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About Farms, Regions & People
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Cacao Farms from A-Z page currently being updated
Origin: Belize
Region/Farm: Toledo District
Certifications: Organic, direct transparent trade
Chocolate Makers Notes: Honey, pineapple and raisin
About:Maya Mountain Cacao (“MMC”) is a pioneer in direct trade cacao sourcing. MMC, founded in 2010, put Belize on the craft chocolate map as the first exporter in the country to produce high-quality, centrally-fermented, transparently sourced cacao. MMC works with 350+ certified organic smallholder cacao farming families in the Toledo District, most of them indigenous Q’eqchi’ and Mopan Maya. MMC centrally processes all cacao at a post-harvest facility where three unique stages of sun drying create optimal flavor. MMC operates a 24-hectare Demonstration Farm, for research and trainings in best practices for increasing cacao yield and quality; in 2016, the first pods were harvested from the demo farm, just 18 months after planting. MMC is focused on being a sustainable, long term and transparent partner to farmers and producing uniquely delicious and sweet cacao that creates real positive impact for the communities of southern Belize.
Region/Farm: Toledo District
Certifications: Organic, direct transparent trade
Chocolate Makers Notes: Honey, pineapple and raisin
About:Maya Mountain Cacao (“MMC”) is a pioneer in direct trade cacao sourcing. MMC, founded in 2010, put Belize on the craft chocolate map as the first exporter in the country to produce high-quality, centrally-fermented, transparently sourced cacao. MMC works with 350+ certified organic smallholder cacao farming families in the Toledo District, most of them indigenous Q’eqchi’ and Mopan Maya. MMC centrally processes all cacao at a post-harvest facility where three unique stages of sun drying create optimal flavor. MMC operates a 24-hectare Demonstration Farm, for research and trainings in best practices for increasing cacao yield and quality; in 2016, the first pods were harvested from the demo farm, just 18 months after planting. MMC is focused on being a sustainable, long term and transparent partner to farmers and producing uniquely delicious and sweet cacao that creates real positive impact for the communities of southern Belize.
ORIGIN: Brazil
REGION/FARM: Bahia, Ilheus
TYPE: Catongo
CERTIFICATIONS: Direct Trade
CHOCOLATE MAKER NOTES: Rare white beans - apricot, peanut buttery.
ABOUT THE FARM/REGION/PEOPLE:
So many amazing people — Chocolate makers, growers and farmers. This is an incredibly beautiful farm located in the northwest corner of Brazil in the Ihious Region of Bahia. It is very organized and well kept with varietals as segregated as possible. This bean is one just varietal that they take care to keep separate and out of their farm blend due to its really unique nature. The beans are fermented in traditional boxes and turned on a schedule dictated by how the temperatures rise and fall. They are sun dried of open patios with huge roofs on rollers that can be quickly put in place should rain come in.
REGION/FARM: Bahia, Ilheus
TYPE: Catongo
CERTIFICATIONS: Direct Trade
CHOCOLATE MAKER NOTES: Rare white beans - apricot, peanut buttery.
ABOUT THE FARM/REGION/PEOPLE:
So many amazing people — Chocolate makers, growers and farmers. This is an incredibly beautiful farm located in the northwest corner of Brazil in the Ihious Region of Bahia. It is very organized and well kept with varietals as segregated as possible. This bean is one just varietal that they take care to keep separate and out of their farm blend due to its really unique nature. The beans are fermented in traditional boxes and turned on a schedule dictated by how the temperatures rise and fall. They are sun dried of open patios with huge roofs on rollers that can be quickly put in place should rain come in.
ORIGIN: BOLIVIA
REGION/FARM: Wild Harvest
TYPE: HCP Heirloom Tranquilidad
CERTIFICATIONS: Direct Trade
CHOCOLATE MAKER NOTES: Bright notes of apricot & tangy fresh plum moving into dark roast coffee & bitter almond with a long after taste that circles back to fruit.
ABOUT THE FARM/REGION/PEOPLE:
PRODUCER / COLLECTORS: Tranquilidad Natural Forest Estate of around 600 hectares is owned by Volker Lehmann and his family, as private enterprise. In over 15 years Volker Lehmann increased the Wild Harvest activities all over the Beni department on areas of the size of Germany, involving hundreds of mainly indigenous families and dozens of organizations. Since 2014, after receiving the HCP recognition for Tranquilidad, production is concentrated in Tranquilidad and neighboring collection areas between the villages of Huacaraje and Baures. All cacao is fermented and sundried at Tranquilidad fermentation and drying facility.
