The Problem: How would a regulatory agency such as the Federal Drug Administration determine whether vanilla extract, that sells for a substantial price, is authentic?

Vanillin is the chief flavoring compound in natural vanilla extract. It is also the exclusive chemical compound in artificial vanilla.

Vanilla Extract is the solution obtained from the extracts of 100g of vanilla beans in 1 liter of 45% ethanol. It contains principally vanillin and also several hundred additional components in trace amounts. The price for vanilla beans has ranged from $30-$38 per pound.

Imitation Vanilla Extract is an alcohol solution containing synthetically derived vanillin from waste products of the wood pulp industry. The abundance of this resource has afforded food counterfeiters a fraudulent money-making opportunity.

The Experiment is for you to determine if the sample provide to you was extracted from vanilla beans or not. This requires two sequential laboratory exercises; first, use an ESI-Ion Trap to investigate the purity of your sample and to confirm that it does contain vanillin. The second experiment will be to use the Stable Isotope Ratio Mass Spectrometer to determine the C-12 to C-13 ratio of the vanillin in your sample. Comparison of this ratio to a standard data base will allow you to answer the posed question.