- Vanilla is the only fruit-bearing member of the orchid family.
- The entire process of vanilla cultivation, pollination and harvesting is done by hand, without using machinery, chemical fertilizers or pesticides.
- The flower that produces the vanilla bean lasts only one day. The beans are hand-picked and then cured, wrapped, and dried in a process that takes 4 to 6 months.
- Vanilla workers can pollinate as many as 2,000 vanilla orchid flowers per day, all by hand
- After saffron, vanilla is the most expensive spice in the world.
- In Europe, vanilla was once used in the production of certain medicines such as nerve stimulants and as an aphrodisiac.
- Pure vanilla extract contains 13.35 ounces of vanilla beans per gallon during extraction, according to FDA specifications.
- Nearly 30% of Americans choose vanilla as their No. 1 ice cream flavor. chocolate ranks second, with less than 10% of the vote.
- Only the melipona bee, found in Central America, can pollinate vanilla. In other parts of the world, humans duplicate the process using a wooden needle, aka a toothpick.
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