HARVEST & PEOPLE: Harvest time in Tranquilidad is once a year between mid December to mid February. It could vary regarding the appearance of the rainy season starting in October and ending around end of May. The amount to harvest per tree varies also from year to year. In general the amount per tree is small as well as the pods and the beans, which are half the size of cultivated cacaos varieties. The cacao trees grow tall in its natural habitat and can reach 8 – 10 meters. People harvest the lower trunk by hand and use long sticks with a wire sling to get to the fruits in the upper parts. Sometimes they climb into the tree when there are many fruits, or they get eaten by monkeys and birds. The people like to come early in the morning, when mosquitoes are still less active, to collect in small groups or by family and make piles of pods. After 2-3 hours they sit at the piles and open the pods placing the fresh beans in bags. Once full the bags hang on poles to collect the dripping juice that people love to drink right there and to sell some in the villages. After that, between noon and early afternoon, they bring the bags by foot or on bikes to the harvest center, where they are weighed and payed directly by weight and quality. The price is generally agreed at the start of the harvest and varies if there are more or less to pick. People are free to sell to the best offer or take home. The beans go then straight into special designed wooden fermentation boxes. The post harvest protocol was developed in 2003 and is mainly adapted to the size of the beans including slow sun drying.
REGION/FARM: Wild Harvest
TYPE: HCP Heirloom Tranquilidad
CERTIFICATIONS: Direct Trade
CHOCOLATE MAKER NOTES: Bright notes of apricot & tangy fresh plum moving into dark roast coffee & bitter almond with a long after taste that circles back to fruit.
ABOUT THE FARM/REGION/PEOPLE:
PRODUCER / COLLECTORS: Tranquilidad Natural Forest Estate of around 600 hectares is owned by Volker Lehmann and his family, as private enterprise. In over 15 years Volker Lehmann increased the Wild Harvest activities all over the Beni department on areas of the size of Germany, involving hundreds of mainly indigenous families and dozens of organizations. Since 2014, after receiving the HCP recognition for Tranquilidad, production is concentrated in Tranquilidad and neighboring collection areas between the villages of Huacaraje and Baures. All cacao is fermented and sundried at Tranquilidad fermentation and drying facility.
HARVEST & PEOPLE: Harvest time in Tranquilidad is once a year between mid December to mid February. It could vary regarding the appearance of the rainy season starting in October and ending around end of May. The amount to harvest per tree varies also from year to year. In general the amount per tree is small as well as the pods and the beans, which are half the size of cultivated cacaos varieties. The cacao trees grow tall in its natural habitat and can reach 8 – 10 meters. People harvest the lower trunk by hand and use long sticks with a wire sling to get to the fruits in the upper parts. Sometimes they climb into the tree when there are many fruits, or they get eaten by monkeys and birds. The people like to come early in the morning, when mosquitoes are still less active, to collect in small groups or by family and make piles of pods. After 2-3 hours they sit at the piles and open the pods placing the fresh beans in bags. Once full the bags hang on poles to collect the dripping juice that people love to drink right there and to sell some in the villages. After that, between noon and early afternoon, they bring the bags by foot or on bikes to the harvest center, where they are weighed and payed directly by weight and quality. The price is generally agreed at the start of the harvest and varies if there are more or less to pick. People are free to sell to the best offer or take home. The beans go then straight into special designed wooden fermentation boxes. The post harvest protocol was developed in 2003 and is mainly adapted to the size of the beans including slow sun drying.
Origin: Columbia, Arhuaco
Region/Farm: Sierra Nevada
Chocolate Makers Notes: Cashew nuttiness, hint of wine like tannic notes, full untamed.
