Editing Vanilla (section)

==Cultivation==
[[File:Vanilla no Tahiti.jpg|upright|thumb|right|''Vanilla'' × ''tahitensis'' in cultivation]]
[[File:Vanilla plantation in wood dsc00190.jpg|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)<ref name="Anilkumar 2004">{{cite journal |last=Anilkumar |first=A. S. |date=February 2004 |title=Vanilla cultivation: A profitable agri-based enterprise |journal=Kerala Calling |pages=26–30 |url=http://www.old.kerala.gov.in/keralacallfeb04/p26-30.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130228070500/http://www.old.kerala.gov.in/keralacallfeb04/p26-30.pdf |archive-date=28 February 2013 }}</ref>

Vanilla grows best in a hot, humid climate from sea level to an elevation of 1,500&nbsp;m.<ref name="Stehlé-1952">{{Cite journal |last=Stehlé |first=Henri |date=1952 |title=Le Vanillier et sa culture: Histoire - Botanique - Géographie - Écologie du vanillier |url=https://revues.cirad.fr/index.php/fruits/article/view/32744 |journal=Fruits |language=fr |volume=7 |pages=50–56}}</ref> The ideal climate has moderate rainfall, 1,500–3,000&nbsp;mm, evenly distributed through 10 months of the year. Optimum temperatures for cultivation are {{convert|15|-|30|C|F}} during the day and {{convert|15|-|20|C|F}} 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.<ref name="Stehlé-1952" />

Soils for vanilla cultivation should be loose, with high organic matter content and loamy texture. They must be well drained, and a slight slope helps in this condition. Soil [[pH]] has not been well documented, but some researchers have indicated an optimum soil pH around 5.3.<ref>Berninger, F., Salas, E., 2003. "Biomass dynamics of Erythrina lanceolata as influenced by shoot-pruning intensity in Costa Rica." ''Agro-forestry Systems'', 57:19–28.</ref> [[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.<ref name="Davis-1983">{{cite journal |last=Davis |first=Elmo W. |year=1983 |title=Experiences with growing vanilla (Vanilla planifolia) |journal=Acta Horticulturae |volume=132 |issue=132 |pages=23–9 |doi=10.17660/ActaHortic.1983.132.2 }}</ref> Fertilization varies with soil conditions, but general recommendations are: 40 to 60 g of N, 20 to 30 g of P<sub>2</sub>O<sub>5</sub> and 60 to 100 g of K<sub>2</sub>O 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. <!-- Recommendations for establishing this garden vary, but in general, trenches of {{convert|60|cm|in|abbr=on}} in width, {{convert|45|cm|in|abbr=on}} in depth and {{convert|60|cm|in|abbr=on}} spacing for each plant are necessary. --> 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.<ref name="Elizabeth 2002">{{cite journal |last=Elizabeth |first=K. G. |year=2002 |title=Vanilla: an orchid spice |journal=Indian Journal of Arecanut Spices and Medicinal Plants |volume=4 |issue=2 |pages=96–8}}</ref> Cuttings between {{convert|60|and|120|cm|in|abbr=on}} should be selected for planting in the field or greenhouse. Cuttings below {{convert|60|to|120|cm|in|abbr=on}} 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.<ref name="Anilkumar 2004"/>

Before planting the cuttings, trees to support the vine must be planted at least three months before sowing the cuttings. Pits of 30 × 30 × 30&nbsp;cm are dug {{convert|30|cm|in|abbr=on}} away from the tree and filled with farm yard manure (vermicompost), sand and top soil mixed well. An average of 2000 cuttings can be planted per hectare (2.5 acres). One important consideration is that when planting the cuttings from the base, four leaves should be pruned and the pruned basal point must be pressed into the soil in a way such that the nodes are in close contact with the soil, and are placed at a depth of {{convert|15|to|20|cm|in|abbr=on}}.<ref name="Davis-1983"/> The top portion of the cutting is tied to the tree using natural fibers such as banana or hemp.

