Dear Mr. President: A Vanilla Bean Shortage Could Be Nearing  

Dear Mr. President, the leading global supplier of vanilla has been battered by a cyclone, potentially leading to a shortage of vanilla ice cream. 

Bloomberg reports Madagascar's vanilla-growing farmland has been battered by Cyclone Gamane, resulting in flooded fields and high winds that stripped vanilla pods from their vines. 

Georges Geeraerts, president of the Indian Ocean island's union of vanilla exporters, told the media outlet that this year's vanilla harvest could be halved. 

"On a bad year, production is about 1,500 tons compared with a range of 2,000 to 2,500 tons," Geeraerts said. 

He noted, "A conservative estimate, ahead of more detailed analysis from the growing region, means that the output for the current harvest could be as low as 1,000 tons."

What did you say?

And it's not just vanilla lovers who could soon face higher prices due to tightening supplies. On the West Coast of Africa, especially across the Ivory Coast, the world's largest cocoa producer, drought and disease have been major catalysts for lower production, which has sent prices through the roof. 

In recent weeks, cocoa futures in New York jumped over the $10,000 per ton mark—the highest on record. Prices have subsided to around $9,500 and are expected to trade at these high levels amid tightening supplies. 

 What's the plan, Mr. President?

Does the US have strategic vanilla and cocoa bean reserves?