seedlings point to a room that is too warm or too dark. A surface that stays slimy points to the mucilage holding water with too little air movement; a fan settles it. And yellow or stunted seedlings at harvest point to too little light in the last days; cress wants to be bright green and upright when it leaves the farm.

What a professional buyer should specify

Cress seed is also traded as a culinary and medicinal seed in South Asia and the Middle East, and that grade is not sprouting seed: it may be years old, is not germination-tested and may have been fumigated in store. Your specification should make the sprouting grade explicit. Our lots are documented against the following.

Parameter	What to ask for	Kohenoor cress sprouting lots
Germination	Minimum %, ISTA method, current-season test	Lot-specific on ISTA certificate and COA
Physical purity	Minimum % pure seed	Lot-specific on COA
Other crop / weed seed	Maximum count; other brassicas and small weeds	Removed by screen, gravity and optical sorting
Inert matter	Maximum %, no sand, soil, pod fragments	Within purity figure
Moisture	Maximum % for safe transit	Stated on COA
Treatment status	Untreated, unfumigated, no fungicide — in writing	Untreated — on COA and tag
Microbiology	Salmonella, E. coli/STEC, third-party laboratory	Per lot on request
Traceability	Lot ID on every bag	Sealed lot tags, field→bag→warehouse

Insist on a current germination test. Cress keeps reasonably well but loses viability faster than alfalfa in warm, humid storage, and because punnets are sold by the look of them, a few points of germination make a visible difference. Insist too on "unfumigated": the culinary-seed trade routinely fumigates in store, and residual treatment has no place in a seed that will be eaten raw within a week.

Punnet growers who sow with a seeder may also want to specify a uniform seed size so the machine runs evenly; our lots are screen-sized and optically sorted. If your quality system needs pesticide-residue or heavy-metal screening, tell us at enquiry and we will arrange it on the lot sample.

Incoming-quality checks are quick with cress because it germinates so fast. On arrival, draw a sample from several bags, count out four lots of one hundred seeds and sow them on moist paper at around 20 °C; count normal seedlings at four to five days and compare with the COA. Look over a handful with a hand lens for chaff, sand and off-type seed, and check that the seed is matte reddish-brown and uniform in size. Photograph anything that does not match the documents and send us the lot ID the same day; retained samples let us compare.

Why origin and cleaning matter for cress

Pakistan is a major producer of garden cress seed, grown as a field crop through a long, dry season that brings it to harvest at low moisture — good for germination and for low mould counts. Buying at origin, from the current season, means the seed has not spent a year in a culinary-seed warehouse being fumigated and losing viability.

Seed cleaning plant where Kohenoor cress sprouting lots are screened, gravity-separated and optically sorted

Cress is a small, light, reddish-brown seed, and the raw lot carries chaff, pod fragments and stems from a crop that threshes readily, together with sand and soil, immature light seed and, in some fields, the seed of small brassica weeds. Our cleaning sequence is air-screen cleaning for chaff and pod, gravity separation for sand, soil and immature seed, and Sortex optical sorting as the final pass, which rejects pale, shrivelled, discoloured and off-type seed one at a time. The result is a lot of uniform, plump, evenly coloured seed that flows through a seeder and emerges together.

Cress is not a dodder crop; the cleaning challenge is chaff, sand and small weed seed, and the screen-gravity-optical sequence addresses each in turn. Because the grower, the cleaner and the exporter are one company, the lot has a single, continuous record under one lot ID from the field to your warehouse.

Food safety and documents for cress sprouting seed

Cress seed intended for sprouting or microgreen production is a food ingredient under the rules of every major importing market, and punnet growers in the EU and UK are generally regulated as sprout or fresh-produce establishments. The export desk prepares the full document set for each consignment.

EU Regulation 208/2013 — lot-level traceability of seeds for sprouting one step back and one step forward. Sealed lot tags and lot-referenced invoice and packing list supply it.
EU Regulation 211/2013 — the import certificate for sprouts and seeds for sprouting into the Union, attesting production under hygiene conditions equivalent to EU rules; we prepare the supporting documentation with the competent authority.
US FDA Produce Safety Rule, sprout provisions — our COA, lot documents and third-party microbiology reports serve the seed-provenance section of your sprout safety plan.
Certificate of Analysis within 24 hours: germination, purity, moisture, untreated and unfumigated status, lot ID, cross-referenced to the ISTA Orange Certificate.
Third-party microbiology for Salmonella and E. coli/STEC on request per lot, by an independent accredited laboratory.
Phytosanitary certificate under the IPPC, certificate of origin, commercial invoice, packing list and bill of lading.
Food-contact packaging declaration for the poly liner and PP bag, meeting FDA and EU food-grade requirements.

