The Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation (Amul) and the National Dairy Development Board have in principle agreed to purchase natural vanilla from Vanilco as input for their ice creams, Vanilco managing director Paul Jose said. The company representatives have agreed to use more natural vanilla in their products, Jose told FE.
The decision came at a meeting convened by Union agriculture minister Sharad Pawar in this regard, in New Delhi on Tuesday .The volume, pricing and the period of contract will be fixed after a discussion which is to be held in Ahemadabad on September 28, Jose said. Vanilco, a Kerala-based vanilla processing company promoted by growers is saddled with 16 tonne of processed and cured vanilla for the past two years, due to weak demand for the commodity. The company has been attempting to raise the natural vanilla share in ice cream and confectionary brands of the nation to prop the price of vanilla.
Jose said that dairy brands were apprehensive of the supply and the price of the product, as vanilla prices have fluctuated wildly in the past. Vanilco has assured that it has sufficient stock to maintain a regular supply at pre-determined prices. He estimates the annual consumption of the companies to be around 8-9 tonne. The company hopes that conversion from synthetic vanilla will enable farmers to earn sufficient income from production. ?The central government should take initiative for bringing regulatory system so that at least use of synthetic vanilla is controlled,? Jose said. India imports around 1,000 tonne of synthetic vanilla every year while natural vanilla production in the country is around 150 tonne, he added. ?Even if 10% of synthetic vanilla users shift to natural vanilla, it will go a long way in addressing problems faced by growers,? he said.
