Vanilla is more expensive than money

The sweet dessert Panna Cotta will close the party this year less often. Because for that the cook needs a vanilla pod. And in the supermarket, he has to dig deep in his pocket. For example, a three-piece glbad tube at the online specialist retailer currently costs around 16 euros. These consumers want or can afford fewer and fewer consumers – and fall back on substitutes. "You do not necessarily need vanilla," says Hamburg importer Berend Hachmann. Its vanilla trading office, which has existed since 1881, is going through difficult times. "Vanilla is hardly available in Madagascar," explains the merchant.

The deficiency is expressed in the record price of the exotic spice. A kilogram costs around 600 euros, more than the money is needed for the precious metal. The hope that the pods will be even cheaper until the time of the Christmas cookies, should not be met. Their harvest starts in mid-July and their transformation takes about three months for export. The offer does not increase anymore.

There are many reasons for this. The research first led to the island of Madagascar, which lies about 600 kilometers from the East African coast. Eighty percent of the vanilla consumed in the world comes from the state, which has 22 million inhabitants. Usually, farmers choose 2,500 tonnes of plants here each year. But tropical storms have a destructive effect. Not only are there fewer pods on orchids. The quality of the fruit is also down for other reasons. Because vanilla is a coveted stolen property. Producers tend to harvest as early as possible. At this stage, the flavors of the plant are not yet fully developed.

Given the development of prices, it is surprising that more vanilla is not grown elsewhere. For example, Mexico, Uganda, India and Papua New Guinea are also producing countries. But only Papua New Guinea builds its capacity significantly, reports Hachmann. The quality of the goods from Uganda is so bad that his office does not buy anything over there. The genus of the genus Orchid is simply not. The plant is a hybrid. Each flower must be pollinated by hand. And the treatment of green pods is as laborious until it turns into a brown pod rich in flavor.

Vanilla has 400 flavors

Vanilla is an unusual spice. About 400 flavors contain the pod. The best known is vanillin, which produces the typical taste of ice cream balls or other treats. Traces of vanilla are found in about 18,000 products, not only in food, but also in perfumes or lotions. No wonder the Symrise flavor company is one of the biggest buyers of the crop in Madagascar. "There have always been big price swings," says Christina Witter, spokesperson for Symrise, "that's why we have also cooperated with farmers in Madagascar."

The Westphalian company Holzminden claims to be the largest processor in the world. aromas of vanilla. Symrise is dedicated to the sustainable development of the island. Nearly 7,000 small farmers work together with the group. According to the company, 40,000 residents benefit from the cooperation, which also includes investments in schools, health care or the development of additional sources of income. "This guarantees farmers a stable, long-term income," says Witter. The development project is also critically considered in the industry. "Symrise eliminates all middlemen," says a market expert who wants to remain anonymous. As a result, many jobs were lost in the country.

German consumers are feeling the explosion of vanilla prices for some time, even though they do not use the pods themselves. A comparative test of vanilla ice cream in the latest issue of Ökotest magazine resulted in a sad result. "There was more vanilla," say the reviewers. Of all the expensive branded products Cremissimo Bourbon Vanilla and Mövenpick Bourbon Vanilla, inspectors found the lowest amount of vanilla. Both varieties only received the "insufficient" grade.