About the Region/Farm: The Arhuacos are one of three indigenous groups that preserve the biodiversity sanctuary of the Sierra Nevada in Colombia. They believe that the balance of humanity is in the respect of all beings and the earth and that their territory, the Sierra Nevada, is the center of the universe. This community recently returned home after generations of land issues with colonizers and drug wars. Now, the Arhuacos derive their livelihoods mainly from sustainable agriculture including harvesting of native cacao deep in the jungle close to the Venezuelan border. Since 2009, Cacao Hunters has worked with the Arhuacos community of about 70 farmers to produce well-fermented, high quality cacao. In 2017, Cacao de Colombia handed management of the centralized fermentation and processing center over to the community to manage. Today, the Arhuacos farmers make 58% more income by selling wet cacao to their own processing center than dry to other buyers. For a community in which cacao is the main source of income for 9 out of 10 farmers, and where 73% of the people live below the Colombian poverty line, this increase in income makes a big difference in quality of life for families and furthers the sustainability of this incredible culture.
Region/Farm: Sierra Nevada
Chocolate Makers Notes: Cashew nuttiness, hint of wine like tannic notes, full untamed.
About the Region/Farm: The Arhuacos are one of three indigenous groups that preserve the biodiversity sanctuary of the Sierra Nevada in Colombia. They believe that the balance of humanity is in the respect of all beings and the earth and that their territory, the Sierra Nevada, is the center of the universe. This community recently returned home after generations of land issues with colonizers and drug wars. Now, the Arhuacos derive their livelihoods mainly from sustainable agriculture including harvesting of native cacao deep in the jungle close to the Venezuelan border. Since 2009, Cacao Hunters has worked with the Arhuacos community of about 70 farmers to produce well-fermented, high quality cacao. In 2017, Cacao de Colombia handed management of the centralized fermentation and processing center over to the community to manage. Today, the Arhuacos farmers make 58% more income by selling wet cacao to their own processing center than dry to other buyers. For a community in which cacao is the main source of income for 9 out of 10 farmers, and where 73% of the people live below the Colombian poverty line, this increase in income makes a big difference in quality of life for families and furthers the sustainability of this incredible culture.
ORIGIN: Dominican Republic
REGION/FARM: Reserva Zorzal
TYPE: Hispanola - Trinatario
CERTIFICATIONS: direct trade & certified organic by ceres
CHOCOLATE MAKER NOTES: Bittery deep chocolate with caramel, coffee berry, plum and rose overtones and heads to the finish line with some nuttiness and a nip of crisp green bell pepper. Some have noted a wisp of spearmint. This chocolate is pushing up against the civilized boundary and thinking about going rogue with a higher astringency followed by bitterness and a moderate acidity. Refining logs in at just below 20 microns which should be undetectable by the tongue yet grittiness is still perceived. Very interesting. This chocolate would be excellent paired with fresh melon.
ABOUT THE FARM/REGION/PEOPLE:
Our passions for cacao, wildlife conservation, and sustainable development unite at Reserva Zorzal — a 1,019 acre bird sanctuary and organic cacao farm in the northern mountain range of the Dominican Republic. As our farm grows, we continue to plant new varietals based on feedback from international leaders in the artisan chocolate market. In conjunction with our Zorzal estate beans, our Zorzal Comunitario beans are sourced from agricultural partnerships with a hand-picked group of farmers bordering the Zorzal reserve and bird sanctuary. Both Zorzal estate and Zorzal Comunitario cacao beans are fermented and dried at the Zorzal fermentorium in San Francisco de Macoris.
[John Nanci’s personal note:]
This is a cocoa bean you can feel really good about. Zorzal Cacao has a story that goes well beyond just being organic and direct trade. Reserva Zorzal has set aside 70% of its 1,019 acres as “forever wild”, devoted to the wintering grounds of Bicknell’s thrush, which of course benefits biodiversity and many other species. This rare and threatened bird breeds on remote mountaintops in the northeastern United States. Seeing or hearing one is a rare treat even for experienced birders, and its habitat in dense hemlock forests makes even getting the chance of seeing one or hearing its nasal trill the thrill of a lifetime. It winters in the DR, where it is called the Zorzal de Bicknells, in the dense cloud forest, and because its habitat is shrinking both in its wintering grounds and breeding grounds, cooperative efforts between conservation organizations in the United States and the DR are forging real progress in maintaining populations of this rare songbird.
REGION/FARM: Reserva Zorzal
TYPE: Hispanola - Trinatario
CERTIFICATIONS: direct trade & certified organic by ceres
CHOCOLATE MAKER NOTES: Bittery deep chocolate with caramel, coffee berry, plum and rose overtones and heads to the finish line with some nuttiness and a nip of crisp green bell pepper. Some have noted a wisp of spearmint. This chocolate is pushing up against the civilized boundary and thinking about going rogue with a higher astringency followed by bitterness and a moderate acidity. Refining logs in at just below 20 microns which should be undetectable by the tongue yet grittiness is still perceived. Very interesting. This chocolate would be excellent paired with fresh melon.