Microgreen and punnet growers whose product is sold living on the substrate are usually outside the sprout-specific rules but inside general produce-safety law; the same seed documentation serves them. Kohenoor is ISO 9001 and HACCP certified, and the food safety and testing page sets out the programme.

Kohenoor's quality process for cress lots

Cress lots for the sprouting programme are sourced from fields with clean histories and harvested dry. Each lot is sampled under ISTA rules and tested in our laboratory for germination, purity and moisture before release, then sent for the ISTA Orange Certificate. Because cress is sold by the look of the punnet, we also run a tray trial on each lot under light — sown on a pad, misted, grown for six days — which shows us density, evenness of height and colour, the things a punnet buyer actually pays for.

Tray trials and germination testing of cress sprouting seed in the Kohenoor laboratory

The cleaning line runs air-screen, gravity and Sortex stages with a documented clean-down between lots, and the food-grade sprouting run is kept apart from any agricultural or culinary seed. Bags are filled on the line, weighed, sealed and tagged with lot ID, species, test date and net weight. Retained samples are held from every lot, so a question from your quality team can be answered against the seed you received. The lot ID ties together field record, cleaning record, laboratory results, tray trial and microbiology report.

A person on the export desk — Pakistan, Dubai or Australia — answers within 24 hours in English, Arabic, Spanish or French, sends current lot documents with the quotation and stays with the order through to clearance at your port.

Packaging, minimum order, lead time and payment

Packaging. 25 kg net in poly-lined polypropylene woven bags with a sealed lot tag. Private-label and OEM bags and retail-ready pouches are available; cress is a standard item in home-growing ranges — often paired with mustard — and we fill consumer pouches at origin for several re-packers.

Minimum order. 500 kg (20 bags). Cress is usually one line in a mixed container with mustard, radish, alfalfa and other species; the minimum applies per species. Large punnet growers take cress by the full container on a programme.

Lead time. In-stock lots ready for FOB Karachi vessel loading within 7–12 days of order confirmation. A fresh microbiology report or special packaging may add a few days.

Terms and payment. FOB Karachi, CFR or CIF on request. Payment 100% TT against bill of lading copy or irrevocable letter of credit at sight; easier terms for repeat buyers.

Destinations. USA, EU and UK, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, Hong Kong, GCC, Australia and more. Store cress seed cool and dry on arrival and plan to use a lot within the season for the best punnet performance.

For container planning, 25 kg bags palletise at roughly 40 bags to the tonne, and a 20-foot container carries on the order of 18–20 MT of bagged seed. Punnet growers commonly build a container around cress and mustard with radish as the third line; restaurant-supply microgreen farms take cress with radish, mustard, fennel, basil and onion. Each species is tagged and documented separately so every lot keeps its identity through customs and into your traceability records.

Who buys cress sprouting seed from Kohenoor

Punnet and salad-cress growers in the UK and Northern Europe are the core cress customers, taking uniform, high-germination seed by the container for continuous production. See for commercial sprout growers.

Microgreen farms everywhere grow cress as a fast, reliable tray crop for restaurants and salad packers. See for microgreen farms.

Health-food distributors and re-packers list cress in home-growing ranges, often with mustard as a pair, and some also sell the seed for its culinary uses. See for health-food distributors.

Private-label brands have us pack under their own name at origin. See for private-label brands.

Importers serving European microgreen sectors order cress, mustard and radish together as a standing brassica programme.

The questions these buyers ask us first are consistent. Is the seed unfumigated and untreated — yes, declared in writing. Is the germination test current — yes, the ISTA certificate on the actual lot comes with the quotation, and lots in store for some months are re-tested before dispatch. Will it run evenly through our seeder — it is screen-sized and optically sorted, and a sample will show you. Can you supply a microbiology report — yes, independent laboratory, per lot on request. Can you supply the volume a punnet grower needs all year — yes, on a programme, with each container tagged and documented so the lot on the shelf does not change without your knowing. And can it travel with our mustard and radish — yes, in one container, each species documented separately.

