Tonka
Tonka bean, cumaru in Brazilian Portuguese, is the seed of Dipteryx odorata, a large leguminous tree native to the Amazon basin and parts of the Orinoco basin. The wrinkled, black-skinned seed has a smooth brown interior and a strong, sweet, hay-like fragrance driven by a high natural coumarin content. Beans are dried and sold whole, and the dried whole bean or an alcohol/solvent extract made from it is used as a fixative and flavoring raw material in perfumery, notably in fougere, oriental and floral fine-fragrance compounds, and in tobacco and liqueur flavoring. Coumarin, the compound responsible for the bean's characteristic odor, is separately restricted or prohibited as a direct food additive in a number of jurisdictions, so tonka bean's food-flavoring use is narrower than its perfumery use.
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Listed tonka markets
Each line is a grade at a delivery point. Open one for its full specification and terms.
Price guarantee on tonka
If a move in the tonka price would hurt you, fix the price now. We agree it today for the months you name, and it holds whatever the market does in between.
| Buying | You use or resell tonka and need to know your cost. We fix your purchase price for the quantity and months you name. |
|---|---|
| Selling | You grow, produce or hold tonka and need to know your revenue. We fix your sale price ahead of production or shipment. |
| Settlement | Against delivery of the tonka. |
A price is fixed only once a trader confirms it in writing. Ask the desk for a fixed price.
Caps and floors on tonka
A fixed price binds buyer and seller. A cap or a floor is a guaranteed price on one side only. You pay a fee up front for it, and it is a right, not an obligation: you use it only if the market moves against you.
| Cap | For buyers. A guaranteed maximum price for tonka. If the market is above the cap when you buy, you pay the cap. If it is below, you buy at the market price and let the cap lapse. |
|---|---|
| Floor | For sellers. A guaranteed minimum price for tonka. If the market is below the floor when you sell, you receive the floor. If it is above, you sell at the market price and let the floor lapse. |
| Fee | Agreed and paid up front. It is the whole cost of the cap or floor, and it is not refunded if the cap or floor goes unused. |
A cap or a floor is in place only once a trader confirms it in writing. Ask the desk for a cap or a floor.
Grades
Tonka beans are contracted on botanical identity and harvest method, on the coumarin content of the seed as determined by laboratory assay, on moisture content, and on a whole-versus-broken bean sort and general foreign-matter content. There is no ISO or other internationally audited grading standard for tonka beans; buyers verify a seller's declared figures against an independent laboratory report rather than the seller's own sample.
Species and harvest method as the contracted article
2 grades
| Grade | Definition |
|---|---|
| Dipteryx odorataTonka bean, cumaru | The commercially traded species, native to the Amazon and Orinoco basins. |
| Harvest methodDeclared | Wild-harvested from natural forest stands versus plantation-grown, declared and travelling with the lot's forest-origin or agricultural documentation. |
Coumarin content by HPLC assay
1 grade
| Grade | Definition |
|---|---|
| Coumarin assayPercentage by mass, or milligrams per gram, of dried whole bean | Determined by HPLC-UV/Vis on a methanol extract of the sample; reported coumarin content in commercial dried tonka bean typically falls in the low single-digit percentage range of the seed by mass. |
Purity and physical condition
3 grades
| Grade | Definition |
|---|---|
| MoisturePercentage by mass, maximum | Determined by oven drying or equivalent; elevated moisture shortens safe storage life and raises mould risk on the bean's waxy interior surface. |
| Whole versus broken bean sortDeclared, against a retained reference sample | Whole, unbroken dried beans sort separately from broken or fragmented material; no numeric international standard exists, so the split is declared and matched to a sealed sample. |
| Foreign matterPercentage by mass, maximum | Pod fragments, bark, leaf and other non-seed material, separated by hand and weighed; declared against a retained reference sample. |
Origin, legality and delivery
3 grades
| Grade | Definition |
|---|---|
| Forest-origin documentationDeclared, with the permit reference | Documentation establishing the legal forest or agricultural origin of the harvested seed travels with the lot from origin. |
| PackingDeclared | Jute or polypropylene bags, or moisture-controlled sacks, with the liner specified. |
| Sampling planDeclared | How many packages are sampled, by whom, and against which retained reference sample; a wild-harvested natural seed lot is heterogeneous between bags. |
Grades outside this list trade on request. Send us the contract specification you work to and we will price against it.
