If you think vanilla is that peculiar caramel-colored liquid you see on supermarket shelves, think again. The real vanilla is the “Caviar” of spices, also known as “Black Gold.” The most popular aroma ...

About 80% of the world's vanilla is grown by small holding farmers in the hilly forests of Madagascar. For a generation the price languished below $50 a kilo (about 2.2 pounds). But in 2015 it began ...

I follow Felicité Raminisoa and her father, Romain Randiambololona, up a narrow track along the forested slopes of her family’s farm in southern Madagascar. It is lychee season and, as we walk, we ...

In most places where vanilla is grown, it isn't a native plant, and there aren't bugs or birds capable of pollinating the flowers. Vanilla is native to Mexico, but deforestation there has greatly ...

MAROVATO, Madagascar (Reuters) - Rocketing vanilla prices bought Madagascan farmer Berlin Ranary a hot pink sofa, a motorbike - and a double-barrelled shotgun to protect his crop. Thieves have stolen ...