'Vanilla is like wine, and Mexican vanilla has chocolate and spicy notes,' says Zanilli

Headquartered in Monterrey, Zanilli Mexicana is a family company founded in 2002. Its CEO and founder, Alejandro Riano, started out growing vanilla but, when the price fell, decided to begin manufacturing the higher-value extract.

“[I also wanted] to​ create a market in Mexico for natural vanilla because here almost all the vanilla used is cheap, artificial flavoring," ​he said, speaking to FoodNavigator-LATAM at Antad Alimentaria in Guadalajara, Mexico.

'Vanilla is a flavor, not a smell'

Today, Zanilli sources its vanilla pods from around 3,000 farmers in the Veracruz region. It buys the pods already dried and cured, then cleans them, extracts the vanilla and bottles the final ingredient.

“At first it was hard to get people to understand this [natural] vanilla was different. It was their habit; people thought the other brands were real vanilla. But when they tasted the flavor that changed their minds.”​

“Vanilla is a flavor, not a smell," ​Riano added. "So artificial vanilla might smell the same but the taste is very different, and not as good."​ 

Chocolate and spice notes

The aromatic flavor between vanilla from Mexico and Madagascar – where most of the world's vanilla comes from – is also different, Riano said.

“In Madagascan vanilla, there is one note that dominates and that is vanilla or vanillin, the natural component in the vanilla [orchid]. In Mexican vanilla there is not one note that dominates, the flavor is more homogenous.”​

The aromatic notes in Mexican vanilla evoke different flavors such as chocolate, spices, and vanilla, and are more balanced and rounded, said Riano.

The same plant, Vanilla Planifolia​, native to Mexico, is used to produce the spice in both countries. Riano suggested the difference in flavor could be down to climate or soil type.

“When you buy habanero chili from Yucatan, for example, it’s very spicy but if you buy it in Veracruz it isn’t. I think it’s because of the soil, the humidity, many factors.”​

These different flavor notes and the price - Madagascan vanilla is cheaper than Mexican vanilla – are the main differences between the two, said Riano.

But one flavor is not necessarily better than the other, he added.

“It really is like wine. Some people prefer one type of wine and others prefer a different type. There is a market for everything.”​

Competing with artificial vanillin

Zanilli, which means ‘legend’ in the indigenous nahuatl language, does not need to compete with the cheaper Madagascan vanilla because it is not imported into the country.

It does have to compete with the much lower price of vanillin, however. A 125 ml bottle of artificial vanillin costs around MXN$10 while the same quantity of natural vanilla extract sells for around MXN$120, said Riano.

Nevertheless, around 60% of Zanilli’s sales are in Mexico. It began exporting to the US three years ago, and the country now accounts for around 40% of its sales. It also exports small quantities to Taiwan and Europe.

Zanilli manufactures natural vanilla extract in water and natural vanilla concentrated flavoring (both with 35% ethyl alcohol), available in B2C and B2B formats.

One of its biggest B2B customers is the second largest flavor company in the world, Riano said.