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Top Vanilla Exports & Imports by Country Plus Average Prices

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Vanilla flowers
Vanilla flowers
In 2020, exports of vanilla were worth a total US$906.5 million.

Exports of vanilla rose in value by an overall average 31.8% since 2016 when export sales for vanilla were $693.7 million.

From 2019 to 2020, overall export revenues for the fragrant and tasty spice shrank by -15%.

Vanilla comes from special orchid flowers notably Mexican flat-leaved flower pods. Vanilla is widely used as a baking ingredient, as well as a flavor enhancement in the commercial production of food, beverages, perfumes, cosmetics and aromatherapy products.

By value, the 5 biggest exporters of vanilla (Madagascar, France, Germany, Indonesia and Papua New Guinea) sold over four-fifths (82.6%) of all vanilla exported during 2020. Madagascar is an island country off the East African coast, while Papua New Guinea is a group of island in the southwestern Pacific Ocean north of Australia.

Applying a continental perspective, countries in Africa supplied the highest dollar worth of exported vanilla during 2020 with shipments valued at $535.4 million or 59.1% of the global total. In second place were exporters in Europe (22%) trailed by those in Asia (7.7%), North America (5.7%) and Oceania (5.4%) led by Papua New Guinea. Tinier percentages originated from Latin America (0.1%) excluding Mexico but including the Caribbean.

Shifting our focus to imports, the 5 leading importers of vanilla in 2020 are the United States of America, France, Germany, Netherlands and Canada. Combined, that quintet of top import countries bought more than half (54.9%) of globally imported vanilla as measured by dollar value.

The above percentages suggest the total 69 exporters of vanilla (82.6% for the corresponding top 5 exporters) is a more concentrated cohort compared to 117 buying countries, islands and territories. The top 5 importers accounted for a smaller portion of its world total at 77.1%.

As for global imports of vanilla by continent, 46.3% of vanilla purchased on international markets was delivered to customers in North America just ahead of importers in Europe (45.1%) then Asia (5.7%), Oceania (1.7%) led by Australia, Africa (1.2%), then Latin America (0.1%) excluding Mexico but including the Caribbean.

Like another high-price spice saffron, vanilla is one of the world’s most valuable spices shipped on global markets.

We calculated the average unit price paid by importers of non-crushed and unground vanilla to be $123,939 per ton in 2020. That dollar amount reflects a -52.1% reduction from the average tonnage rate of $258,825 during 2019.

Surprisingly, processed vanilla exports scored a lower unit price. For crushed or ground vanilla, the average unit price paid by importers was $38,486 per ton in 2020 up 47.8% from the average tonnage rate of $26,031 for 2019. The higher average price is driven more by the geography of supplying countries rather than labor and other processing expenses.

For research purposes, the 6-digit Harmonized Tariff System code prefix is 090510 for vanilla that is neither crushed nor ground, and 090520 for crushed or ground vanilla.

Drilling down on those categories, 89.4% of world vanilla exports by value were for non-crushed and unground vanilla. The remaining 10.6% was collected for shipments of crushed or ground vanilla.

Top Vanilla Exports by Country

Below are the top 20 countries that exported the highest dollar value worth of vanilla during 2020, regardless of whether the shipped vanilla was crushed or ground.

  1. Madagascar: US$511.5 million (56.4% of total exported vanilla)
  2. France: $73.2 million (8.1%)
  3. Germany: $63.5 million (7%)
  4. Indonesia: $60.2 million (6.6%)
  5. Papua New Guinea: $40.3 million (4.4%)
  6. Canada: $34.2 million (3.8%)
  7. Netherlands: $19.7 million (2.2%)
  8. United States: $17.9 million (2%)
  9. Poland: $15 million (1.7%)
  10. Mauritius: $13.2 million (1.5%)
  11. Czech Republic: $5.9 million (0.6%)
  12. United Kingdom: $4.6 million (0.5%)
  13. Comoros: $4.5 million (0.5%)
  14. Australia: $4.1 million (0.5%)
  15. Belgium: $3.7 million (0.4%)
  16. Switzerland: $3.7 million (0.4%)
  17. Romania: $3.6 million (0.4%)
  18. United Arab Emirates: $3.6 million (0.4%)
  19. French Polynesia: $3.6 million (0.4%)
  20. Uganda: $2.9 million (0.3%)

By value, the listed 20 countries shipped 98.1% of globally exported vanilla in 2020.

