By Sophia Busam
It’s no surprise that vanilla bean is one of the most classic and popular ice cream flavors. Think about your favorite brand for a second – is the ice cream just plain white or does it have some black specks mixed in? Have you ever thought about what those specks that give that characteristic ‘vanilla’ look actually are? Wonder no more – they come from exhausted vanilla beans! Now I know what you’re thinking – Who knew vanilla beans got tired, just like us?! Well, not quite. These are vanilla beans that have already been used, or had their vanillin flavor extracted, typically for vanilla extract or paste.
The Vanilla Industry: A Brief Overview
Vanilla orchids are a bit like wine. Depending on where the plant grows, it has a different taste, flavor, and potency profile. As a result, vanilla grown in one region cannot be directly substituted for another. Vanilla growing regions include Mexico, Uganda, Tanzania, and Madagascar. The type we are most familiar with is Madagascar Vanilla, which has notes of bourbon and is the global standard for vanilla flavor.
If you like to bake, you are probably frequently reaching for your vanilla extract to mix in to your favorite recipe. In fact, demand for vanilla far exceeds the supply that can sustainably be provided. The main flavor component that provides this vanilla flavor is known as vanillin. However, looking broadly at vanilla flavored products, they actually don’t come from vanilla beans at all. The majority of vanilla flavoring comes from synthesized chemicals that are able to recall a similar flavor. In fact, less than 1% of vanilla flavor comes from actual vanilla orchids.1
Yet, there is a resurgence in consumer interest and demand for natural vanilla.2 This brings about a number of challenges for businesses. For one, cured vanilla beans only contain 2% of extractable vanilla flavor.3 As a result, pure vanilla prices have skyrocketed as high as $11,000 per kg.4 This is a steep price difference compared to synthetic vanilla that provides similar flavoring. It can also be challenging to reformulate existing products to incorporate natural vanilla. As it stands currently, 2% of food products and 3% of beverages launched are advertised as vanilla-flavored.5 To shift to natural vanilla for all of these products would stress an already intense demand for vanilla beans that farmers in growing regions are unable to meet.6
Introducing Exhausted Vanilla
Once vanilla beans are extracted to produce vanilla extract or paste, what remains are the exhausted beans. These contain small seeds and other compounds, that still have trace amounts of vanillin trapped in the cellular structures of the plant.7 They are often sold in three forms – powder, specks, and seeds. Exhausted vanilla powder comes from ground up vanilla pods, and is often the cheapest and least flavorful byproduct. Vanilla specks are made from ground up vanilla beans that were used to make extract. Exhausted vanilla seeds, which are parsed out from dried and sieved pods, are the most expensive and flavorful byproduct.
As mentioned earlier, there is already an existing industry that leverages all forms of exhausted vanilla. The most common application is for ice cream or chocolate, primarily because of the visual effect and texture that makes the product more appealing. Often times, it makes something artificially flavored with vanilla appear more natural.
However, exhausted vanilla does not just have visual applications. While it has a milder potency than pure vanilla bean, it still provides vanilla flavor. As a result, it can be used in higher concentrations to add natural vanilla flavor to different products. In this case, valorizing this side stream can help to offset the high demand for natural vanilla, by ‘increasing’ the limited product supply. In this case, both vanilla beans and their byproducts can be used to produce naturally flavored vanilla products. Additionally, scientists found that fermenting exhausted vanilla beans can improve the natural vanillin able to be recovered from these byproducts, making it a more flavorful ingredient.8
An Upcycling Dilemma
Vanilla specks are one of the most pervasive examples of side stream valorization. For decades, exhausted vanilla has been used to make vanilla products more visually appealing to consumers. Yet, more recently, there is also increasing potential for it to be leveraged to offset some of the natural vanilla supply chain risks. The question becomes, what is the highest and best use of this side stream to ensure long-term sustainability? Both are valid use cases and minimize the waste in vanilla production. But as exhausted vanilla faces increased demand, we are reaching a critical point for the future availability and use of vanilla flavored products. Growing more vanilla isn’t a viable solution – many vanilla growing regions are already high-risk due to pervasive deforestation.9 And there is certainly no slowing down demand for one of the most beloved flavors.
Evidently, the story of vanilla is an important example of the complex future of ingredient innovation. Sometimes, it’s not just about leveraging side streams for any use case but thinking about the best, most value-added applications for these byproducts. And the solution is not always black and white.
Interested in learning more about upcycling and creating sustainable alternatives for at-risk supply chains? Reach out to us here!
Sources
- https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-problem-with-vanilla/ ↩︎
- https://straitsresearch.com/report/vanilla-market#:~:text=Consumers%20are%20increasingly%20preferring%20natural,from%20orchids%20of%20vanilla%20plants. ↩︎
- https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-problem-with-vanilla/ ↩︎
- Ibid ↩︎
- https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-problem-with-vanilla/ ↩︎
- https://www.foodnavigator.com/Article/2024/04/17/Should-vanilla-production-be-stopped ↩︎
- https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/nutrition/articles/10.3389/fnut.2022.858716/full ↩︎
- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35662951/ ↩︎
- https://www.foodnavigator.com/Article/2024/04/17/Should-vanilla-production-be-stopped ↩︎