Vanilla Extract - Dangerous?

Quoted message said:

Does anyone have any suggestions as to how I might determine if this vanilla is safe to use?

If you use it and get sick or even die .. it wasn't safe. I'm amazed that you even ask ... there is
no way I would ever use such a product. ~Kat

"I think I would like to call myself 'the girl who wanted to be God'. Yet if I were not in this
body, where would I be--perhaps I am destined to be classified and qualified. But, oh, I cry out
aginst it." --Sylvia Plath

Tank said:

Hi Group,

My wife received a small bottle of imported vanilla extract as a gift from her boss, who had taken
a Carribean cruise. I am wondering about the safety of using this.

It is in a small brown bottle, which looks like it has been reused.

(snip)

Vanilla isn't that expensive; buy a bottle from Penzey's and toss away they mystery extract!

Jill
P.S. Any reason your wife's boss might want to kill her?

"Tank" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Hi Group,

My wife received a small bottle of imported vanilla extract as a gift from her boss, who had taken
a Carribean cruise. I am wondering about the safety of using this.

It is in a small brown bottle, which looks like it has been reused. There is adhesive from a
previous label under the label for the vanilla.

The label is badly cut & crooked, with plain laser printed text. It says,

in

Quoted message said:

big letters: PURE VANILLA. Under that, is says: Use for Cakes, Drinks, Pudding, Ice Cream, Etc.

Below that, it says: Made & Bottled in Grenada.

To cap is a sealed, twist off kind. It is made of metal, the kind where there is a separate ring
on the bottle, after you have opened it the first time.

No company name, or address of any kind on this bottle. I do not know

from

Quoted message said:

what kind of vendor the purchaser obtained it. I can send a picture of the bottle to anyone who is
interested in seeing it.

I am concerned about the possibility of Coumarin in the vanilla. Does

anyone

Quoted message said:

have any suggestions as to how I might determine if this vanilla is safe to use?

Thanks very much!

--

Pitch it and buy some from a reputable source.

Jack Mysteriosograndelegantecoli

"jmcquown" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
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Quoted message said:

Vanilla isn't that expensive;

Checked the price of vanilla lately? You might be appalled.

Hal Laurent Baltimore

"Hal Laurent" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
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Quoted message said:

"jmcquown" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Vanilla isn't that expensive;

Checked the price of vanilla lately? You might be appalled.

Compared to medical care or funeral expenses, vanilla--even at current prices--is a bargain... ;-)

My god, just throw it away! You're going to take a chance on some mystery bottle that's obviously
been re-used and for all you know could have contained mercury in it at some time. Why bother? Chuck
it, and move on.

Tank said:

Hi Group,

My wife received a small bottle of imported vanilla extract as a gift from her boss, who had taken
a Carribean cruise. I am wondering about the safety of using this.

It is in a small brown bottle, which looks like it has been reused. There is adhesive from a
previous label under the label for the vanilla.

The label is badly cut & crooked, with plain laser printed text. It says, in big letters: PURE
VANILLA. Under that, is says: Use for Cakes, Drinks, Pudding, Ice Cream, Etc.

Below that, it says: Made & Bottled in Grenada.

To cap is a sealed, twist off kind. It is made of metal, the kind where there is a separate ring
on the bottle, after you have opened it the first time.

No company name, or address of any kind on this bottle. I do not know from what kind of vendor
the purchaser obtained it. I can send a picture of the bottle to anyone who is interested in
seeing it.

I am concerned about the possibility of Coumarin in the vanilla. Does anyone have any suggestions
as to how I might determine if this vanilla is safe to use?

If I give you my address will you mail it to me. My neighbours went on a cruise a few years ago and
brought me a bottle of vanilla from Grenada that sounds just like the one you described. It was
incredible. I have been searching ever since for something even close to that. A friend who is a
chef brought me some from Dominican Republic that was a close second. It seems that bottling vanilla
in cheap plastic containers and using cheap labels is quite common in the Caribbean.