===Tissue culture===
Tissue culture was first used as a means of creating vanilla plants during the 1980s at Tamil Nadu University. This was the part of the first project to grow ''V. planifolia'' in India. At that time, a shortage of vanilla planting stock was occurring in India. The approach was inspired by the work going on to tissue culture other flowering plants. Several methods have been proposed for vanilla tissue culture, but all of them begin from axillary buds of the vanilla vine.<ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.1007/BF01092772 |pmid=30727638 |title=In vitro multiplication of ''Vanilla planifolia'' using axillary bud explants |year=1997 |last1=George |first1=P. S. |last2=Ravishankar |first2=G. A. |journal=Plant Cell Reports |volume=16 |issue=7 |pages=490–494|s2cid=25158520 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Kononowicz |first1=H. |last2=Janick |first2=J. |year=1984 |title=In vitro propagation of Vanilla planifolia |journal=HortScience |volume=19 |issue=1 |pages=58–9|doi=10.21273/HORTSCI.19.1.58 |s2cid=89492752 |doi-access=free }}</ref> In vitro multiplication has also been achieved through culture of callus masses, protocorms, root tips and stem nodes.<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Giridhar P, Ravishankar GA |year=2004 |title=Efficient micropropagation of ''Vanilla planifolia'' Andr. under influence of thidiazuron, zeatin and coconut milk |journal=Indian Journal of Biotechnology |volume=3 |issue=1 |pages=113–118 |url=http://nopr.niscair.res.in/handle/123456789/5837 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140506134353/http://nopr.niscair.res.in/handle/123456789/5837 |archive-date=6 May 2014 }}</ref> 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 {{convert|30|cm|in|abbr=on}} before they can be planted in the field or greenhouse.<ref name="Anilkumar 2004"/>

===Scheduling considerations===
In the tropics,{{where|date=October 2020}} the ideal time for planting vanilla is from September to November, when the weather is neither too rainy nor too dry, but this recommendation varies with growing conditions. Cuttings take one to eight weeks to establish roots, and show initial signs of growth from one of the leaf axils. A thick mulch of leaves should be provided immediately after planting as an additional source of organic matter. Three years are required for cuttings to grow enough to produce flowers and subsequent pods. As with most orchids, the blossoms grow along stems branching from the main vine. The buds, growing along the {{convert|6|to|10|in|cm|abbr=on}} stems, bloom and mature in sequence, each at a different interval.<ref name="Elizabeth 2002"/>

===Pollination===
{{external media
| float  = right
| video1 = [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1RdoTcDD2EU Hand Pollination of Vanilla Planifolia Flowers], YouTube video
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Flowering normally occurs every spring, and without pollination, the blossom wilts and falls, and no vanilla bean can grow. In the wild in the [[New World]], the only organisms ever observed to carry ''Vanilla'' pollen are orchid bees in the genus ''[[Eulaema]]'', though direct evidence documenting seed set is lacking.<ref name="Lubinsky-2006" /> Claims that pollination is achieved by stingless bees of the genus ''[[Melipona]]'' or [[hummingbird]]s have never been substantiated, though they do visit the flowers.<ref name="Lubinsky-2006" /> Even within the range of orchid bees, wild vanilla orchids have only a 1% chance of successful pollination. As a result, all vanilla grown today is pollinated by hand. Each flower must be hand-pollinated within 12 hours of opening. A small splinter of wood or a grass stem is used to lift the [[rostellum]] or move the flap upward, so the overhanging anther can be pressed against the stigma and self-pollinate the vine. Generally, one flower per [[raceme]] opens per day, so the raceme may be in flower for over 20 days. A healthy vine should produce about 50 to 100 beans per year, but growers are careful to pollinate only five or six flowers from the 20 on each raceme. The first flowers that open in each raceme are usually the only ones that are pollinated, so the resulting beans are similar in age and mature together. This agronomic practice facilitates harvest and increases bean quality, as over-pollination results in diseases and inferior bean quality.<ref name="Davis-1983" /> The fruits require five to six weeks to develop, but around six months to mature. A vine remains productive between 12 and 14 years.

