Ingredient - Vanilla Planifolia Fruit Extract

Vanilla are a genus of flowering species in the orchid family; the most highly cultivated is the flat-leaved Vanilla planifolia, native to Mexico and Central America. The fruit or pods of the pollinated vanilla orchid are harvested, cured, macerated and percolated to product vanilla extract. The extract is widely prized for its near-universal appeal as a flavouring and fragrance, but is labour intensive to produce due to the need for hand-pollination, making it the second most expensive spice in the world, behind saffron.

Botanical name: Vanilla planifolia

Other names: Vanilla, Flat-leaved Vanilla, West Indian Vanilla

Main constituents: vanillin, vanillic acid, 4-hydroxybenzaldehyde, 4-hydroxybenzoic acid