Tamarind shows up in more Western formulas than most buyers realise: it is the sour-sweet base of brown sauce and Worcestershire-style sauces, the acid in many barbecue glazes, the signature of pad thai and of a whole family of Latin-American drinks and candies. Demand in the US, UK and EU has grown with every one of those categories, and most of the world's commercial tamarind still comes from a few districts in South India and Thailand.
This guide explains how to buy it well — which format fits which use, what the specification means, how it is packed and shipped, and what the regulators in your market expect. It reflects how ODOD Group supplies its own tamarind paste and concentrate.
Three products, one fruit
Seedless block is the traditional form: whole pulp pressed into slabs, seeds removed, fibre left in. It keeps for a year, ships cheaply and is what most Indian and South-East Asian processors start from. It needs soaking, mashing and straining before use.
Paste (38–42° Brix) is refined pulp with the fibre screened out, concentrated lightly so it is spoonable. This is the foodservice product: open the pail, weigh, use.
Concentrate (60–68° Brix) is the manufacturing product: more acid and sugar per kilo, hot-filled so it is self-preserving, and priced on solids so it is usually the cheapest form per unit of sourness delivered to your kettle.
If you run a plant, buy concentrate. If you run kitchens, buy paste. If you already have a pulping line, buy block.
Reading the specification
- Brix — total soluble solids. Tamarind Brix is mostly fruit sugar plus acid; 65° concentrate has roughly four times the solids of raw pulp.
- Total acidity as tartaric — the number that matters for flavour. Expect 12–15 % on a 65° concentrate and 7–9 % on a 40° paste. Ask for tolerance, not just a typical value.
- pH — 2.4–3.0. This low pH is why hot-filled concentrate needs no preservative.
- Screen size — 0.5 mm refined pulp has no seeds and no fibre; anything coarser will show in a smooth sauce.
- Colour — ripe tamarind is dark brown. Reddish lots are under-ripe; black lots are oxidised or over-cooked. No colour should be added, and the COA should say so.
- Microbiology — total plate count, yeasts and moulds, Salmonella absent in 25 g. For preserved paste, the benzoate or sorbate level.
Because tamarind is a seasonal fruit (harvest February to May in South India), a good supplier blends across lots to hold acidity and colour inside the contract tolerance for the whole year. Ask how they do it.
Packaging, shelf life and containers
Concentrate travels in 20 kg HDPE pails with liners, 220 kg drums (hot-fill or aseptic) and, for large sauce plants, 1,000 L totes. Block is wrapped in 1 kg slabs, ten to a carton. All formats are ambient; concentrate keeps 18 months unopened and block about 12.
Weight is the constraint in a container, not volume: a 20-ft box carries roughly 18–20 tonnes of concentrate in drums. Mixed pallets of pails and blocks are common for distributors serving both retail and foodservice.
Allergens and labelling
Tamarind is not an allergen in any of the three jurisdictions — it is not on the FDA major-allergen list, the UK 14 or EU Annex II — and it is naturally gluten-free and vegan. In an ingredient statement it is simply "tamarind" or "tamarind concentrate"; if a preservative is used it must be declared (for example "preservative: sodium benzoate" in the EU/UK, "sodium benzoate (preservative)" in the US).
Compliance by market
United States. Tamarind concentrate is an acidified food when hot-filled below pH 4.6, so the processor operates under a filed scheduled process. Your FSVP importer holds the supplier's facility registration, hazard analysis and per-lot COA. FDA action levels for lead in fruit products apply; ask for heavy-metal results on the COA.
United Kingdom and Ireland. The UK applies assimilated Regulation 396/2005 for pesticide MRLs and assimilated 1881/2006 for contaminants; tamarind is not currently on the high-risk list, so entry is a standard customs declaration. Ireland follows EU rules and enters through Dublin or Rosslare.
European Union. Regulation (EC) 396/2005 for residues and (EU) 2023/915 for lead and cadmium; dried block may need a phytosanitary certificate. Labelling under (EU) 1169/2011. Organic lots need the certificate of inspection in TRACES.
What drives the price
- The harvest — a short season sets the base for the year; contract early.
- Brix — concentrate is priced higher per tonne but lower per unit of acidity; compare on solids.
- Refinement — seedless, 0.5 mm refined pulp yields less from the raw fruit than block and costs more.
- Preservative-free hot-fill needs better process control than preserved paste; expect a small premium.
- Format and incoterm — pails cost more per kilo than drums; ask for FOB, CIF and DDP side by side.
Before your first order
- Pick the format for your use (block, paste, concentrate).
- Specify Brix and acidity with tolerances, and whether preservatives are acceptable.
- Request a current-lot COA and a 1 kg sample; run it in your formula.
- Confirm the incoterm, pallet configuration and shelf life at receipt.
- For the US, confirm the scheduled-process references; for the EU/UK, the residue and heavy-metal screens.
ODOD Group supplies seedless tamarind paste and concentrate from FDA-registered, HACCP / ISO 22000-certified processors to manufacturers and distributors in the US, UK, Ireland and the EU. Ask for a sample and a quote and we reply within one working day.
Frequently asked questions
What Brix should I buy — 40° paste or 65° concentrate?
Buy 65° Brix concentrate if you formulate by weight in a plant: it is more concentrated, self-preserving when hot-filled and cheaper per unit of acidity to ship. Buy 40° paste for kitchens and small producers who want a spoonable product straight from the pail.
Is the tamarind seedless and fibre-free?
Yes. Pulp is refined through 0.5 mm screens after deseeding, so there is nothing to strain. Seedless block is deseeded but retains natural fibre and is intended for traditional processing.
Does it contain preservatives or added colour?
The standard concentrate is hot-filled with nothing added. A benzoate-preserved version is available for open-pail foodservice use. No colour is ever added — the dark brown comes from the ripe fruit.
What acidity will I get, and is it consistent?
Concentrate at 60–68° Brix carries 12–15 % total acidity as tartaric, reported on each COA with pH and Brix. We blend across lots to hold the figure within the tolerance agreed at contract.
Is tamarind an allergen in the US, UK or EU?
No. Tamarind is not among the FDA major allergens, the UK 14 or the EU Annex II allergens. It is naturally gluten-free and vegan.
Can you supply organic or Kosher tamarind?
Organic-certified lots (India NPOP with USDA / EU equivalence) and Kosher-supervised production are available on request with a longer lead time.