If you take a licking on the price of an ice cream cone this summer, the cause might be due to a spike in the cost of vanilla beans, which are in short supply.
Many ice-cream fans might take vanilla for granted, but the beans are actually bold aromatics that are becoming increasingly popular amid the clamor for companies to put more natural flavors in food.
But supply isn't keeping up with demand. Madagascar, the African island nation that's one of the world's leading vanilla-bean producers, experienced a poor harvest in the past year, according to reports from Bloomberg News and The Guardian.
The price of vanilla beans has more than tripled, according to Bloomberg , which cited data from Cook Flavoring Company. Cook says that high-end vanilla now goes for $250 a kilogram versus $80 a year ago.
The price boost is attributed not only to lower supply, but poorer quality. Some growers harvested the beans prematurely.
That means cakes, ice cream or even perfume could face rising prices, according The Guardian. Some companies are looking for alternatives to avoid sourcing the more expensive vanilla, Bloomberg reports.
"There’s a limit to what people will pay for natural vanilla and we’re nearing that point," Cook Flavoring President Josephine Lochhead told Bloomberg.
Supply is expected to rebound this year, possibly leveling out prices and making the price of that ice cream cone easier to stomach.
