End of export and new crop of 2021

The effects of this pandemic have been far-reaching. All levels of society, all countries of the world and many different markets have been impacted. The vanilla market has been no exception. The effects of COVID-19  has caused fluctuations in the demand of different qualities of vanilla, and travel restrictions and an increase in online shopping has led to difficulties in transportation of the product to its worldwide destinations. In addition, the minimum FOB price has brought about some challenges for different players on the market.

Yet, on a positive note, the vanillin content of this crop has been higher than in previous years and the yield has been very good. The need for early harvesting and quick curing has drastically declined, which has had a positive impact on the quality of Madagascan vanilla. Another positive aspect is that prices have remained relatively stable. As the food and leisure industry is recovering, the demand for vanilla has also increased lately, resulting in a higher export rate near the end of the export season. This leads us to believe that most of the stock in Madagascar will be exported and there will not be a large carry-over from the 2020 crop.

The harvesting of the new crop of 2021 will take place soon. The Malagasy government has decided to implement the same minimum FOB price for vanilla at 250,00 USD for the 2021 crop. They have also announced that they want to implement a minimum buying price for the collectors at 75.000,00 ariary. This still needs to be confirmed, and it remains a question if these prices will be reflective of the actual market prices.

We are looking forward to another high quality vanilla crop and are interested to see how the market further develops in the coming year.