Piper nigrum is known to the culinary world as Black Pepper and it has several varieties from crushed, whole and ground. For many food enthusiasts, Black Pepper Ground is the most convenient type of Black Pepper as it entails a very smooth texture which doesn’t hamper the natural taste of the food. The steam sterilised version of Black Pepper Ground is highly recommended for cooking as it has zero bacteria content plus naturally preserved flavours. Produced in the Spice capital of the world India, rest assured to have high quality Spice at a fraction of its cost. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_pepper