Vanilla

upright|thumb|right|Vanilla planifolia, flower

upright|thumb|right|Dried vanilla beans

Vanilla is a spice derived from orchids of the genus Vanilla, primarily obtained from the seed pods of the flat-leaved New World vanilla (V. planifolia).

Vanilla is not autogamous, so pollination is required to produce the pods. In 1837, the Belgian botanist Charles François Antoine Morren discovered this and pioneered a method of artificially pollinating the plant. The method proved financially unworkable and was not deployed commercially. In 1841, Edmond Albius, a 12-year-old enslaved child who lived on the French island of Réunion in the Indian Ocean, discovered that the plant could be hand-pollinated. Hand-pollination allowed global cultivation of the plant. The noted French botanist and plant collector Jean Michel Claude Richard falsely claimed to have discovered the technique three or four years earlier. By the end of the 20th century, Albius was considered the true discoverer.

Three major species of vanilla currently are grown globally, all derived from a species originally found in Mesoamerica, including parts of modern-day Mexico. They are V. planifolia (syn. V. fragrans), grown on Madagascar, Réunion, and other tropical areas along the Indian Ocean; V. × tahitensis, grown in the South Pacific; and V. pompona, found in the West Indies, Central America, and South America. The majority of the world's vanilla is the V. planifolia species, more commonly known as Bourbon vanilla (after the former name of Réunion, Île Bourbon) or Madagascar vanilla, which is produced in Madagascar and neighboring islands in the southwestern Indian Ocean, and in Indonesia. Madagascar's and Indonesia's cultivations produce two-thirds of the world's supply of vanilla.

Measured by weight, vanilla is the world's second-most expensive spice after saffron, because growing the vanilla seed pods is labor-intensive. Nevertheless, vanilla is widely used in both commercial and domestic baking, perfume production, and aromatherapy, as only small amounts are needed to impart its signature flavor and aroma.

History

upright=1.81|thumb| Drawing of the Vanilla plant from the [[Florentine Codex (c. 1580) and description of its use and properties written in the Nahuatl language]]

Before domestication, Vanilla planifolia grew wild around the Gulf of Mexico from Tampico around to the northeast tip of South America, and from Colima to Ecuador on the Pacific side, as well as throughout the Caribbean. The Totonac people, who live along the eastern coast of Mexico in the present-day state of Veracruz, were among the first people to domesticate vanilla, cultivated on farms since at least 1185. The Totonac used vanilla as a fragrance in temples and as a good-luck charm in amulets, as well as flavoring for food and beverages. The cultivation of vanilla was a low-profile affair, as few people from outside these regions knew of it. Although the Totonacs are the most famously associated with human use of vanilla, it is speculated that the Olmecs, who also lived in the regions of wild vanilla growth thousands of years earlier, were one of the first peoples to use wild vanilla in cuisine.

Aztecs from the central highlands of Mexico invaded the Totonacs in 1427, developed a taste for the vanilla pods, and began using vanilla to flavor their foods and drinks, often mixing it with cocoa in a drink called "xocolatl" that later inspired modern hot chocolate. The fruit was named tlilxochitl, wrongly interpreted as "black flower" instead of the more probable "black pod" because the matured fruit shrivels and turns a dark color shortly after being picked. For the Aztecs, much like earlier Mesoamerican peoples before them, it is probable that vanilla was used to tame the otherwise bitter taste of cacao, as sugarcane was not harvested in these regions at the time and there were no other sweeteners available.

Hernán Cortés is credited with introducing both vanilla and chocolate to Europe in the 1520s. In Europe, vanilla was seen mostly as an additive to chocolate until the early 17th century when Hugh Morgan, a creative apothecary in the employ of Queen Elizabeth I, created chocolate-free, vanilla-flavored "sweetmeats". By the 18th century, the French were using vanilla to flavor ice cream.

