A number of British ice cream producers are understood to be considering whether to stop buying vanilla extract because of the soaring cost.
Julie Fisher, who founded artisanal ice-cream maker Ruby Violet seven years ago, told the BBC vanilla was off the menu in her London-based outlets “for the foreseeable future” because she can’t afford the thousands of pounds it would cost.
The price has quadrupled in just a few months, commodities analyst Julian Gale told the BBC.
A kilogram of vanilla pods now sells for more than £440 ($600), making it more expensive than silver.
Madagascar produces 80% of the world’s vanilla but decreased its production after a cyclone in March last year damaged a lot of plantations.
Click here for more: http://linkingclicks.com/?mob=tdUuE52HDEn1q8X69fgPiS7U-wSFtAZC5z1sBnk8KfQ