What can go bad in it? It is mostly alcohol.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Does anyone have any suggestions as to how I might determine if this vanilla is safe to use?

======================
If the label has "no coumarin" on it it is safe to use. And it's delicious. My friends and neighbors
and I have used it for years. nancree

Davlo said:

My god, just throw it away! You're going to take a chance on some mystery bottle that's obviously
been re-used and for all you know could have contained mercury in it at some time. Why bother?
Chuck it, and move on.

ah... yup yup.... what Davlo said.

--
Steve

Men are from Earth. Women are from Earth. Deal with it.

I will chime in and say that I also bought a bottle of vanilla in the Caribbean in Cozumel, MX whose
bottle label was torn and worn looking - they all looked like that. The bottle itself seemed ok or
at least not quite as 'used' as yours sounds but like D. Smith said, it's contents were outrageously
good and getting more has been one of the reasons I've been wanting to go back to Cozumel - not to
mention the snorkeling and lovely, mysterious atmosphere. But you see, I bought this myself and knew
where it came from - I'm not certain about using a screwed up looking bottle that I didn't see where
it came from.

"Tank" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Hi Group,

My wife received a small bottle of imported vanilla extract as a gift from her boss, who had taken
a Carribean cruise. I am wondering about the safety of using this.

Hell, toss it. Vanilla extract is too cheap to worry about getting a bad lot.

Does any one know what "Clear Vanilla Extract" is made from in the USA? I know it's not
vanilla beans.

Tank said:

I am concerned about the possibility of Coumarin in the vanilla. Does anyone have any suggestions
as to how I might determine if this vanilla is safe to use?

Thanks very much!

Dave Smith said:

Tank said:

Hi Group,

My wife received a small bottle of imported vanilla extract as a gift from her boss, who had taken
a Carribean cruise. I am wondering about the safety of using this.

It is in a small brown bottle, which looks like it has been reused. There is adhesive from a
previous label under the label for the vanilla.

The label is badly cut & crooked, with plain laser printed text. It says, in big letters: PURE
VANILLA. Under that, is says: Use for Cakes, Drinks, Pudding, Ice Cream, Etc.

Below that, it says: Made & Bottled in Grenada.

To cap is a sealed, twist off kind. It is made of metal, the kind where there is a separate ring
on the bottle, after you have opened it the first time.

No company name, or address of any kind on this bottle. I do not know from what kind of vendor
the purchaser obtained it. I can send a picture of the bottle to anyone who is interested in
seeing it.

I am concerned about the possibility of Coumarin in the vanilla. Does anyone have any suggestions
as to how I might determine if this vanilla is safe to use?

If I give you my address will you mail it to me. My neighbours went on a cruise a few years ago
and brought me a bottle of vanilla from Grenada that sounds just like the one you described. It
was incredible. I have been searching ever since for something even close to that. A friend who is
a chef brought me some from Dominican Republic that was a close second. It seems that bottling
vanilla in cheap plastic containers and using cheap labels is quite common in the Caribbean.

What can go bad in it? It is mostly alcohol.

The problem is it might be tonka bean extract instead of vanilla. Tonka beans smell more like
vanilla than vanilla does, but contain toxic amounts of coumarin.

Bob

"Dave Smith" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Tank said:

Hi Group,

My wife received a small bottle of imported vanilla extract as a gift from her boss, who had
taken a Carribean cruise. I am wondering about the safety of using this.

It is in a small brown bottle, which looks like it has been reused. There is adhesive from a
previous label under the label for the vanilla.

The label is badly cut & crooked, with plain laser printed text. It

says, in

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

big letters: PURE VANILLA. Under that, is says: Use for Cakes, Drinks, Pudding, Ice Cream, Etc.

Below that, it says: Made & Bottled in Grenada.

To cap is a sealed, twist off kind. It is made of metal, the kind where there is a separate ring
on the bottle, after you have opened it the first time.

No company name, or address of any kind on this bottle. I do not know

from

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

what kind of vendor the purchaser obtained it. I can send a picture of the bottle to anyone who
is interested in seeing it.

