Handbook of Vanilla Science and Technology

Union Beach

New Jersey, USA

Javier Tochihuitl Vázquez

Principal of the Career of Agroindustrial Processes

At Universidad Tecnológica de Xicotepec de Juaarez

Puebla, Maexico

Stephanie Zabel

Harvard University Herbaria

Cambridge

Massachutsetts, USA

Charles M. Zapf

Technical Innovation Center McCormick & Co. Inc.

Hunt Valley

Maryland, USA

PRODUCTION OF VANILLA - AGRICULTURAL SYSTEMS AND CURING

1 Mexican Vanilla Production

Juan Hernández-Hernández

1.1 INTRODUCTION

The vanilla species of commerce, Vanilla planifolia G. Jacks, known as “Mexican” or “Bourbon” vanilla, is native to tropical forests of southeastern Mesoamerica (Porteres 1954; Soto-Arenas 2003; Hagsater et al. 2005). By at least the nineteenth century, V. planifolia was introduced into other tropical countries in Asia and Africa from the original Mexican cultivated stock (Bory et al. 2008; Lubinsky et al. 2008). Vanilla was used in pre-Hispanic Mesoamerica for a variety of purposes: tribute, fragrance, cacao flavoring, medicinal, etc., and by numerous indigenous groups such as the Maya, Aztec, and Totonac. In this sense, vanilla is a gastronomic legacy that Mexico has imparted to the world.

Beginning in the mid- to late eighteenth century, the Totonac of the Papantla region of the state of Veracruz were the first and only vanilla exporters in the world for nearly 100 years, in part because of the exceptional quality of the vanilla that was produced. Gold medal prizes for Mexican vanilla were awarded in Paris (1889) and Chicago (1892) (Chavez-Hita and González-Sierra 1990), as Papantla was famed as, “the city that perfumed the world.” Initially, Mexican vanilla production depended on harvesting the fruits from the wild, which were the result of natural pollination by bees that are endemic to the New World tropics.

The Mexican monopoly on vanilla fell apart with the discovery of a method for hand pollination of vanilla in Belgium in 1836. This knowledge enabled other countries to become vanilla producers. By 1870, French colonies in the Indian Ocean, especially Reunion and Madagascar, surpassed Mexico as the leading producer. Madagascar has retained the leading role in production since that time (Bruman 1948; Bory et al. 2008).

Although Mexico has lost its standing as the major vanilla exporter, it continues to be the center of origin and genetic diversity for this important orchid. Cultivation in Mexico endures to the present, mostly by the Totonac, who have continued to use their vanilla crop as a means to obtain cash, and because it is part of their historical and cultural fabric.

The area of vanilla production in Mexico is found between the coast and Sierra Madre Oriental on the Gulf, from sea level to a height of 700 m, where the climate is hot, humid, and tropical. Average temperatures are around 24°C, relatively humidity is 80%, and average annual precipitation is 1,200 to 1,300 mm. A marked dry season occurs from March to June. In winter, there are humid, cool winds of low intensity called “nortes” that bring cool temperatures to the area, which is believed to stimulate the flowering in vanilla.

The state of Veracruz accounts for 70% of national production. Oaxaca and Puebla together produce most of the remaining 30%, and small quantities of vanilla are also supplied by San Luis Potosi, Hidalgo, Chiapas, and Quintana Roo. The municipality (municipio) of Papantla, located in northern Veracruz and inhabited by Totonac communities, is the largest producer in the country, and is the center of vanilla curing and commercialization.

An estimated 4,000 families are engaged in vanilla cultivation, mostly indigenous people, who exclusively sell green vanilla. Six private companies and four farmer cooperatives also exist, and participate in curing and selling of vanilla to national and international markets.

Annual production in Mexico varies from 80 to 200 tons of green vanilla (10-30 tons cured vanilla beans), depending on climatic conditions and the intensity of flowering, among other factors. In 2008/2009, according to estimates by the Consejo Nacional de Productores de Vainilla, 150 tons of green vanilla beans were produced (ca. 20 tons cured vanilla beans). The principal limiting factors to vanilla production in Mexico are:

• drought and high temperatures, which occur during flowering and fruit development;

• the fungus Fusarium oxysporum, which causes mortality and reduces the productive life of individual cultivated areas (vainillales); and

• high production costs and low prices for vanilla.

1.1.1 The Mexican Vanilla Legend

The Mexican vanilla legend, which is an oral Papantla tradition, is compiled and interpreted by Professor J. Nunez-Dominguez (Curti-Diaz 1995):