ABOUT THE FARM/REGION/PEOPLE:
Our passions for cacao, wildlife conservation, and sustainable development unite at Reserva Zorzal — a 1,019 acre bird sanctuary and organic cacao farm in the northern mountain range of the Dominican Republic. As our farm grows, we continue to plant new varietals based on feedback from international leaders in the artisan chocolate market. In conjunction with our Zorzal estate beans, our Zorzal Comunitario beans are sourced from agricultural partnerships with a hand-picked group of farmers bordering the Zorzal reserve and bird sanctuary. Both Zorzal estate and Zorzal Comunitario cacao beans are fermented and dried at the Zorzal fermentorium in San Francisco de Macoris.
[John Nanci’s personal note:]
This is a cocoa bean you can feel really good about. Zorzal Cacao has a story that goes well beyond just being organic and direct trade. Reserva Zorzal has set aside 70% of its 1,019 acres as “forever wild”, devoted to the wintering grounds of Bicknell’s thrush, which of course benefits biodiversity and many other species. This rare and threatened bird breeds on remote mountaintops in the northeastern United States. Seeing or hearing one is a rare treat even for experienced birders, and its habitat in dense hemlock forests makes even getting the chance of seeing one or hearing its nasal trill the thrill of a lifetime. It winters in the DR, where it is called the Zorzal de Bicknells, in the dense cloud forest, and because its habitat is shrinking both in its wintering grounds and breeding grounds, cooperative efforts between conservation organizations in the United States and the DR are forging real progress in maintaining populations of this rare songbird.
ORIGIN: Ecuador
REGION/FARM: Eco Cacao
TYPE: Heirloom Nacional
CERTIFICATIONS: Uncertified Organic
CHOCOLATE MAKER NOTES: Big Foghorn chocolate note with a goldenraisin finish and a sparkle of lemon acidity.
ABOUT THE FARM/REGION/PEOPLE:
Hails from the Esmeraldas coast. The farm is part of a producer co-operative called Eco Cacao, co-founded in 2006 by George Fletcher and the Ecuadorian permaculture and Seed Guardians Community (www.redsemillas.org), agrassroots network that works with
communities to preserve the bio-cultural diversity of the Ecuador. Gregory Landau, CEO of Terra Genesis International and founder of Nova Chocolate, began collaborating with Eco Cacao in 2006 with a strong vision: to support the local community in evolving their agricultural practices towards regenerative growing, and to create practices that also conserve the local Chocóan rainforest, an area of immense biodiversity. Now, Eco Cacao works to empower 80 farmers on 320 hectares dispersed across the Galera-San Francisco Peninsula, many of whom specialize in unique, high-quality varietals. Eco Cacao is part of a larger cooperative (UOPROCAE) which has a total of 1600 hectares.
The region of Esmeraldas, where Eco Cacao was founded, is rich with fine and aromatic varieties of cacao which often grow in biodiverse agroforestry systems. Eco Cacao grows ‘nacional complex’, a varietal that is a mix of EET clones from Ecuador’s nacional hybridization program. High quality varieties such as nacional, while prized for their aroma and flavor, are often challenged by poor yields and greater susceptibility to disease. As a result, producers in the region experience difficulty in achieving a meaningful livelihood from cacao, their primary cash crop. Without greater market appreciation for genetic diversity, flavor or conservation value, prices for these special varietals of cacao are often toolow to incentivize production.
REGION/FARM: Eco Cacao
TYPE: Heirloom Nacional
CERTIFICATIONS: Uncertified Organic
CHOCOLATE MAKER NOTES: Big Foghorn chocolate note with a goldenraisin finish and a sparkle of lemon acidity.