I am concerned about the possibility of Coumarin in the vanilla. Does

anyone

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

have any suggestions as to how I might determine if this vanilla is safe to use?

If I give you my address will you mail it to me. My neighbours went on a

cruise

Quoted message said:

a few years ago and brought me a bottle of vanilla from Grenada that

sounds just

Quoted message said:

like the one you described. It was incredible. I have been searching ever

since

Quoted message said:

for something even close to that. A friend who is a chef brought me some

from

Quoted message said:

Dominican Republic that was a close second. It seems that bottling vanilla

in

Quoted message said:

cheap plastic containers and using cheap labels is quite common in the Caribbean.

What can go bad in it? It is mostly alcohol.

Do I have permission to send you a picture of the bottle as an email attachment? It would be a small
.JPG file.

--
Tank

Tank said:

Do I have permission to send you a picture of the bottle as an email attachment? It would be a
small .JPG file.

Sure. If it is the same stuff I will give you my address and you can send me the bottle of vanilla.

In article <[email hidden]>, zxcvbob

Quoted message said:

The problem is it might be tonka bean extract instead of vanilla. Tonka beans smell more like
vanilla than vanilla does, but contain toxic amounts of coumarin.

I have read/heard this many times, but one question always comes to my mind: How toxic is
coumarin? I mean, you use anywhere from 1/4-2 tsps of vanilla for an entire recipe, which is
generally spread out into at least 8-16 servings, is it really that dangerous?

Regards, Ranee

--
Remove do not and spam to e-mail me.

"The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in
shrines made by man." Acts 17:24

Ranee Mueller <[email hidden]> wrote in
:"]news:[email hidden]:

Quoted message said:

In article said:

The problem is it might be tonka bean extract instead of vanilla. Tonka beans smell more like
vanilla than vanilla does, but contain toxic amounts of coumarin.

I have read/heard this many times, but one question always comes to my mind: How toxic is
coumarin? I mean, you use anywhere from 1/4-2 tsps of vanilla for an entire recipe, which is
generally spread out into at least 8-16 servings, is it really that dangerous?

Regards, Ranee

A local Mexican store sells vanilla from Mexico, but the bottles explicitly state "contains no
coumarin". I have used it, but it really doesn't compare to the vanilla from Penzey's. I really hate
making a recipe only to find out that the vanilla I used produced a substandard flavor.

Wayne

Ranee Mueller said:

In article said:

The problem is it might be tonka bean extract instead of vanilla. Tonka beans smell more like
vanilla than vanilla does, but contain toxic amounts of coumarin.

I have read/heard this many times, but one question always comes to my mind: How toxic is
coumarin? I mean, you use anywhere from 1/4-2 tsps of vanilla for an entire recipe, which is
generally spread out into at least 8-16 servings, is it really that dangerous?

Regards, Ranee

I can't find any reasonable-looking information about how dangerous it is. Is it a blood thinner, or
liver toxin, or carcinogen, or what?

Labratory tests in rats are not conclusive in humans because humans and rats metabolize couramin
differently. The FDA bans vanilla extracts containing couramin, and various state extension
service web sites say couramin in "Mexican vanilla" is an ongoing big problem, but they don't go
into details.

I would probably try the dubious vanilla extract once, as a curiosity, and then throw it away just
in case it really is toxic.

Someone gave my brother a big liquor bottle full of Mexican vanilla once and he said it had a bit of
an industrial solvent smell to it that gave him a headache.

Best regards, Bob

"Ranee Mueller" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I have read/heard this many times, but one question always comes to my mind: How toxic is
coumarin? I mean, you use anywhere from 1/4-2 tsps of vanilla for an entire recipe, which is
generally spread out into at least 8-16 servings, is it really that dangerous?

Well, using that reasoning, why the big fuss over using pottery with glazes that contain lead? Would
you risk using a tagine from Morocco (untested for lead) to cook a meal for your children, even if
you only use it occasionally?

rona

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