Vanilla (Vanilla planifora) —orchid native to Mexico— is considered one of the most popular and versatile flavors in the world. Its use ranges from the food industry to the cosmetic and artisan derivations of the pharmaceutical industry. It is estimated that around 18,000 products contain vanilla in their preparation; however, the processing context of the plant in Mexico is more complex than we probably think.
Vanilla throughout history in Mexico
The orchid, called “zizbic” by the Mayans and “tlilxóchitl” by the Aztecs, was seen as a sacred plant during the pre-Hispanic period. Various indigenous groups such as the Maya, Aztecs, Mixes, Purhepecha, Zapotec, Chinantec and mainly the Totonacs, gave vanilla a central role as part of their offerings, as a fragrance, flavoring, medicine and as a tribute (Martinez et al. 2003). (“TOTONACOS,” n.d.).
The Totonacos performed rituals and thanked Kiwikgolo (“Lord of the Mountain”) during the cultivation and harvest of vanilla (Enriquez 2013). According to a Totonac legend, vanilla originated when the blood of two young lovers was spilled over the weeds: “as it dried, a bush began to sprout from their blood, covering itself with thick foliage, giving birth to a climbing orchid with amazing speed and exuberance, perfuming the environment with its aroma” (Vizcaino 1984).
According to a Totonac legend, vanilla originated when the blood of two young lovers was spilled over the weeds: “as it dried, a bush began to sprout from their blood, covering itself with thick foliage, giving birth to a climbing orchid with amazing speed and exuberance, perfuming the environment with its aroma”.
In 1520, the Spanish conquerors and missionaries that disembarked in Mesoamerica noticed the prominence of vanilla in pre-Hispanic populations, so they spread the news throughout Europe. In the mid-19th century, the plant was exported to some islands in the Indian Ocean, particularly to Reunion and Madagascar (Damiron R 2004). Currently, Madagascar produces 31.81% of vanilla worldwide; Indonesia 34.93%; China 11.63% and Mexico 4.97% (Santillan Fernandez, Salas Zuniga, and Vasquez Bautista 2018).
In Mexico, the state of Veracruz is responsible for 70% of national production, especially in the municipality of Papantla, located in the north of the state and inhabited by Totonac communities. Mexico’s government has recognized vanilla produced in this region as a protected designation of origin, because the bioclimatic characteristics that allow its cultivation promote the concentration of aromatic elements in the fruit, giving it unique aromatic notes that can’t be replicated anywhere else in the world. The remaining 29% of national production occurs in the states of Oaxaca and Puebla; and the remaining 1% in the states of San Luis Potosí, Hidalgo, Chiapas, and Quintana Roo (Havkin-Frenkel et al. 2011).
From orchid to vanilla pods
The high labor requirement in processing vanilla is what makes it so valuable. The plant needs a hot and humid climate to grow and does so with the guidance of a tutor plant such as the orange, the cedar, or a stake. Generally, the first two years is of vegetative growth, and the production begins in the third year. From there, the plant produces annually. After its vegetative growth phase, the plant is manually pollinated. Initially this process was carried out by the euglossine bee, until its population was increasingly limited, and manual pollination became the only viable option to achieve its growth (Arditti 2009). Production of 1 kg of vanilla requires hand-pollination of about 40,000 flowers (Chambers 2019). After three years, the vanilla blooms and during this period vanilla producers provide strenuous care to the plant. After the pods reach maturity, they are harvested and dried in the sun for two months, until they acquire a brownish color, with a thin shape and a tanned texture (from Agriculture 1940).
The protagonists of vanilla cultivation
It is estimated that around 4,000 families in indigenous communities in Mexico are dedicated to the cultivation of vanilla. The women who are part of these communities have decided to take the leading role in its cultivation (Saldívar-Iglesias 2015). However, their participation is a rarely recognized and disseminated issue.
Their intervention ranges from pollination to the recollection of vanilla. Every minute they pollinate about four flowers, so (assuming all the flowers are in a delimited area) over a period of five to seven hours 1,000 to 1,500 flowers are pollinated (Havkin-Frenkel et al. 2011).
Mexico’s government has recognized vanilla produced in this region as a protected designation of origin, because the bioclimatic characteristics that allow its cultivation promote the concentration of aromatic elements in the fruit, giving it unique aromatic notes that can’t be replicated anywhere else in the world.
The formation of organizations, led by women, such as the Cooperative Society of Women Producers of Aromatic Vanilla, in Ayotoxco in the Sierra Norte of Puebla, has been fundamental in providing women with an active role in decision-making and self-management. One of the objectives of this type of organizations is to promote vanilla’s commercialization at a regional and local level in the form of crafts, jewelry, and extracts.
It is important to mention that the protagonist of women in Mexican rural areas has not only been noteworthy in the cultivation of vanilla. Another example is their participation in the cultivation of coffee in the country, notwithstanding their lack of access to the power structure and economic benefits of the organization (Cárcamo Toalá et al. 2010).
The role of women in indigenous communities in Mexico is determined by a context of subordination, inequality, and violence (Luna and de Volo 2017), whose predominant label has been exclusively that of housewives, mothers, and wives, leaving aside the role of producer-workers. In family interactions, men automatically take on the role of provider and protector of the household, something that is governed by gender roles assigned by a set of norms dictated by society and culture according to female or male behavior (Lamas 1994).
Vanilla women in Mexico represent the struggle for gender equity and women’s empowerment. However, their participation is subject to various obstacles, such as the absence of representation in power structures, lack of recognition or encouragement for their contributions, or the wage gap between men and women. These obstacles are the same ones that all women face on a daily basis, even in science.
