National Pingtung University of Science and Technology / Prof. YingTzy Jou
Pain Points Solved
Vanilla is a high-value agricultural product that can be cultivated beneath solar photovoltaic panels, thereby maintaining the agricultural use of the land while balancing renewable energy generation and environmental sustainability.
As the world's second most expensive spice, vanilla is widely used in food processing, pharmaceuticals, and cosmetics, enjoying stable market demand.
Global vanilla prices fluctuate due to factors such as geopolitical instability, climate change, and disease outbreaks in major producing regions like Madagascar and Uganda. In contrast, Taiwan offers stable production and high food safety standards; the scale of production is gradually expanding, and time- and labor-saving vanilla curing technologies are helping to improve cost-efficiency for farmers.
Technology Introduction
This technology base on a low-temperature fermentation process for vanilla pods, utilizing microorganisms selected from high-quality pods to effectively increase vanillin content and enhance the complexity of the flavor profile.
The processed vanilla pods are suitable not only for use in pastries but also for flavoring coffee and black tea, thereby elevating the inherent flavors of the tea and coffee. This product won awards at the 2024 and 2025 International sensory evaluation of tea and coffee.
▲Figure 1. Vanillin crystals on vanilla pods fermented at low temperature.
▲Figure 2. Vanilla-infused coffee
▲Figure 3. Vanilla-infused black tea
Application Examples
None
Related Links
The isolation and identification of Bacillus velezensis ZN‑S10 from vanilla (V. planifolia),and the microbial distribution after the curing process ( https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-66753-z)
Exploring the Volatile Profile of Vanilla planifolia after Fermentation at Low Temperature with Bacillus Isolates (https://doi.org/10.3390/foods13172777)
Patent Name and Number
FERMENTATION METHOD FOR ENHANCING VOLATILITY MATERIAL OF VANILLA SEED POD WITH BACILLUS VELEZENSIS AND PRODUCT PRODUCED THEREBY (ROC patent: I911619)
LOW-TEMPERATURE VANILLA SEED POD FERMENTATION METHOD AND MATERIAL PRODUCED THEREBY (ROC patent: I899415)
LOW-TEMPERATURE VANILLA SEED POD FERMENTATION SYSTEM AND OPERATION METHOD THEREOF (ROC patent: I878776)
Industry-Academia / Tech Transfer Partner
None
Honors and Awards
None
Technical Contact
Prof. YingTzy Jou
National Pingtung University of Science and Technology
Tel: +886 8-7703202 ext. 6357
Email: ytjou@mail.npust.edu.tw