Mustard Seed

Canada is the largest mustard seed exporter in the world, and the types are not interchangeable. Yellow is mild and goes to condiment mustard, mayonnaise and functional use as an emulsifier. Brown and oriental are pungent and serve different culinary and processing applications.

Specifying by colour alone leaves pungency open, which is the parameter most likely to matter to the end user. State the type, the intended application, and whether you are buying whole seed or intend to mill.

Because Canada supplies such a large share of world trade, availability is generally reliable, but a poor crop year moves price sharply precisely because the origin is so concentrated. Purity and admixture with other mustard types are the practical grading terms.