Blends and the rest of the sprouting range

Cress is half of the oldest blend in the business. Mustard-and-cress is the classic; cress, mustard and radish is the standard spicy microgreen mix; and cress with fennel and basil makes an aromatic chef's garnish. Everything below ships with the same documents in the same container.

Mustard — cress's traditional partner; same equipment, overlapping timetable.
Radish — heat and colour for the spicy punnet.
Alfalfa and clover — the mild legume sprouts for mixed clamshells.
Fenugreek — a bitter legume note for a more complex blend.
Mung bean and chickpea — thick legume sprouts for cooking.
Sesame, fennel, onion and basil — fellow specialist microgreens.

The whole range is compared on the sprouting seeds hub. Custom blends are mixed and packed at origin after a laboratory tray trial.

Typical blend (by seed weight)	Cress	Partners	Character
Mustard-and-cress	about 50%	mustard 50%	The British classic
Spicy microgreen punnet	about 30%	radish 40%, mustard 30%	The standard restaurant mix
Aromatic chef's garnish	about 40%	fennel 30%, basil 30%	Peppery and perfumed

Cress is faster than mustard and much faster than fennel or basil, so mixed punnets are sown in sequence or grown separately and combined at packing. These proportions are common starting points rather than a formula; a laboratory tray trial shows you the punnet before you commit a container.

How to order cress sprouting seed in three steps

1. Send your requirement. WhatsApp +92 310 4929292 or email export@kohenoorint.com with quantity, destination port, any specification your quality system needs (germination minimum, seed sizing for your seeder, microbiology, organic, packaging) and whether you want a sample first. Samples of current lots are available.

2. Receive the quotation and lot documents. Within 24 hours: quotation FOB Karachi (or CFR/CIF), COA and ISTA certificate for the proposed lot, and a shipping schedule.

3. Confirm and ship. On your purchase order and payment arrangement we book the vessel, complete the phytosanitary and origin certificates and load within 7–12 days for stock lots. The document set reaches you by email before the vessel arrives.

Frequently asked questions

Is it untreated?

Yes. Every cress sprouting lot we ship is natural, untreated seed: no fungicide, no insecticide, no coating or pelleting of any kind. Treated seed is never food-grade and we keep sprouting lots physically and administratively separate from our agricultural seed. The untreated status is written on the COA and on the lot tag.

Do you test for Salmonella and E. coli?

On request, each lot is sampled and sent to an independent third-party laboratory for Salmonella and E. coli/STEC testing, and the report travels with the lot documents. Many buyers also run their own incoming-quality checks, and we encourage that; we will supply retained samples and the sampling record so your laboratory can correlate results with ours.

Can you supply organic?

Yes. Organic-certified cress lots (USDA NOP, EU Organic or JAS) are available subject to a 5 MT minimum and a 60–90 day lead time, because organic lots are grown and cleaned to order under certified handling. Tell us which certification your market needs and we will confirm the programme for the season.

What are the MOQ and lead time?

The minimum order for cress sprouting seed is 500 kg. In-stock lots ship within 7–12 days to FOB Karachi vessel loading. Transit time then depends on the destination port; your forwarder or ours will give you the sailing schedule when we confirm the order.

Do you do private label?

Yes. Beyond our standard 25 kg poly-lined PP woven bags with sealed lot tags, we offer private-label and OEM packaging, and retail-ready pouches, clamshells and sleeves on request. Send your artwork and pack sizes and we will quote the packaging alongside the seed.

Which countries do you ship to?

We ship FOB Karachi (CFR/CIF on request) to the USA, EU and UK, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, Hong Kong, the GCC states, Australia and many other destinations. Kohenoor serves buyers in 70+ countries and has offices in Pakistan, Dubai and Australia, so there is usually someone in or near your time zone.

Is this the same cress as watercress?

No. Garden cress (Lepidium sativum) is a fast-growing annual brassica grown from seed in trays and punnets in five to seven days. Watercress (Nasturtium officinale) is a perennial aquatic plant grown in flowing water beds and propagated mostly from cuttings. The "cress" in mustard-and-cress, in microgreen punnets and on this page is garden cress.

Why does cress seed turn into a gel when wetted, and is it a problem?

Garden cress seed produces a natural mucilage coat within minutes of contact with water. It is harmless and in fact helps the seed hold moisture on a mat or pad. It does make soaking impractical, so growers sow the dry seed evenly onto a moist substrate and mist. Uniform seed size, which Sortex cleaning gives, helps a seeder spread it evenly.