===Pest and disease management===
Vanilla is susceptible to many fungal and viral diseases. ''[[Fusarium]]'', ''[[Sclerotium]]'', ''[[Phytophthora]]'', and ''[[Colletrotrichum]]'' species cause rots of root, stem, leaf, bean, and [[shoot apex]]. Development of most diseases is favoured by unsuitable growing conditions such as overwatering, insufficient drainage, heavy mulch, overpollination, and too much shade. Fungal diseases can be controlled by spraying [[Bordeaux mixture]] (1%), [[carbendazim]] (0.2%) and [[copper oxychloride]] (0.2%).

Biological control of the spread of such diseases can be managed by applying to the soil ''[[Trichoderma]]'' ({{convert|0.5|kg|lb|abbr=on}} per plant in the [[rhizosphere]]) and foliar application of [[pseudomonas]] (0.2%). [[Mosaic virus]], [[leaf curl]], and [[Cymbidium mosaic virus|cymbidium mosaic potexvirus]] are the common viral diseases. These diseases are transmitted through the sap, so affected plants must be destroyed. The insect pests of vanilla include beetles and weevils that attack the flower, caterpillars, snakes, and slugs that damage the tender parts of shoot, flower buds, and immature fruit, and grasshoppers that affect cutting shoot tips.<ref name="Davis-1983" /><ref name="Elizabeth 2002" /> If organic agriculture is practiced, insecticides are avoided, and mechanical measures are adopted for pest management.<ref name="Anilkumar 2004" /> Most of these practices are implemented under greenhouse cultivation, since such field conditions are very difficult to achieve.

===Artificial vanilla===
Most artificial vanilla products contain [[vanillin]], which can be produced synthetically from [[lignin]], a natural polymer found in wood. Most synthetic vanillin is a byproduct from the [[Pulp (paper)|pulp]] used in [[papermaking]], in which the lignin is broken down using [[sulfite]]s or [[sulfate]]s. However, vanillin is only one of 171 identified aromatic components of real vanilla fruits.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://cooksvanilla.com/about_vanilla.html |title=About Vanilla – Vanilla imitations |publisher=Cook Flavoring Company |year=2011 |access-date=22 June 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090430092229/http://www.cooksvanilla.com/about.html |archive-date=30 April 2009 }}</ref>

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.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.fda.gov/ForConsumers/ConsumerUpdates/ucm048613.htm |title=IMPORT ALERT IA2807: "DETENTION WITHOUT PHYSICAL EXAMINATION OF COUMARIN IN VANILLA PRODUCTS (EXTRACTS – FLAVORINGS – IMITATIONS)" |access-date=21 December 2007 |date=January 1998 |publisher=U.S. Food and Drug Administration Office of Regulatory Affairs |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090603133600/https://www.fda.gov/ForConsumers/ConsumerUpdates/ucm048613.htm |archive-date=3 June 2009 }}</ref>

