Edmonton businesses feeling the pinch of rising vanilla costs

La Boule Patisserie and Bakery executive pastry chef Jennifer Stang is a big fan of vanilla, as many of the baked goods at the business feature the product in various forms.

But the price of vanilla is rising, and thatmeans the La Boule pastry team needs to conserve every part of the vanilla beans they use when baking.

With a cost of $5 per vanilla bean, bakery staff have to scrape the beans on a metal table soevery last drop ofoilcan be extracted, Stang said. Each seed from a vanilla bean is thensaved and used in some of the baked goods at La Boule.

Crop shortageto blame for increased cost

Stang was told a crop shortagein Madagascar, the world's leading vanilla producer, isthe cause behind increased vanilla prices.

The amount La Boule is paying for vanilla has more than doubled since the bakeryopenedin 2016, she said.

"It's hard for me for sure," Stang said."But at this point, we haven't yet passed this cost increase along to our customers. We're trying to absorb it in other ways. We're hoping it will go down."

Vanilla comes in a variety of forms, likeextract, paste and in beans.

Cheaper vanilla products aremade in other countries, but Stang said they aren't always high quality.

For now, she said, she'scommitted to paying for Madagascar vanilla.

"You get a much better product in the end with the real vanilla," she said. "Sometimes a little bit of expense is worth it."

Price increases at grocery stores

Earth's General Store owner Michael Kalmanovitch said he's also feeling the effects of the vanilla crop shortage. Pricesof organic vanilla products at his store have risen in recent months, he said.

Many of Kalmanovitch'scustomers buy organic vanilla extract in bulk, which he saidhelps cut downcosts for shoppers. He estimates the price of vanilla at Earth's General Store has gone up by about 20 per cent.

"In January or so, there was a price increase," he said."Not as much as I thought there was, but there was."

Stangsaid she hopes the price drops soon.

"Vanilla is an unsung hero," she said. "And I think people need to give vanilla a little more props."