ABOUT THE FARM/REGION/PEOPLE:
Hails from the Esmeraldas coast. The farm is part of a producer co-operative called Eco Cacao, co-founded in 2006 by George Fletcher and the Ecuadorian permaculture and Seed Guardians Community (www.redsemillas.org), agrassroots network that works with
communities to preserve the bio-cultural diversity of the Ecuador. Gregory Landau, CEO of Terra Genesis International and founder of Nova Chocolate, began collaborating with Eco Cacao in 2006 with a strong vision: to support the local community in evolving their agricultural practices towards regenerative growing, and to create practices that also conserve the local Chocóan rainforest, an area of immense biodiversity. Now, Eco Cacao works to empower 80 farmers on 320 hectares dispersed across the Galera-San Francisco Peninsula, many of whom specialize in unique, high-quality varietals. Eco Cacao is part of a larger cooperative (UOPROCAE) which has a total of 1600 hectares.
The region of Esmeraldas, where Eco Cacao was founded, is rich with fine and aromatic varieties of cacao which often grow in biodiverse agroforestry systems. Eco Cacao grows ‘nacional complex’, a varietal that is a mix of EET clones from Ecuador’s nacional hybridization program. High quality varieties such as nacional, while prized for their aroma and flavor, are often challenged by poor yields and greater susceptibility to disease. As a result, producers in the region experience difficulty in achieving a meaningful livelihood from cacao, their primary cash crop. Without greater market appreciation for genetic diversity, flavor or conservation value, prices for these special varietals of cacao are often toolow to incentivize production.
ORIGIN: Ecuador
REGION/FARM: Fortaleza del Valle
TYPE: Nacional
CERTIFICATIONS: USDA organic, BIOSUISSE certified by ECOCERT, FAIRTRADE, and FLO-CERT, Direct Trade.
ABOUT: An organization of small farmers, Fortaleza del Valle was created in early 2006 and is currently comprised of four agricultural associations and more than 600 partners. Its main objective is to promote the production and marketing of Nacional Fino de Aroma Cacao both certified organic and fair trade and promoting the social, economic and environmental development of its members and families. At present we have an area of 17 hectares in agro-forestry systems that contribute to biodiversity conservation and the environment. Fortaleza del Valle produces "fine aroma" cacao, considered some of the best in the world and highly prized with the exquisite aroma and soft, floral flavors .
REGION/FARM: Fortaleza del Valle
TYPE: Nacional
CERTIFICATIONS: USDA organic, BIOSUISSE certified by ECOCERT, FAIRTRADE, and FLO-CERT, Direct Trade.
ABOUT: An organization of small farmers, Fortaleza del Valle was created in early 2006 and is currently comprised of four agricultural associations and more than 600 partners. Its main objective is to promote the production and marketing of Nacional Fino de Aroma Cacao both certified organic and fair trade and promoting the social, economic and environmental development of its members and families. At present we have an area of 17 hectares in agro-forestry systems that contribute to biodiversity conservation and the environment. Fortaleza del Valle produces "fine aroma" cacao, considered some of the best in the world and highly prized with the exquisite aroma and soft, floral flavors .
ORIGIN: Ecuador
REGION/FARM: Puerto Quito
TYPE: Nacional Arriba
CERTIFICATIONS: Organic, Heirloom, Direct Trade
CHOCOLATE MAKERS NOTE: Buttery, Sour Cherry, lasting coffee notes
ABOUT THE PEOPLE/FARM/REGION:
Asociación de Productores Agropecuarios Artesanal Nueva Esperanza (ASOANE) is an association of 25 producers of artisanal agriculture located in Puerto Quito, Ecuador. Cacao farming arrived to this region over 75 years ago with Nacional cacao brought in from the neighboring Los Rios Province –known not only for its complex flavor profile but its cohabitation with other plants and trees that promote habitats for midge pollinators, birds, and other animals.
Jose Meza and Barbara Wilson, of Mindo Chocolate Makers, work with the ASOANE farmers and provided the beans for submission of their Nacional variety cacao beans for Heirloom designation.
In 2018, ASOANE was awarded an HCP grant funded by the Lesley Family Foundation to support the preservation of their heirloom designated cacao. ASOANE evaluated their heirloom trees based on productivity, flavor and genetics and selected 9 trees for clonal propagation through grafting in their new nursery. With the support of HCP and the local municipality, ASOANE is now building new fermentation and drying infrastructure to assure the highest quality of heirloom Nacional cacao, bringing better prices and markets for ASOANE’s farmers.
While the majority of cacao tree producers are increasing the production of flavorless high-yielding chocolate for mass produced chocolate bars (containing high levels of sugar and added artificial flavors), HCP is striving to preserve the rich biodiversity of cacao trees in Ecuador. These Heirloom trees make balanced, unique, fine flavor chocolate possible for future generations to experience.
