Niue’s Vanilla showcased to the world this week, at the Fine Foods Exhibition, Sydney, Olympic Park. Featured in the background poster of Stanley Kalauni’s booth, Mr. Saimone Tongia working on his wife’s vanilla plot. Mone as he is known in Niue and his wife Tulele Tongia, have continued to maintain their vanilla plantation over the years despite the downturn in the industry globally. The lack of markets and the fall in farm gate price caused 80% of the established vanilla growers in the past ten years to give up on growing vanilla. The number of growers that remain today is less than 20 compared to the 200 growers registered in 2001. Mone and his family yield some of the best beans on the island and like many growers in Niue, they have aged significantly leaving their hard work to their children to hopefully continue. This remains a challenge for the future and a challenge for the youth of today to recognize vanilla growing as a lucrative source of income for them. It is also a challenge for traders such as Niue Vanilla International to seek and maintain international niche markets for Niue’s vanilla.