The price and quality of vanilla have never subsided from the topic discussion of the agriculture and lifestyle businessmen. How these high-antioxidant spices rise in prices. The price is almost equivalent to the price of gold. Even so, the vanilla beans restaurant supply is maintained well because the suppliers are always ready to supply these fragrant, greasy and moist beans.
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The Hiking Of Vanilla Beans Price
The vanilla prices have never risen dramatically before 2017. The Cyclone Enawo hit the island of Madagascar in early 2017. This island is the best and largest producer of vanilla beans that meets the abundant demands of consumers worldwide. The hiking of vanilla beans price even reached 300 times. Besides the bad weather, the global vanilla supply faces other obstacles such as the increasing demand for organic vanilla beans.
Consumers who order vanilla beans do not only come from restaurants or hotels where vanilla sends scents to their delicious foods. The individual consumers who like vanilla begin to follow lifestyle trends by drinking coffee or milk with a vanilla bean in their cup. The vanilla beans restaurant supply is also threatened because of this surge in demand. Moreover, we know that vanilla is grown by the labor-intensive process. It takes about 6 to 9 months or even more to get organic superior vanilla without non-essential ingredients needed.
Hand Pollinated
Vanilla is a taste that binds other flavors in food so that the bitter, sour, and excessive sweetness can be balanced. This is the reason why the vanilla beans restaurant supply always full-booked. This flavor enhancer is special from this side. Not only that, but vanilla is also special in the way it is pollinated. This plant from the Orchidaceae family cannot self-pollinate even though the stamens and pistils are in one flower. This can happen because the pistil on the flower is covered by the labellum (the tongue of flower) so natural pollination is not possible to do.
Pollinating insects and humans are two creatures that can help pollinate vanilla. In Mexico, Melipona insects have a noble task in helping the pollination. However, this is impossible if it is outside of Mexico. Only human hands can help with this special pollination process.
How to Pollinate Vanilla
This is how to pollinate vanilla by hand.
- The pollinator will take 10 cm long pieces of bamboo or toothpick. The left hand will hold a blooming vanilla flower with two petals and the backmost petal leaves are between the middle finger and index finger.
- The right-hand holds a toothpick to tear the lip of flower that covers the anthers until the pistil is visible. Then, the lid is lifted until the head of the stamen is raised.
- The tip of the toothpick will be directed to take pollen and then placed on the head of the pistil with a little pressure.
- Successful pollination is indicated by the falling petals 2 or 3 days later.
Vanilla Synthesis
The vanilla beans restaurant supply is often disrupted by rising vanilla prices and the lack of stock in suppliers. Most restaurants and hotels often use vanilla synthesis to flavor cakes, puddings, ice cream, candies, cupcakes, and drinks they sell.
Synthetic vanilla or artificial vanilla is also known in the food industry as vanillin which is made by a petrochemical company. The genetically modified vanilla beans (GMO vanilla beans) are distilled then synthesized from clove oil, pine peels, and bran. The taste of food with artificial vanillin is certainly only identical to one taste. Meanwhile, if you use natural vanilla, you can get more than 20 ranges of flavors that are identical to the spicy, smoky, sweet, creamy, botanical, and flowery flavors and scents.
All back to you whether you need a vanilla beans restaurant supply with artificial vanilla or not.