These beans known not only for its complex flavor profile but its cohabitation with other plants and trees that promote habitats for midge pollinators, birds, and other animals. The International Tasting Panel had high praise for the beans’ processing and found the chocolate made from them had rich and complex, but balanced caramel and nutty notes, followed by complex fruit and astringent notes with a long-lasting, velvety chocolate finish.
ORIGIN: Ecuador
REGION/FARM: Apovinces
TYPE:Nacional
CERTIFICATIONS: Direct Trade, Heirloom
CHOCOLATE MAKER NOTES: Deep chocolate, hazelnut, sour strawberry finish
ABOUT THE FARM/REGION/PEOPLE:
Vinces—heart of the historic Nacional estates of the 18th & 19th centuries. In 2006, with great optimism, a group of vinceños, small cultivators of the land decided to form an organization to boost clean agriculture, market production, provide training as key to improving farm productivity and the living conditions of farmers and their families. APOV stands for Vinces Organic Producers Association.
REGION/FARM: Apovinces
TYPE:Nacional
CERTIFICATIONS: Direct Trade, Heirloom
CHOCOLATE MAKER NOTES: Deep chocolate, hazelnut, sour strawberry finish
ABOUT THE FARM/REGION/PEOPLE:
Vinces—heart of the historic Nacional estates of the 18th & 19th centuries. In 2006, with great optimism, a group of vinceños, small cultivators of the land decided to form an organization to boost clean agriculture, market production, provide training as key to improving farm productivity and the living conditions of farmers and their families. APOV stands for Vinces Organic Producers Association.
ORIGIN: FIJI Nunokoloa, Rakiraki Province
REGION/FARM: Forestero
TYPE: Forestero Amelonado
CERTIFICATIONS: direct trade
CHOCOLATE MAKER NOTES: Rich and earthy, deep and dark (but not in a moody way); nicely balanced, and oh so chocolatey.
ABOUT THE FARM/REGION/PEOPLE:
Rakiraki is a district in Fiji Ra Province. It is located about halfway between Suva and Nadi when travelling along the Kings Road, on the northern coast of Viti Levu, Fiji’s largest island. Prominent landmarks include Navatu Rock in Vitawa village, believed to be one of Fiji’s oldest human settlements. Pottery excavated at the base of the rock has been dated to around 1000BC. The tomb of Ratu Udre Udre, a famous 19th century cannibal chief who reportedly consumed more than 800 of his victims, is close to the township of Vaileka Ra. The Ra province has several hundred small holder cocoa farmers interplanting with coconut.
REGION/FARM: Forestero
TYPE: Forestero Amelonado
CERTIFICATIONS: direct trade
CHOCOLATE MAKER NOTES: Rich and earthy, deep and dark (but not in a moody way); nicely balanced, and oh so chocolatey.
ABOUT THE FARM/REGION/PEOPLE:
Rakiraki is a district in Fiji Ra Province. It is located about halfway between Suva and Nadi when travelling along the Kings Road, on the northern coast of Viti Levu, Fiji’s largest island. Prominent landmarks include Navatu Rock in Vitawa village, believed to be one of Fiji’s oldest human settlements. Pottery excavated at the base of the rock has been dated to around 1000BC. The tomb of Ratu Udre Udre, a famous 19th century cannibal chief who reportedly consumed more than 800 of his victims, is close to the township of Vaileka Ra. The Ra province has several hundred small holder cocoa farmers interplanting with coconut.
Origin: Fiji
Region/Farm: Mataswalevu
Type: Forestero Amelanado
Certifications: Direct Trade
Chocolate Makers Notes: Full, creamy mouthfeel immediately followed by tart lemon pie puckeryness. Moves to deep chocolate and dried fruits. Lingers with a pleasant, soft bitter chocolate note.
About:
The Mataswalevu Cocoa Farm is located in Dreketi, Macuata, in the hills of Northern Fiji. It is one of the larger cacao farms in Fiji and started operations around 1979. The farm once covered an area of 400 acres but at present consists of approximately 100 acres of Forestero Amelonado cacao. Newer plantings planned are going to be newer Trindad Selected Hybrid (TSH) clones with higher yields, and disease resistance. The Matasawalevu farm has a well established reputation of producing quality cocoa and post-harvest processing operations closely follow traditional techniques.