===Nonplant vanilla flavoring===
In the United States, [[castoreum]], the exudate from the castor sacs of mature [[beaver]]s, has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration as a food additive,<ref>{{cite journal |author=Burdock GA |title=Safety assessment of castoreum extract as a food ingredient |journal=Int. J. Toxicol. |volume=26 |issue=1 |pages=51–55 |year=2007 |pmid=17365147 |doi=10.1080/10915810601120145|s2cid=39977652 }}</ref> often referenced simply as a "[[natural flavoring]]" in the product's list of ingredients. It is used in both food and beverages,<ref name="Kennedy-2015"/> especially as vanilla and raspberry flavoring, with a total annual U.S. production of less than 300 pounds.<ref name="Kennedy-2015">{{cite news |url=http://sitn.hms.harvard.edu/flash/2015/the-flavor-rundown-natural-vs-artificial-flavors/ |title=What's in a flavor? Vanillin dreams |last=Kennedy |first=C Rose |newspaper=Science in the News |year=2015 |series=The Flavor Rundown: Natural vs. Artificial Flavors |publisher=Harvard University, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences |location=Boston, MA |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161202173544/http://sitn.hms.harvard.edu/flash/2015/the-flavor-rundown-natural-vs-artificial-flavors/ |archive-date=2 December 2016 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Burdock|first=George A.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=A8OyTzGGJhYC&pg=PA277|title=Fenaroli's Handbook of Flavor Ingredients|date=2004-12-03|publisher=CRC Press|isbn=978-1-4200-3787-6|language=en}}</ref> 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."<ref>{{cite journal|title=Determining the harvest maturity of vanilla beans|author1=S. Van Dyk |author2=P. Holford |author3=P. Subedi |author4=K. Walsh |author5=M. Williams |author6=W.B. McGlasson |journal=Scientia Horticulturae|volume=168|year=2014|pages=249–257|doi=10.1016/j.scienta.2014.02.002|bibcode=2014ScHor.168..249V }}</ref> 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 {{convert|15|cm|in|abbr=on}} in length, it is categorized as first-quality. The largest fruits greater than {{convert|16|cm|in|abbr=on}} and up to as much as {{convert|21|cm|in|abbr=on}} are usually reserved for the gourmet vanilla market, for sale to top chefs and restaurants. If the fruits are between 10 and 15&nbsp;cm long, pods are in the second-quality category, and fruits less than {{convert|10|cm|in|abbr=on}} 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 {{convert|1.5|and|3|kg|lb|abbr=on}} of pods, and this production can increase up to {{convert|6|kg|lb|abbr=on}} after a few years. The harvested green fruit can be commercialized as such or cured to get a better market price.<ref name="Anilkumar 2004"/><ref name="Davis-1983"/><ref name="Elizabeth 2002"/>

===Curing===
Several methods exist in the market for curing vanilla; nevertheless, all of them consist of four basic steps: killing, sweating, slow-drying, and conditioning of the beans.<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Havkin-Frenkel D, French JC, Graft NM |s2cid=90867600 |year=2004 |title=Interrelation of curing and botany in vanilla (vanilla planifolia) bean |journal=Acta Horticulturae |volume=629 |issue=629 |pages=93–102 |doi=10.17660/ActaHortic.2004.629.12 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Havkin-Frenkel |first1=D. |last2=French |first2=J. C. |last3=Pak |first3=F. E. |last4=Frenkel |first4=C. |year=2003 |title=Botany and curing of vanilla |journal=Journal of Aromatic Medicinal Plants}}</ref>

====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 reaction]]s 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.<ref name="Frenkel-2010">{{cite book |first1=Chaim |last1=Frenkel |first2=Arvind S. |last2=Ranadive |first3=Javier Tochihuitl |last3=Vázquez |first4=Daphna |last4=Havkin-Frenkel |chapter=Curing of Vanilla |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZCraZokdYrkC&pg=PA79 |pages=79–106 [87] |editor1-first=Daphna |editor1-last=Havkin-Frenkel |editor2-first=Faith |editor2-last=Belanger |year=2010 |title=Handbook of Vanilla Science and Technology |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |isbn=978-1-4443-2937-7 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160425124132/https://books.google.com/books?id=ZCraZokdYrkC&pg=PA79 |archive-date=25 April 2016 }}</ref><ref name="Arana-1944">{{cite journal |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fjcSAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA119 |first1=Francisca E. |last1=Arana |date=October 1944 |title=Vanilla curing and its chemistry |journal=Bulletin |issue=42 |pages=1–17 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160427153641/https://books.google.com/books?id=fjcSAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA119 |archive-date=27 April 2016 }}</ref>

