IDFA members can view "The Business Case for Vanilla Sustainability & Grower Empowerment". If you are a member and can not see the video and slides below, please refresh your session by logging out and logging back in to the IDFA website via the red button in the top right corner of your screen.
Vanilla is a highly unusual food commodity that grows only in very limited climatic zones. All of the major producing countries in these zones are relatively poor, and the product is extremely labor intensive.
An orchid, each vanilla blossom requires hand pollination to produce a single bean. These pods must remain on the vine for nearly nine months before harvesting and undergoing a very technical, months-long process necessary for transforming their chemical constituents into vanilla flavor.
Watch IDFA and Gold Business Partner Virginia Dare to learn the commercial reasons behind vanilla being a thinly traded commodity prone to tremendous volatility. Virginia Dare Vice President of International Operation Henry Todd explains how this presents challenges to both growers of the product and industrial users seeking to increase demand. The presentation explains how various sustainability initiatives seek to make vanilla smallholders more resilient and how demand for their product may grow as a result.
Presented By
Featuring
Henry Todd
VP International Operations, Virginia Dare