Locations
| Country | Region | We trade it as |
|---|---|---|
| Brazil | Amazon basin, including Para | Origin |
| Venezuela | Orinoco basin | Origin |
| Nigeria | Nigeria | Origin |
| United States | East Coast and California | Destination |
| France | Grasse and Paris | Destination |
| Germany | Germany | Destination |
| Spain | Barcelona | Destination |
| Switzerland | Switzerland | Destination |
Origins and destinations outside this list trade on request. We are not limited to the locations shown here.
Timing
Harvest is when wild-growing pods are gathered and the seed is extracted and dried at origin. Arrival is when a shipment from that origin typically lands in a consuming market. The gap between them is drying, sorting, laboratory assay and the voyage.
HarvestArrival
| Origin | J | F | M | A | M | J | J | A | S | O | N | D | Window |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brazil | Harvest and arrival | Harvest and arrival | Harvest and arrival | Harvest and arrival | Harvest and arrival | Harvest and arrival | Harvest and arrival | Harvest and arrival | Harvest and arrival | Harvest and arrival | Harvest and arrival | Harvest and arrival | Harvest Jan to Dec, arrival Jan to DecWild forest harvest by river-extractive and Indigenous communities in Para is not tied to a single sharply bounded annual window in the sources reviewed this session; exact seasonal weighting was not confirmed to a specific month band and should be re-verified with a named supplier before scheduling. Arrival window follows the same full-year pattern pending that confirmation. |
Windows outside this pattern trade on request, including carry, forward positions and stock already sitting in a destination warehouse.
Common questions
What grades of tonka does SIP Global trade?
We quote 9 published grades of tonka, including Dipteryx odorata - Tonka bean, cumaru, Harvest method - Declared, Coumarin assay - Percentage by mass, or milligrams per gram, of dried whole bean, Moisture - Percentage by mass, maximum, Whole versus broken bean sort - Declared, against a retained reference sample and Foreign matter - Percentage by mass, maximum. Every grade is tied to a delivery point and a settlement route. Grades outside the published list are priced on request.
How is tonka graded?
Tonka beans are contracted on botanical identity and harvest method, on the coumarin content of the seed as determined by laboratory assay, on moisture content, and on a whole-versus-broken bean sort and general foreign-matter content. There is no ISO or other internationally audited grading standard for tonka beans; buyers verify a seller's declared figures against an independent laboratory report rather than the seller's own sample. Grading runs on 4 systems: Species and harvest method as the contracted article, Coumarin content by HPLC assay, Purity and physical condition and Origin, legality and delivery.
Where does SIP Global trade tonka?
We trade tonka in Brazil, Venezuela, Nigeria, United States, France, Germany, Spain and Switzerland. Origins and destinations outside this list trade on request. We are not limited to the locations shown.
When is tonka harvested and when does it arrive?
Typical windows are Brazil: harvest jan to dec, arrival jan to dec. Harvest is when the lot is taken at origin, arrival is when a shipment from that origin lands in a consuming market. Windows outside this pattern, including carry, trade on request.
Can I fix a tonka price ahead?
Yes. SIP Global fixes a tonka price ahead for buyers and for sellers, as a price guarantee. Send the grade, the quantity and the months you need covered. We settle against delivery, and a price is fixed only once a trader confirms it in writing.
How do I get a price for tonka?
Send the grade, the origin and the delivery window to the SIP Global desk. That is enough for a trader to come back with a level and a settlement route. 2 listed tonka markets are published on this page, each with its full specification and terms. We buy and sell the physical cargo, prompt to long dated.
Standards and data sources
The grading language on this sheet follows published standards. Trade volumes and tariff lines are public record. Verify anything here against the source.
- ISO (opens in new tab)International Organization for Standardization
- UN Comtrade (opens in new tab)Official international trade statistics by HS code
- ITC Trade Map (opens in new tab)Bilateral trade flows and tariff data
- FAOSTAT (opens in new tab)FAO production and trade series for agricultural commodities