Vanillin and moisture: how to compare two vanilla offers properly
Last reviewed
Two suppliers quote the same price per kilogram. Which is cheaper?
The one with lower moisture, in most cases. Moisture determines how much dry matter you actually receive per kilogram, so comparing offers requires converting both to a dry-matter basis before comparing price.
Why price per kilogram misleads
Vanilla is sold by weight, and a significant share of that weight is water. Cured beans typically run anywhere from 15 % to 35 % moisture depending on grade and curing. That range is wide enough to change which of two offers is genuinely cheaper.
A buyer comparing “$62/kg” against “$65/kg” will take the first. If the first is at 32 % moisture and the second at 18 %, they have just chosen the more expensive option — by a margin large enough to matter on a tonne.
The calculation, in one line
Convert both offers to a price per kilogram of dry matter:
dry-matter price = quoted price ÷ (1 − moisture)
Moisture expressed as a decimal: 30 % → 0.30
That single conversion resolves most apparent price differences in vanilla offers. It is also the number to put in a purchase specification, because it removes the ambiguity entirely.
A worked example
Two offers for extraction-grade beans, 200 kg, same origin and season:
| Supplier A | Supplier B | |
|---|---|---|
| Quoted price | $62 / kg | $65 / kg |
| Moisture | 32 % | 18 % |
| Dry matter per kg | 680 g | 820 g |
| Price per kg of dry matter | $91.18 | $79.27 |
| Real difference on 200 kg | Supplier B is roughly 13 % cheaper, despite the higher headline price — about $1,600 on this order. | |
Figures are illustrative. The method is not: run it on any two offers you receive and the ranking will often invert.
Then, and only then, compare vanillin
Vanillin is the principal aromatic marker of cured vanilla — not the only one, since a cured bean carries hundreds of volatile compounds, but the one that is routinely measured and contractually specified.
It is normally reported on a dry basis, which is precisely why moisture must be resolved first. A “2 % vanillin” claim on a wet basis and on a dry basis are different products.
So the second question to a supplier is not “how much vanillin?” but:“measured on which basis, by which method, on which lot, and when?” The expected answer is HPLC, dry basis, with a lot reference and a date. Anything vaguer is a brochure figure.
A practical note: a very high claimed vanillin figure, well above what the rest of the market specifies for the same grade, deserves the report rather than enthusiasm. It may be a genuinely exceptional lot. It may also be a number that has never been measured.
The two-line check to put in every RFQ
Add these to your request for quotation and most ambiguity disappears:
- “Please state moisture content (%) and the method used, for the lot offered.”
- “Please state vanillin content (% dry basis), by HPLC, with lot reference and analysis date.”
Suppliers who answer both precisely are the ones worth negotiating with. The quality of the answer tells you as much as the figures themselves.
Questions we get asked
What is a normal vanillin content for Madagascar vanilla?
Industry specifications commonly state a minimum of around 1.5 % for gourmet grade and 1.2 % for extraction grade, measured on the dry bean. Figures vary by lot, season and curing, which is why the measured value on your specific lot is what matters.
Why does moisture change the price comparison?
Because you pay per kilogram of bean, and part of that kilogram is water. At 30 % moisture you receive 700 g of dry matter per kilogram; at 20 % you receive 800 g. The same nominal price is therefore not the same real price.
Can a supplier increase moisture to increase weight?
It happens, and it is one reason moisture is specified in commercial contracts. Very high moisture also raises the risk of mould during transit, which is a quality problem as much as a commercial one.