Vanilla is without exception the most admired flavor for Ice Cream in North America. The dairy industry uses 48% of the whole imported vanilla. Very important ice cream ingredient, not only in vanilla ice cream, but in many other flavors where it is used as a flavor enhancer, e.g. chocolate a great deal improved by presence of vanilla.

Vanilla comes from a plant belonging to the orchid family known as Vanilla plan folia. There are several varieties of vanilla beans amongst which are Mexican (Mexico), Bourbon (islands off the east coast of Africa), Tahiti (Tahiti and Society Islands), South American (Guadeloupe, Dominica, Martinique), and Java (Java). Mexican and Bourbon beans are used to create best vanilla extracts. Bourbons from Madagescar are the best and account for over 75% of World production, Mexicans, 5%. Tahiti and other beans are combined with Mexican and Bourbon to make cheaper flavors and generally result in an ice cream being criticized for "lacks fine flavor". Same criticism will apply if flavors too highly fortified with vanillin are used.

From each blossom of the vine which is effectively fertilized comes a pod which reaches 6-10 inches in length, picked at 6-9 months. It requires 26-29^oC day and night all the way through the season, and common rains with dry season near end for development of flavor.

Pods are immersed in hot water to "kill them" (also increases enzyme activity), then fermented for 3-6 months by repeated packaging in straw to "sweat" and then uncovered to sun dry. 5-6 kg green pods create 1 kg Cured pods. Beans then aged 1-2 yrs. enzymatic reactions produced many compounds - vanillin is the principal flavor compound. However, there is no free vanillin in the beans when they are harvested; it develops increasingly during the curing period from glucosides, which break down during the fermentation and "sweating" of the beans. Extraction takes place as the beans are chopped (not ground) and placed in stainless steel coffee pot and cold alcohol (no heat involved) and water are pumped over and through the beans until all flavouring matter is extracted.