Until the mid-19th century, Mexico was the chief producer of vanilla. One of Mexico's top producing regions was Veracruz, especially in the town of Papantla. By 1889, Mexican exports of vanilla exceeded 70,000 kilograms making the region one of the world leaders in vanilla production at the time. While vanilla trade was surging throughout Papantla, many farmers who owned land on which this commodity was growing would soon be subject to political shifts that led to those farmers having to pay rent. Protests of these shifts in policy led many to fight and die against the four tier hierarchy made up of Totonac caciques, ranchero clans, a hefty class of landowning labradores, and a bulging stratum of tenants, jornaleros, and ranch hands. In 1819, French entrepreneurs shipped vanilla fruits to the islands of Réunion and Mauritius in hopes of producing vanilla there. After 1841, when Edmond Albius discovered how to pollinate the flowers quickly by hand, the pods began to thrive. Soon, the tropical orchids were sent from Réunion to the Comoros Islands, Seychelles, and Madagascar, along with instructions for pollinating them. By 1898, Madagascar, Réunion, and the Comoros Islands produced 200 metric tons of vanilla beans, about 80% of world production in that year. According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization 2019 data, Madagascar, followed by Indonesia, were the largest producers of vanilla in 2018.

thumb|Vanilla cultivation, [[Réunion ]]

After a tropical cyclone ravaged key croplands, the market price of vanilla rose sharply in the late 1970s and remained high through the early 1980s despite the introduction of Indonesian vanilla. In the mid-1980s, the cartel that had controlled vanilla prices and distribution since its creation in 1930 disbanded. Prices dropped 70% over the next few years, to nearly US$20 per kilogram; prices rose sharply again after tropical cyclone Hudah struck Madagascar in April 2000. The cyclone, political instability, and poor weather in the third year drove vanilla prices to US$500/kg in 2004, bringing new countries into the vanilla industry. A good crop, coupled with decreased demand caused by the production of imitation vanilla, pushed the market price down to the $40/kg range in the middle of 2005. By 2010, prices were down to $20/kg. Cyclone Enawo caused a similar spike to $500/kg in 2017.

An estimated 95% of "vanilla" products are artificially flavored with vanillin derived from lignin instead of vanilla fruits.

Although vanilla was domesticated in Mesoamerica and subsequently spread to the Old World, the use of an unidentified, Old World-endemic Vanilla species is attested in Canaan/Israel during the Middle Bronze Age and later. Traces of vanillin were found in wine jars in Jerusalem, which were used by the Judahite elite before the city was destroyed in 586 BCE. The word "vanilla" entered the English language in 1754, when the botanist Philip Miller wrote about the genus in his Gardener's Dictionary.

Biology

Vanilla orchid

thumb|upright=0.6|[[Vanilla extract displays its distinctive color.]]

thumb|upright=1.2|V. planifolia – flower

The main species of vanilla cultivated is V. planifolia. Although it is native to Mesoamerica and South America, it is now widely grown throughout the tropics. Indonesia and Madagascar are the world's largest producers. Additional sources include V. pompona and V. tahitiensis (grown in Niue and Tahiti), although the vanillin content of these species is much less than V. planifolia.

Vanilla grows as a vine, climbing up an existing tree (also called a tutor), pole, or other support. It can be grown in a wood (on trees), in a plantation (on trees or poles), or in a "shader", in increasing orders of productivity. Its growth environment is referred to as its terroir, and includes not only the adjacent plants, but also the climate, geography, and local geology. Left alone, it will grow as high as possible on the support, with few flowers. Every year, growers fold the higher parts of the plant downward so the plant stays at heights accessible by a standing human. This also greatly stimulates flowering.

The distinctively flavored compounds are found in the fruit, which results from the pollination of the flower. These seed pods are roughly by , and brownish red to black when ripe. Inside of these pods is an oily liquid full of tiny seeds. One flower produces one fruit. V. planifolia flowers are hermaphroditic: they carry both male (anther) and female (stigma) organs. However, self-pollination is made difficult by the rostellum which separates those organs.

The only pollinators definitively documented to date are orchid bees in the genus Eulaema and the Western honey bee. Hand pollination by humans is the primary method of pollination used for commercial vanilla production worldwide as it has been shown to result in in higher pollination rates and greater yields than naturally occurring pollination.

The first vanilla orchid to flower in Europe was in the London collection of the Honourable Charles Greville in 1806. Cuttings from that plant went to Netherlands and Paris, from which the French first transplanted the vines to their overseas colonies. The vines grew, but would not fruit outside Mexico. The only known way to produce fruits is artificial pollination. Today, even in Mexico, hand pollination is used extensively. In 1837, botanist Charles François Antoine Morren began experimenting with hand pollination of Vanilla orchids in cultivation in Europe. The method proved financially unworkable and was not deployed commercially. A few years later in 1841, a simple and efficient artificial hand-pollination method was developed by a 12-year-old slave named Edmond Albius on Réunion, a method still used today.  Using a beveled sliver of bamboo, an agricultural worker lifts the membrane separating the anther and the stigma, then, using the thumb, transfers the pollinia from the anther to the stigma. The flower, self-pollinated, will then produce a fruit. The flowers of V. planifolia last about one day, sometimes less, so growers have to inspect their plantations every day for open flowers, a labor-intensive task.