Among the top exporters, the fastest-growing vanilla exporters since 2019 were: Switzerland (up 1,228%), Australia (up 105.8%), Czech Republic (up 40.3%) and Belgium (up 22.9%).

Those countries that posted declines in their exported vanilla sales were led by: United Arab Emirates (down -64%), French Polynesia (down -51.1%), Canada (down -48.1%), Comoros (down -35.7%) and Uganda (down -35.3%).

Top Vanilla Imports by Country

The overall cost for imported vanilla expanded by 19.9% over the 5-year period starting in 2016 but declined by -24.2% year over year since 2019.

Below are the 20 best buying markets as measured by the highest dollar value worth of vanilla imported during 2020, for any vanilla regardless of whether crushed or ground.

  1. United States: US$375.3 million (42.2% of total imported vanilla)
  2. France: $136.4 million (15.3%)
  3. Germany: $102.4 million (11.5%)
  4. Netherlands: $43.1 million (4.8%)
  5. Canada: $36.4 million (4.1%)
  6. Switzerland: $21.18 million (2.4%)
  7. Indonesia: $21.14 million (2.4%)
  8. Poland: $17.3 million (1.9%)
  9. Japan: $16.1 million (1.8%)
  10. Australia: $13.81 million (1.6%)
  11. Italy: $13.78 million (1.5%)
  12. Denmark: $11.2 million (1.3%)
  13. United Kingdom: $10.3 million (1.2%)
  14. Belgium: $9.2 million (1%)
  15. Czech Republic: $6.9 million (0.8%)
  16. Mauritius: $5.42 million (0.6%)
  17. Austria: $5.35 million (0.6%)
  18. Spain: $4.6 million (0.5%)
  19. Romania: $4.3 million (0.5%)
  20. Sweden: $4.2 million (0.5%)

By value, the listed 20 countries bought 96.4% of globally imported nutmeg in 2020.

Among the top importers, the fastest-growing nutmeg importers since 2019 were: Indonesia (up 313.1%), Netherlands (up 75.8%), Belgium (up 15.6%) and Switzerland (up 12.7%).

Those countries that posted declines in their imported nutmeg purchases were led by: Mauritius (down -75.1%), Canada (down -44.5%), Austria (down -44.2%), Japan (down -42%) and France (down -35%).

Imported Raw Vanilla: Lowest and Highest Unit Prices

In 2020, the world’s average unit price for imports of non-crushed and unground vanilla was US$123,939 per ton.

The average tonnage charge for the number one importer of non-crushed and unground vanilla, United States of America, was higher at $268,456.

Ranked in ascending order, listed below are the countries paying the lowest average unit prices for imported raw vanilla in 2020.

  1. Nigeria: US$560 per ton (up 41.8% from 2019)
  2. Yemen: $1,051 per ton (up 21.8%)
  3. Eswatini: $1,571 per ton (down -27.2%)
  4. Saudi Arabia: $2,469 per ton (down -81.5%)
  5. Samoa: $2,700 per ton (down -1.4%)
  6. Bahamas: $3,611 per ton (down -22.6%)
  7. Sudan: $5,000 per ton (2019 data unavailable)
  8. Chile: $10,188 per ton (up 336.7%)
  9. Bahrain: $10,625 per ton (down -71.3%)
  10. Ivory Coast: $13,000 per ton (up 62.5%)
  11. Malaysia: $14,000 per ton (up 3.7%)
  12. Bermuda: $16,000 per ton (up 28)
  13. Trinidad/Tobago: $19,000 per ton (2019 data unavailable)
  14. Seychelles: $24,000 per ton (up 45.5%)
  15. Ireland: $26,500 per ton (up 16.9%)

There were 5 reductions in average unit price paid per ton for non-crushed and unground vanilla from 2019 to 2020 were low-cost importers Saudi Arabia (down -81.5%), Bahrain (down -71.3%), Eswatini (down -27.2%), Bahamas (down -22.6%) and Samoa (down -1.4%).

The following countries paid the highest average unit prices for imported unprocessed vanilla.

