Vanilla Crop Damaged After Storm in Main Grower Madagascar
- Indian Ocean island’s output may have been reduced by 30%
- Madagascar is the world’s biggest producer of the flavoring
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The worst tropical cyclone in 13 years to strike Madagascar may push up already record prices for vanilla beans that are used to flavor everything from cafe lattes to ice cream.
The storm that killed at least 78 people in the Indian Ocean island nation last week may have damaged as much as 30 percent of the crop, according to David van der Walde, director at Aust & Hachmann Canada Ltd., the world’s oldest vanilla company.