Testing has shown mechanical disruption of fruit tissues can cause curing processes,<ref>[https://patents.google.com/patent/US2621127 Methods of dehydrating and curing vanilla fruit] US Patent 2,621,127</ref> including the degeneration of glucovanillin to vanillin, so the reasoning goes that disrupting the tissues and cells of the fruit allow enzymes and [[Enzyme substrate (biology)|enzyme substrates]] to interact.<ref name="Frenkel-2010"/>

Hot-water killing may consist of dipping the pods in hot water ({{convert|63|-|65|C|F}}) for three minutes, or at {{convert|80|C|F}} for 10 seconds. In scratch killing, fruits are scratched along their length.<ref name="Arana-1944"/> Frozen or quick-frozen fruits must be thawed again for the subsequent [[#Sweating|sweating stage]]. Tied in bundles and rolled in blankets, fruits may be placed in an oven at {{convert|60|C|F}} for 36 to 48 hours. Exposing the fruits to sunlight until they turn brown, a method originating in Mexico, was practiced by the Aztecs.<ref name="Frenkel-2010"/>

====Sweating====
Sweating is a [[hydrolytic]] and [[oxidative]] process. Traditionally, it consists of keeping fruits, for 7 to 10 days, densely stacked and insulated in wool or other cloth. This retains a temperature of {{convert|45|-|65|C|F}} and high humidity. Daily exposure to the sun may also be used, or dipping the fruits in hot water. The fruits are brown and have attained much of the characteristic vanilla flavor and aroma by the end of this process, but still retain a 60–70% moisture content by weight.<ref name="Frenkel-2010"/>

====Drying====
Reduction of the beans to 25–30% moisture by weight, to prevent rotting and to lock the aroma in the pods, is always achieved by some exposure of the beans to air, and usually (and traditionally) intermittent shade and sunlight. Fruits may be laid out in the sun during the mornings and returned to their boxes in the afternoons, or spread on a wooden rack in a room for three to four weeks, sometimes with periods of sun exposure. Drying is the most problematic of the curing stages; unevenness in the drying process can lead to the loss of vanillin content of some fruits by the time the others are cured.<ref name="Frenkel-2010"/>

====Conditioning====
Conditioning is performed by storing the pods for five to six months in closed boxes, where the fragrance develops. The processed fruits are sorted, graded, bundled, and wrapped in paraffin paper and preserved for the development of desired bean qualities, especially flavor and aroma. The cured vanilla fruits contain an average of 2.5% vanillin.

===Grading===
{{See also|Food grading}}
[[File:Sambava - grading vanilla beans.jpg|thumb|Grading vanilla beans at [[Sambava]], Madagascar]]

Once fully cured, the vanilla fruits are sorted by quality and graded. Several vanilla fruit grading systems are in use. Each country which produces vanilla has its own grading system,<ref name="Havkin-Frenkel-2011">{{cite book|last=Havkin-Frenkel|first=Daphna|title=Handbook of Vanilla Science and Technology|url=https://archive.org/details/handbookvanillas00havk|url-access=limited|year=2011|publisher=Wiley-Blackwell|location=Chichester, UK|isbn=978-1-4051-9325-2|author2=Belanger, Faith C. |pages=[https://archive.org/details/handbookvanillas00havk/page/n163 142]–145}}</ref> and individual vendors, in turn, sometimes use their own criteria for describing the quality of the fruits they offer for sale.<ref name=VanillaReview>{{cite web |url=http://www.vanillareview.com/vanilla-information/#grades |title=Vanilla |access-date=15 January 2012 |work=Vanilla Review |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120308042435/http://www.vanillareview.com/vanilla-information/#grades |archive-date=8 March 2012 }}</ref> 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.<ref name="Havkin-Frenkel-2011" /><ref name="Nielsen-1985">{{cite book|last=Nielsen|first=Chat Jr.|title=The Story of Vanilla|year=1985|publisher=Nielsen-Massey Vanillas|location=Chicago}}</ref> Whole, dark, plump and oily pods that are visually attractive, with no blemishes, and that have a higher moisture content are graded most highly.<ref>{{cite web|title=Vanilla|url=http://www.indianspices.com/html/spices_spfarm_vanilla.html|work=Spices Board of India|publisher=Ministry of Commerce & Industry, Government of India|access-date=16 January 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111027182357/http://www.indianspices.com/html/spices_spfarm_vanilla.html|archive-date=27 October 2011}}</ref> Such pods are particularly prized by chefs for their appearance and can be featured in gourmet dishes.<ref name=VanillaReview /> Beans that show localized signs of disease or other physical defects are cut to remove the blemishes; the shorter fragments left are called "cuts" and are assigned lower grades, as are fruits with lower moisture contents.<ref name="Nielsen-1985" /> Lower-grade fruits tend to be favored for uses in which the appearance is not as important, such as in the production of vanilla flavoring extract and in the fragrance industry.{{citation needed|date=October 2024}}