  1. Norway: US$602,500 per ton (down -4.4% from 2019)
  2. Finland: $594,000 per ton (up 26.7%)
  3. Romania: $583,571 per ton (up 35.8%)
  4. Hungary: $513,000 per ton (up 33.2%)
  5. Czech Republic: $469,091 per ton (down -9.8%)
  6. Austria: $439,500 per ton (up 11.7%)
  7. Japan: $394,054 per ton (down -17.7%)
  8. Taiwan: $392,000 per ton (down -2.7%)
  9. Poland: $386,829 per ton (up 182.9%)
  10. Switzerland: $380,773 per ton (down -17.6%)
  11. Uganda: $378,000 per ton (up 46.5%)
  12. Morocco: $366,500 per ton (2019 data unavailable)
  13. South Korea: $340,182 per ton (down -31.4%)
  14. Germany: $324,751 per ton (down -22.1%)
  15. Netherlands: $311,350 per ton (up 9.6%)

The 6 greatest accelerations in terms of higher average unit prices paid in 2020 compared to 2019 were experienced by importers in Poland (up 182.9%), Uganda (up 46.5%), Romania (up 35.8%), Hungary (up 33.2%), Finland (up 26.7%) and Austria (up 11.7%).

Imported Crushed or Ground Vanilla: Lowest and Highest Unit Prices

In 2020, the world’s average unit price for imports of crushed and ground vanilla was US$38,486 per ton. Ironically, the average metric for processed vanilla falls below the $123,939 per ton for raw vanilla.

The average tonnage charge for the number one importer of crushed and ground vanilla, Germany, was $119,549.

Ranked in ascending order, listed below are the countries paying the lowest average unit prices for imported crushed and ground vanilla in 2020.

  1. Senegal: US$86 per ton (2019 data unavailable)
  2. Democratic Republic Congo: $646 per ton (down -51.5% from 2019)
  3. Chile: $655 per ton (up 162%)
  4. Myanmar: $1,000 per ton (2019 data unavailable)
  5. Turks and Caicos Islands: $1,000 per ton (down -33.3%)
  6. Afghanistan: $1,500 per ton (2019 data unavailable)
  7. Tanzania, United Republic of: $1,500 per ton (up 50%)
  8. Nigeria: $1,529 per ton (2019 data unavailable)
  9. Haiti: $2,000 per ton (up 186.5%)
  10. Brunei Darussalam: $2,788 per ton (up 46.4%)
  11. Eswatini: $3,000 per ton (2019 data unavailable)
  12. Syrian Arab Republic: $3,083 per ton (down -12.9%)
  13. Iraq: $3,250 per ton (down -42.7%)
  14. Maldives: $3,250 per ton (down -65.8%)
  15. Jordan: $3,471 per ton (up 33.5%)

There were 5 reductions in average unit price paid per ton for crushed and ground vanilla from 2019 to 2020 were low-cost importers Maldives (down -65.8%), Democratic Republic of the Congo (down -51.5%), Iraq (down -42.7%), Turks and Caicos Islands (down -33.3%) and Syria (down -12.9%).

The following countries paid the highest average unit prices for imported crushed or ground vanilla.

  1. Finland: US$395,000 per ton (down -33.3% from 2019)
  2. Switzerland: $295,200 per ton (down -16.1%)
  3. Czech Republic: $282,333 per ton (down -17.9%)
  4. Austria: $271,500 per ton (up 39.5%)
  5. Norway: $241,000 per ton (down -34.7%)
  6. Sweden: $213,000 per ton (up 79.3%)
  7. Poland: $199,579 per ton (up 18.3%)
  8. Hungary: $198,000 per ton (up 107.5%)
  9. Italy: $194,500 per ton (up 30%)
  10. Japan: $186,375 per ton (up 0.8%)
  11. Palestine: $179,000 per ton (2019 data unavailable)
  12. Bulgaria: $175,000 per ton (down -18.2%)
  13. Latvia: $156,500 per ton (down -41.2%)
  14. South Africa: $152,000 per ton (down -25.9%)
  15. Taiwan: $150,000 per ton (2019 data unavailable)

The 5 strongest accelerations in terms of higher average unit prices paid in 2020 compared to 2019 were experienced by importers of crushed or ground vanilla in Hungary (up 107.5%), Sweden (up 79.3%), Austria (up 39.5%), Italy (up 30%) and Poland (up 18.3%).

See also Top Exported Spices by Sales, Weight and Unit Value, Cinnamon Exports by Country, Top Garlic Exports by Country, Top Cloves Exports & Imports by Country Plus Average Prices and Top Nutmeg Exports & Imports by Country Plus Average Prices

Research Sources:
Alibaba, Vanilla Showroom. Accessed on February 12, 2022

Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook Field Listing: Exports – Commodities. Accessed on February 12, 2022

International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on February 12, 2022

Wikipedia, Vanilla. Accessed on February 12, 2022