Ugandan vanilla beans provide special flavor to bakery products

The Sweetest Bean is a women-owned company based in Colorado, and they employ a team in Uganda, Africa, who hand-cures all of the company’s gourmet vanilla.

“It is our mission to provide jobs, and end the cycle of poverty, one person at a time, while bringing incredible vanilla to market,” according to Sweetest Bean owners Laura Lind and Shana Gilbert.

There are two growing seasons for gourmet Ugandan vanilla beans, providing a year-long supply of long and fresh beans.

Products include Gourmet Pure Vanilla Bean Powder, a 100% vanilla bean powder ground from the entire vanilla bean for the professional chef or baker.

Also available is Gourmet Pure Vanilla Extract, which contains a vanilla bean inside every bottle: available in 4-ounce, 8-ounce, 16-ounce and 32-ounce. This product features continued aging for flavor enhancement.

“We employ an incredibly devoted team in Uganda, Africa who work months hand curing our vanilla and sending it directly to us in Colorado,” Lind explains. “It is our desire to bring the finest vanilla to market, all while providing a little bit of economy in Uganda. We handcraft pure gourmet vanilla extract (with a bean inside every bottle) in Colorado and supply gourmet whole vanilla beans and pure vanilla bean powder. Uganda is special, unlike other countries, we have 2 growing seasons a year, so our team cures fresh vanilla twice a year.”