Black sesame vs white sesame, and why black seed is something else.
Black sesame came up as a rising search in many of the 25 markets we checked on Google Trends in September 2026, and some of those searches mean something else: black seed, which is not sesame at all. This page separates the three, and says plainly which grades we offer.
28 September 2026—5 min read—Sparsh Khullar, Trade & Markets
Are black and white sesame different species?
No. Both are Sesamum indicum. Seed-coat colour varies within the species: a 2021 genetics study in Frontiers in Genetics describes it as ranging from white, yellow, golden and brown through grey and reddish brown to black, and used a population bred from a white-seeded × black-seeded cross to map the genes behind the colour.
Black sesame is therefore a colour type of the same crop, not a separate plant, and it shares white sesame's customs code.
Is black seed the same as black sesame?
No, and this is the confusion most worth clearing up. Black seed, also sold as black cumin or kalonji, is Nigella sativa. Kew's Plants of the World Online places it in the buttercup family, Ranunculaceae. Sesame, black or white, is in the family Pedaliaceae. They are different plants that happen to produce small dark seeds.
Customs treats them differently too. A binding tariff ruling issued in Germany in 2024 (DEBTI19254/24-1) classifies whole Nigella sativa seed as a spice, under EU Combined Nomenclature 0910 99 91, not under the oilseed heading where sesame sits.
Do black and white sesame have the same customs code?
Yes. Neither the EU nor the US tariff distinguishes sesame by colour.
| EU Combined Nomenclature | 1207 40 Sesamum seeds — 1207 40 10 "Seed" (seed for sowing, under the conditions in the CN's preliminary provisions) · 1207 40 90 "Other" |
|---|---|
| US Harmonized Tariff Schedule | 1207.40.00 "Sesame seeds" — statistical suffixes for certified organic and other |
| Nigella sativa (black seed), EU | 0910 99 91, under spices, per binding tariff information DEBTI19254/24-1 |
Is black sesame more nutritious than white?
We cannot tell you, and we have looked. USDA FoodData Central, the reference database we use for sesame composition, has no black sesame entry in its standard reference data; its sesame entries do not specify a seed colour at all. Without an authoritative comparison we publish none, and we would treat any product claim built on one with care.
What USDA does show is that hulling changes composition sharply: removing the seed coat takes out about 94% of the calcium. Our nutrition guide sets out the figures.
Do you export black sesame?
No. Our grades are white sesame from Nigeria: natural white, sortex premium and hulled. If your specification calls for black sesame, we are not the right supplier for it, and we would rather say so than quote against it.
If you arrived here looking for black seed (Nigella sativa), that is a spice trade, with a different customs code and different suppliers.
How current is this page?
Checked on 28 September 2026. The plant families are from Kew's Plants of the World Online; the colour range is from the 2021 Frontiers in Genetics study cited below; the tariff wording is from the EU's TARIC database (reference date 28 September 2026) and the US International Trade Commission's HTS; the nigella classification is the German binding tariff information DEBTI19254/24-1, valid from 13 June 2024 to 12 June 2027. Binding tariff information is binding only in respect of the goods of the holder it was issued to, so treat it as a strong indication of practice rather than a rule for every consignment.
Put this into practice
Send us your specification (grade, quantity, destination, Incoterm) and you will have a formal quotation within 48 hours.
The grades this applies to
Written by
Sparsh Khullar
Director — Trade & Markets
Runs the AgroMax trade desk from India: contracts, documentation and buyer relationships across destination markets. More about the team
Primary sources
Every figure above is tied to the instrument it comes from. These are those instruments, so you can check us rather than take our word for it.
- Frontiers in Genetics (2021) — seed coat colour in Sesamum indicum
Describes seed-coat colour ranging from white to black within the species, and a white × black cross.
- Kew, Plants of the World Online — Sesamum indicum L.
Family Pedaliaceae.
- Kew, Plants of the World Online — Nigella sativa L.
Family Ranunculaceae; common name black cumin seed.
- EU TARIC — 1207 40 90 Sesamum seeds, other
- US International Trade Commission — Harmonized Tariff Schedule, 1207.40