The fruit, a seed capsule, if left on the plant, ripens and opens at the end; as it dries, the phenolic compounds crystallize. It then releases the distinctive vanilla smell.

Like other orchids' seeds, vanilla seeds germinate only in the presence of certain mycorrhizal fungi.

Cultivars

thumb|upright 0.7|A bottle of vanilla extract

Bourbon vanilla or Bourbon-Madagascar vanilla, produced from V. planifolia plants introduced from the Americas, is from Indian Ocean islands such as Madagascar, the Comoros, Mauritius and Réunion, formerly named the Île Bourbon. It is also used to describe the distinctive vanilla flavor derived from V. planifolia grown successfully in tropical countries such as India. However, there is no Bourbon whiskey in Bourbon vanilla extract, despite common confusion about this.
Mexican vanilla, made from the native V. planifolia, is produced in much less quantity and marketed as the vanilla from the land of its origin.
Tahitian vanilla is from French Polynesia, made with V. tahitensis. Genetic analysis shows this species is possibly a cultivar from a hybrid of V. planifolia and V. odorata. The species was introduced by French Admiral François Alphonse Hamelin to French Polynesia from the Philippines, where it was introduced from Guatemala by the Manila Galleon trade. It comprises less than one percent of vanilla production and is only grown by a handful of skilled growers and preparers.
West Indian vanilla is made from V. pompona grown in the Caribbean and Central and South America.

The term French vanilla is often used to designate particular preparations with a strong vanilla aroma, containing vanilla grains and sometimes also containing eggs (especially egg yolks). The appellation originates from the French style of making vanilla ice cream with a custard base, using vanilla pods, cream, and egg yolks. Inclusion of vanilla varietals from any of the former French dependencies or overseas France may be a part of the flavoring. Alternatively, French vanilla is taken to refer to a vanilla-custard flavor.

Chemistry

thumb|upright|Chemical structure of [[vanillin]]

Vanilla essence occurs in two forms. Real seedpod extract is a complex mixture of several hundred different compounds, including vanillin, acetaldehyde, acetic acid, furfural, hexanoic acid, 4-hydroxybenzaldehyde, eugenol, methyl cinnamate, and isobutyric acid. Synthetic essence consists of a solution of synthetic vanillin in ethanol. The chemical compound vanillin (4-hydroxy-3-methoxybenzaldehyde) is a major contributor to the characteristic flavor and aroma of real vanilla and is the main flavor component of cured vanilla beans. Vanillin was first isolated from vanilla pods by Gobley in 1858. By 1874, it had been obtained from glycosides of pine tree sap, temporarily causing a depression in the natural vanilla industry. Vanillin can be easily synthesized from various raw materials, but the majority of food-grade (> 99% pure) vanillin is made from guaiacol.

Cultivation

upright|thumb|right|Vanilla × tahitensis in cultivation

thumb|upright|A vanilla plantation in a forest of [[Réunion Island]]

In general, quality vanilla only comes from good vines and through careful production methods. Commercial vanilla production can be performed under open field and "greenhouse" operations. The two production systems share these similarities:

Plant height and number of years before producing the first grains
Shade necessities
Amount of organic matter needed
A tree or frame to grow around (bamboo, coconut or Erythrina lanceolata)
Labor intensity (pollination and harvest activities)

Vanilla grows best in a hot, humid climate from sea level to an elevation of . The ideal climate has moderate rainfall, , evenly distributed through 10 months of the year. Optimum temperatures for cultivation are during the day and during the night. Ideal humidity is around 80%, and under normal greenhouse conditions, it can be achieved by an evaporative cooler. However, since greenhouse vanilla is grown near the equator and under polymer (HDPE) netting (shading of 50%), this humidity can be achieved by the environment. Most successful vanilla growing and processing is done in the region within 10 to 20° of the equator. Mulch is very important for proper growth of the vine, and a considerable portion of mulch should be placed in the base of the vine. Fertilization varies with soil conditions, but general recommendations are: 40 to 60 g of N, 20 to 30 g of P2O5 and 60 to 100 g of K2O should be applied to each plant per year besides organic manures, such as vermicompost, oil cakes, poultry manure, and wood ash. Foliar applications are also good for vanilla, and a solution of 1% NPK (17:17:17) can be sprayed on the plant once a month. Vanilla requires organic matter, so three or four applications of mulch a year are adequate for the plant.

