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'''Whether one is exploring a national park in the SAVA region or just happen to travel through Sambava, the de facto capital of the world's vanilla, a visit to one of the many vanilla plantations followed by a tour of a vanilla preparation and export facility will offer an insight into the long and labour intensive process in transforming vanilla from a wild orchid into the fragrant black vanilla beans and flavoring ingredient which everyone loves and is mostly familiar with as an ingredient in ice creams and other sweetssweet treats.'''

What can be seen depends the time of the year and the activities that are ongoing during a visit. Between May and June, the plucking of green vanilla beans happens across plantations along the northwest coast around Sambava, Antalaha and Vohemar as well as further afield into the countryside, while at higher altitudes around Andapa and Marojejy, the harvesting usually takes place in July or August.

The green vanilla beans are thereafter traded at organised markets across the vanilla producing regions where buyers arrive to place competing bids for the yearly harvests offered by from farmers and various cooperatives. A minimum price is set by the farmers and the government, which in 2022 was 75,000 Ar per kilogram of green vanilla.

The green vanilla is mostly sold to local exporters who thereafter manage the months-long transforming process of the green beans into black vanilla beans. For every six kilos of green vanilla, approximately one kilo of black vanilla beans will be produced.

Througout the transformationtransformatio processn, also known as the curing processof vanilla beans, the beans are graded and grouped into classifications based on suitability for different end-uses: Grade A being Gourmet Quality, Grade B Extract quality and Grade C which are also known as Cuts & Splits.

The These classifications are defined by the level of humidity, and should not be taken as an indicator of overall quality. Low-humidity beans are simply suitable for large food processing purposes, since dry beans are easily ground into powder and mixed into various food products. Grade B, or Extract grade vanilla beans, is a definition for the vanilla beans that are typically intended suited for the production of vanilla extracts, while Grade A beans, or gourmet qualitybeans, are selected in part for their appearance. Grade A beans are preferred by chefs and for home baking, especially consumers. Yet, all grades can be used in cooking and baking. While grade A may have a stronger scent and a better appearance, the drier Grade B or even C with their relatively low moisture levels will offer the greatest volume per kilogram, effectively giving more vanilla and flavour for the a same weightand perhaps even lower price.

In Madagascar, vanilla is rarely used in cooking or home baking and is almost exclusively sold as cash-crop intended for export. Since the price of black vanilla peaked at around USD 500 per kilo in 2018 and 2019, countless farmers have invested their time and effort in cultivating specifically vanillaas their main cash crop.

Historically, the type of vanilla bean species grown on Madagascar is Planifolia, also known as Bourbon vanilla or simply Madagascar vanilla, the "Bourbon" is owed to the history of a French owned slave on La Reunion, then known as Bourbon Island.   Apart from a magical flavours added to flavouring sweets, craft ice creams and cookies as well as from countless deserts to ice cream and drink products, vanilla is also used in essential oils, cosmetics, toiletries and , perfumes as well as in medicines.