Vanilla Orchid

The fruit is produced only on mature plants that are over 10 feet long. The fruits are long pods around 6 to 9 inches. They mature after about 5 months, at which point they are harvested and cured. Vanilla extract is obtained from this portion of the plant.

It is estimated around 95% of ‘vanilla’ products are artificially flavored with vanillin derived from lignin instead of the original vanilla fruit.

Its extract has many vitamins and minerals including the B-complex and calcium, magnesium, potassium and zinc. A major use of vanilla is in flavoring ice cream.