Propagation, preparation and type of stock

Dissemination of vanilla can be achieved either by stem cutting or by tissue culture. For stem cutting, a progeny garden needs to be established.  All plants need to grow under 50% shade, as well as the rest of the crop. Mulching the trenches with coconut husk and micro irrigation provide an ideal microclimate for vegetative growth. Cuttings between should be selected for planting in the field or greenhouse. Cuttings below need to be rooted and raised in a separate nursery before planting. Planting material should always come from unflowered portions of the vine. Wilting of the cuttings before planting provides better conditions for root initiation and establishment. In vitro multiplication has also been achieved through culture of callus masses, protocorms, root tips and stem nodes. Description of any of these processes can be obtained from the references listed before, but all of them are successful in generation of new vanilla plants that first need to be grown up to a height of at least before they can be planted in the field or greenhouse.

The orchid species Leptotes bicolor is used as a natural vanilla replacement in Paraguay and southern Brazil.

In 1996 the US Food and Drug Administration cautioned that some vanilla products sold in Mexico were made from the cheaper tonka bean which as well as vanillin also contains the toxin coumarin. They advised consumers to always check the ingredients label and avoid suspiciously cheap products.

Nonplant vanilla flavoring

In the United States, castoreum, the exudate from the castor sacs of mature beavers, has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration as a food additive, often referenced simply as a "natural flavoring" in the product's list of ingredients. It is used in both food and beverages, It is also used to flavor some cigarettes and in perfume-making, and is used by fur trappers as a scent lure.

Harvest

Harvesting vanilla fruits is as labor-intensive as pollinating the blossoms. Immature, dark green pods are not harvested. Pale yellow discoloration that commences at the distal end of the fruits is not a good indication of the maturity of pods. Each fruit ripens at its own time, requiring a daily harvest. "Current methods for determining the maturity of vanilla (Vanilla planifolia Andrews) beans are unreliable. Yellowing at the blossom end, the current index, occurs before beans accumulate maximum glucovanillin concentrations. Beans left on the vine until they turn brown have higher glucovanillin concentrations but may split and have low quality. Judging bean maturity is difficult as they reach full size soon after pollination. Glucovanillin accumulates from 20 weeks, maximum about 40 weeks after pollination. Mature green beans have 20% dry matter but less than 2% glucovanillin." The accumulation of dry matter and glucovanillin are highly correlated. To ensure the finest flavor from every fruit, each individual pod must be picked by hand just as it begins to split on the end. Overmatured fruits are likely to split, causing a reduction in market value. Its commercial value is fixed based on the length and appearance of the pod.

If the fruit is more than in length, it is categorized as first-quality. The largest fruits greater than and up to as much as are usually reserved for the gourmet vanilla market, for sale to top chefs and restaurants. If the fruits are between 10 and 15 cm long, pods are in the second-quality category, and fruits less than in length are in the third-quality category. Each fruit contains thousands of tiny black vanilla seeds. Vanilla fruit yield depends on the care and management given to the hanging and fruiting vines. Any practice directed to stimulate aerial root production has a direct effect on vine productivity. A five-year-old vine can produce between of pods, and this production can increase up to after a few years. The harvested green fruit can be commercialized as such or cured to get a better market price.

Killing

The vegetative tissue of the vanilla pod is killed to stop the vegetative growth of the pods and disrupt the cells and tissue of the fruits, which initiates enzymatic reactions responsible for the aroma. The method of killing varies, but may be accomplished by heating in hot water, freezing, or scratching, or killing by heating in an oven or exposing the beans to direct sunlight. The different methods give different profiles of enzymatic activity.

Testing has shown mechanical disruption of fruit tissues can cause curing processes, including the degeneration of glucovanillin to vanillin, so the reasoning goes that disrupting the tissues and cells of the fruit allow enzymes and enzyme substrates to interact. and individual vendors, in turn, sometimes use their own criteria for describing the quality of the fruits they offer for sale. In general, vanilla fruit grade is based on the length, appearance (color, sheen, presence of any splits, presence of blemishes), and moisture content of the fruit. Whole, dark, plump and oily pods that are visually attractive, with no blemishes, and that have a higher moisture content are graded most highly. Such pods are particularly prized by chefs for their appearance and can be featured in gourmet dishes. and are not necessarily the most flavorful.