It is important to mention that the protagonism of women in Mexican rural areas has not only been noteworthy in the cultivation of vanilla. Another example is their participation in the cultivation of coffee in the country, notwithstanding their lack of access to the power structure and economic benefits of the organization.
In Mexico, we are far from achieving true gender equality. This is reflected in current problems such as legislation against respect for decisions about our bodies, such as the criminalization of abortion in most Mexican states, or the persistence of multiple forms of violence against us (Navarro, Robles, and Hernández 2014). At this time, Mexico ranks eighth in the occurrence of feminicide in Latin America, where every 2 hours and 29 minutes a woman is murdered just because she is a woman (Salazar Rebolledo and de la Garza Castro 2020). Feminicides are seen as isolated incidents, with a tendency to re-victimize and justify the aggressor (Salazar Rebolledo and de la Garza Castro 2020). Undoubtedly, it is a very complex issue with a background of widespread violence against women.
The cultivation of vanilla, an activity led by indigenous communities and in particular by women, makes us look at the impact they generate in our society, by performing an activity that would seem simple and alien to our quotidian reality. So, when you have the opportunity to smell or taste Mexican vanilla, remember that it was grown and harvested by hands that decided to take the lead in the face of adversity and obstacles imposed by our society.
The cultivation of vanilla, an activity led by indigenous communities and in particular by women, makes us look at the impact they generate in our society…so, when you have the opportunity to smell or taste Mexican vanilla, remember that it was grown and harvested by hands that decided to take the lead in the face of adversity and obstacles imposed by our society.
References
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Arditti, Joseph. 2009. Orchid Biology: Reviews and Perspectives. Comstock Pub. Associates.
Cárcamo Toalá, Naima Jazíbi, Verónica Vázquez García, Emma Zapata Martelo, and Austreberta Nazar Beutelspacher. 2010. “Género, Trabajo Y Organización: Mujeres Cafetaleras de La Unión de Productores Orgánicos San Isidro Siltepec, Chiapas.” Estudios Sociales 18 (36): 155–76.
Chambers, Alan H. 2019. “Vanilla (Vanilla Spp.) Breeding.” In Advances in Plant Breeding Strategies: Industrial and Food Crops: Volume 6, edited by Jameel M. Al-Khayri, Shri Mohan Jain, and Dennis V. Johnson, 707–34. Cham: Springer International Publishing.
Damirón R, V. 2004. “El Cultivo de La Vainilla.” Veracruz agrícola. Dirección General de Agricultura y Fitosanitaria. Gobierno ….
Enríquez, Héctor. 2013. “La Jerarquía de Los Dioses Totonacos.” México DF: INAH.
Havkin-Frenkel, Daphna, Faith C. Belanger, and Others. 2011. Handbook of Vanilla Science and Technology. Wiley Online Library.
Lamas, Marta. 1994. “Cuerpo: Diferencia Sexual Y Género.” Debate Feminista. https://doi.org/10.22201/cieg.2594066xe.1994.10.1792.
Luna, Adriana Paola Palacios, y Lorraine Bayard de Volo. 2017. “(Abusos y Costumbres: Mujeres Indígenas Confrontando La Violencia de Género y Resignificando El Poder.” Amerika. https://doi.org/10.4000/amerika.8165.
Martínez, Montse, Mercedes Basols, Francisco Javier García, Pilar Climent, Miguel A. García, Núria Pascal, and Others. 2003. “Vainilla.” http://2000agro.com.mx/R/104/files/assets/common/downloads/page0020.pdf.
Navarro, David Moctezuma, José Narro Robles, y Lourdes Orozco Hernández. 2014. “La Mujer En México: Inequidad, Pobreza Y Violencia.” Revista Mexicana de Ciencias Políticas Y Sociales. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0185-1918(14)70803-7.
Salazar Rebolledo, María Grisel, y Paulina de la Garza Castro. 2020. “La Cobertura Periodística de Los Feminicidios En México. Heterogeneidad Y Variación.” Revista Mexicana de Opinión Pública, no. 29: 111–25.
Saldívar-Iglesias, Pedro. 2015. “CULTIVO DE VAINILLA (VANILLA PLANIFOLIA JACKSON).” http://148.215.1.182/handle/20.500.11799/66693.
Santillán Fernández, Alberto, Alejandra Salas Zúñiga, and Nehemías Vásquez Bautista. 2018. “La Productividad de La Vainilla (Vanilla Planifolia Jacks. Ex Andrews) En México de 2003 a 2014.” Revista Mexicana de Ciencias Forestales 9 (47): 50–69.
“TOTONACOS.” n.d. http://www.cdi.gob.mx/dmdocuments/totonacos.pdf.
Vizcaino, Rodolfo. 1984. “Tradición Y Leyenda de La Vainilla.” https://cdigital.uv.mx/bitstream/handle/123456789/47842/ExtensionNo22Pag5-7.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y
Is a Biological Pharmaceutical Chemist from the Metropolitan Autonomous University (UAM), with a master’s degree in Biological Sciences from the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM). She is currently doing her doctoral thesis in Biological Sciences at LIIGH under the mentorship of Dr. Ávila Arcos.
Good job here. I truly enjoyed what you had to say. Keep going because you certainly bring a new voice to this subject. Not many people would say what youve said and still make it interesting. Properly, at least Im interested. Cant wait to see far more of this from you.
I appreciate your comment. In Mexico or in any part of the world there are invisible characters that are part of our daily life, but with a voice loud enough to be heard. Thanks for reading and enjoying this article, means a lot to me.