Start With The Good Stuff
When it comes to baking, we’ve learned to start with good ingredients.
The kind that taste better, and the kind that leave the planet better too.
That’s why we when it comes to vanilla we only use LittlePod.
Vanilla is Delicate.
Vanilla isn’t like most plants.
It’s fussy.
It’s slow.
It needs looking after.
It needs the rainforest. It needs other trees — known as tutor trees — to wrap itself around, and grow up.
Vanilla flowers have a tiny window to be pollinated; just a few hours. Miss it, and that’s it for the year. This is why most vanilla is pollinated by hand – one flower at a time.
It can take up to five years from planting vanilla orchids to producing vanilla pods.
The process is so time consuming that vanilla is considered one of the most labour-intensive crops in the world.
This could lead to insecurity for vanilla farmers.
However, LittlePod work directly with their farmers, giving them long-term contracts.
This builds security and trust. The farmers know their hard work will pay off.
Because real sustainability isn’t just about the environment. It’s about people too.
When Vanilla Thrives, So Does The Rainforest.
If you want great vanilla, you need a healthy rainforest.
Which means growing vanilla this way protects that rainforest.
It means keeping the trees standing.
It means birds and insects have a home.
It means farmers have a reason not to cut trees down.
Vanilla is an ideal polyculture plant. Made, one of LittlePod’s farmers, grows vanilla on coffee trees; growing both together means increased biodiversity.
Over half of earth’s plant and animal species are found in rainforests (source), so it is incredibly important that they are protected. LittlePod helps to ensure their survival.
Taste That Tells A Story.
We’ve baked with a lot of vanilla over the years.
LittlePod has a depth of flavour that stays with you.
And because it’s so full of the good stuff, you only need a little. This means less waste. Less packaging, and fewer air miles.
Good for the planet. Good for the farmers. Good for your cakes.
The Best Things In Life Take Time.
Give those things — to people, to plants, to the planet — and the results will always taste better.
LittlePod is available to purchase direct from their website or from other online retailers such as Cotswold Fayre
We wouldn’t bake without it.