! Grade !! Color !! Appearance / feel !! Approximate moisture content†

| Black || dark brown to black || supple with oily luster || > 30%

| TK (Brown, or Semi-Black) || dark brown to black sometimes with a few red streaks || like Black but drier/stiffer || 25–30%

| Red Fox (European quality) || brown with reddish variegation || a few blemishes || 25%

| Red American quality || brown with reddish variegation || similar to European red but more blemishes and drier/stiffer || 22–25%

| Cuts || short, cut, and often split fruits, typically with substandard aroma and color || ||

† moisture content varies among sources cited

alt=vanilla-grading in Madagascar|center|thumb|300x300px|Vanilla-grading in Madagascar

A simplified, alternative grading system has been proposed for classifying vanilla fruits suitable for use in cooking:

Production

In 2023, world production of raw vanilla was 7,433 tonnes, led by Madagascar with 42% of the total and Indonesia with 25% (table).

Uses

thumb|upright=0.7|A vanilla powder preparation made from sucrose and vanilla bean extracts

thumb|center|upright=2.0|Vanilla rum, [[Madagascar]]

The four main commercial preparations of natural vanilla are:

Whole pod
Powder (ground pods, kept pure or blended with sugar, starch, or other ingredients)
Extract (in alcoholic or occasionally glycerol solution; both pure and imitation forms of vanilla contain at least 35% alcohol)
Vanilla sugar, a packaged mix of sugar and vanilla extract

Vanilla flavoring in food may be achieved by adding vanilla extract or by cooking vanilla pods in the liquid preparation. A stronger aroma may be attained if the pods are split in two, exposing more of a pod's surface area to the liquid. In this case, the pods' seeds are mixed into the preparation. Natural vanilla gives a brown or yellow color to preparations, depending on the concentration. Good-quality vanilla has a strong, aromatic flavor, but food with small amounts of low-quality vanilla or artificial vanilla-like flavorings are far more common, since true vanilla is much more expensive.

Regarded as the world's most popular aroma and flavor, vanilla is a widely used aroma and flavor compound for foods, beverages and cosmetics, as indicated by its popularity as an ice cream flavor (as of 2004, around half of vanilla flavor consumed in the US was eaten in ice cream). Although vanilla is a prized flavoring agent on its own, it is also used to enhance the flavor of other substances, to which its own flavor is often complementary, such as chocolate, custard, caramel, coffee, and others. Vanilla is a common ingredient in Western sweet baked goods, such as cookies and cakes.

The food industry uses methyl and ethyl vanillin as less-expensive substitutes for real vanilla. Ethyl vanillin is more expensive, but has a stronger note. Cook's Illustrated ran several taste tests pitting vanilla against vanillin in baked goods and other applications, and to the consternation of the magazine editors, tasters could not differentiate the flavor of vanillin from vanilla; however, for the case of vanilla ice cream, natural vanilla won out. A more recent and thorough test by the same group produced a more interesting variety of results; namely, high-quality artificial vanilla flavoring is best for cookies, while high-quality real vanilla is slightly better for cakes and significantly better for unheated or lightly heated foods.

The liquid extracted from vanilla pods was once believed to have medical properties, helping with various stomach ailments.

Contact dermatitis

thumb|Illustration of allergic contact dermatitis

The sap of most species of vanilla orchid which exudes from cut stems or where beans are harvested can cause moderate to severe dermatitis if it comes in contact with bare skin. The sap of vanilla orchids contains calcium oxalate crystals, which are thought to be the main causative agent of contact dermatitis in vanilla plantation workers.

Gallery

File:Vanilla plantation dsc01187.jpg|A vanilla planting in an open field on Réunion

File:Vanilla plantation in shader dsc01168.jpg|A vanilla planting in a "shader" (ombrière) on Réunion

File:Vanilla_planifolia_1.jpg|Flower

File:Vanilla fragrans 2.jpg|Green fruits

</gallery>

References

External links

Kew Species Profile: Vanilla planifolia (vanilla)
History, Classification and Lifecycle of Vanilla planifolia
Spices at UCLA History & Special Collections
"The Present State of the West-Indies: Containing an Accurate Description of What Parts Are Possessed by the Several Powers in Europe" by Thomas Kitchin, 1778, in which Kitchin discusses vanilla
"Vanillanomics – Watching global market forces at work in the far reaches of Madagascar" by Bloomberg Businessweek, December 2019