Higher-grade fruits command higher prices in the market.<ref name="Havkin-Frenkel-2011" /><ref name="Nielsen-1985" /> However, because grade is so dependent on visual appearance and moisture content, fruits with the highest grade do not necessarily contain the highest concentration of characteristic flavor molecules such as vanillin,<ref name="Binggeli-2008">{{cite book|title="Vanilla Bean Quality – A Flavour Industry View" in Expression of Multidisciplinary Flavour Science: Proceedings of the 12th Weurman Symposium (Interlaken, Switzerland 2008)|year=2008|publisher=Zürich University of Applied Sciences|location=Wädensil, Switzerland |isbn=978-3-905745-19-1 |author1=K. Gassenheimer|author2=E. Binggeli |editor=Imre Blank |editor2=Matthias Wüst |editor3=Chahan Yeretzian|pages=203–206}}</ref> and are not necessarily the most flavorful.<ref name=VanillaReview />

{| class="wikitable"
|+ Example of a vanilla fruit grading system, used in Madagascar<ref name="Havkin-Frenkel-2011" /><ref>{{cite web|title=LFIE Vanilla Products|url=http://www.vanille-lfie.com/|work=Lopat Frederic Import Export|access-date=16 January 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120308020556/http://www.vanille-lfie.com/|archive-date=8 March 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Vanilla Bourbon|url=http://spezie-online.it/en/products/vanilla-bourbon|publisher=SA. VA. Import – Export|access-date=16 January 2012}}{{Dead link|date=July 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Vanilla Products|url=http://www.gascartrading.com/8601.html|publisher=Gascar Trading Company|access-date=16 January 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120114045827/http://gascartrading.com/8601.html|archive-date=14 January 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Vanilla Bean Products|url=http://www.21food.com/showroom/505673/product/vanilla-bean.html|publisher=Vanexco|access-date=16 January 2012|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130120181613/http://www.21food.com/showroom/505673/product/vanilla-bean.html|archive-date=20 January 2013}}</ref>
|-
! Grade !! Color !! Appearance / feel !! Approximate<br/>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''
[[File:Vanillanice-Madagascar-vanilla-grading.png|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:<ref name=VanillaReview />

{| class="wikitable"
|+ Simplified vanilla fruit grading system for cooks
| Grade A / <br/>Grade I || 15&nbsp;cm and longer, 100–120 fruits per pound || Also called "Gourmet" or "Prime". 30–35% moisture content.
|-
| Grade B / <br/>Grade II || 10–15&nbsp;cm, 140–160 fruits per pound || Also called "Extract fruits". 15–25% moisture content.
|-
| Grade C / <br/>Grade III || 10&nbsp;cm ||
|}

Under this scheme, vanilla extract is normally made from Grade B fruits.<ref name=VanillaReview />