Licorice plant is known in botany as Glycyrrhiza which means "sweet root" in Greek The history of licorice is as old as the history of medicine and confection. Avicenna (ibn-Sina), the famous Iranian physician used this plant in treating his patients nine centuries ago..
Nowadays different products made from licorice are used for different purposes and in various industries, such as tobacco, medicine, foodstuff in Europe, U.S. Japan and other countries..
Different varieties of this plant grow in Turkey, Iran, Russia, Iraq, China and Afghanistan whose chemical specifications, flavor and taste differ from one another due to differences in climate conditions of these countries.
Glycyrrhiza Glabra, one of these varieties, grows wildly and perennially in the vast areas of Iran especially in Fars, Kerman, Lorestan and Kohkiloy-yeh Provinces Iran's licorice, benefiting from favorable climate conditions, rich soil and superior variety of plant, has the best quality and has been in the focal point in the world market in the past 50 year.