About Dreketi:
Dreketi is located in the province of Macuata on Vanua Levu and is home to some of the poorest people on Fiji. Dreketi is a district in the comprising of 7 villages all of which are located within the mid reaches and the upper reaches of the Dreketi river and their tributaries. Populations living in these areas are almost wholly dependent on fishing and subsistence as well as rice farming for their livelihoods.The largest village located along the Dreketi river is Nabavatu village which is also the centre of traditional governance within the district. Dreketi has been a slow developing district compared to a number of other districts around Macuata
Region/Farm: Mataswalevu
Type: Forestero Amelanado
Certifications: Direct Trade
Chocolate Makers Notes: Full, creamy mouthfeel immediately followed by tart lemon pie puckeryness. Moves to deep chocolate and dried fruits. Lingers with a pleasant, soft bitter chocolate note.
About:
The Mataswalevu Cocoa Farm is located in Dreketi, Macuata, in the hills of Northern Fiji. It is one of the larger cacao farms in Fiji and started operations around 1979. The farm once covered an area of 400 acres but at present consists of approximately 100 acres of Forestero Amelonado cacao. Newer plantings planned are going to be newer Trindad Selected Hybrid (TSH) clones with higher yields, and disease resistance. The Matasawalevu farm has a well established reputation of producing quality cocoa and post-harvest processing operations closely follow traditional techniques.
About Dreketi:
Dreketi is located in the province of Macuata on Vanua Levu and is home to some of the poorest people on Fiji. Dreketi is a district in the comprising of 7 villages all of which are located within the mid reaches and the upper reaches of the Dreketi river and their tributaries. Populations living in these areas are almost wholly dependent on fishing and subsistence as well as rice farming for their livelihoods.The largest village located along the Dreketi river is Nabavatu village which is also the centre of traditional governance within the district. Dreketi has been a slow developing district compared to a number of other districts around Macuata
ORIGIN: Ghana
TYPE: Forestero
CERTIFICATIONS: Rain Forest Alliance
TYPE: Forestero
CERTIFICATIONS: Rain Forest Alliance
ORIGIN: Guatemala
REGION/FARM: Lachua
TYPE: Iquitos Dominant, Trinitario, Amelonado, Nacional
CERTIFICATIONS: Organic
CHOCOLATE MAKER NOTES: Honey, strawberries, coffee and...shooting stars! Approachable and kid friendly with bright notes - good intro to craft heirloom/fine flavor cacao for anyone new.
ABOUT THE FARM/REGION/PEOPLE:
Laguna Lachuá is a large pristine cenote lake deemed a national park in 1976 and a Ramsar site in 2006. The “Eco-region Lachuá” around the lake is home to Q’eqchi’ Maya families, many of whom live off grid and rely on production of cacao, honey, cardamom, corn and other crops for their livelihoods. Cacao farmers are organized into three certified organic community associations, ASODIRP, ASOSELNOR, and K’AT’BALPOM, each with its own fermentation and drying operation. Lachuá communities have planted over 245 hectares of new cacao since 2014 and improved financial literacy in cacao production through projects supported by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), FUNDALACHUA, and FundaSistemas, with the shared goal of protecting the Laguna and improving their quality of life.
REGION/FARM: Lachua
TYPE: Iquitos Dominant, Trinitario, Amelonado, Nacional
CERTIFICATIONS: Organic
CHOCOLATE MAKER NOTES: Honey, strawberries, coffee and...shooting stars! Approachable and kid friendly with bright notes - good intro to craft heirloom/fine flavor cacao for anyone new.
ABOUT THE FARM/REGION/PEOPLE:
Laguna Lachuá is a large pristine cenote lake deemed a national park in 1976 and a Ramsar site in 2006. The “Eco-region Lachuá” around the lake is home to Q’eqchi’ Maya families, many of whom live off grid and rely on production of cacao, honey, cardamom, corn and other crops for their livelihoods. Cacao farmers are organized into three certified organic community associations, ASODIRP, ASOSELNOR, and K’AT’BALPOM, each with its own fermentation and drying operation. Lachuá communities have planted over 245 hectares of new cacao since 2014 and improved financial literacy in cacao production through projects supported by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), FUNDALACHUA, and FundaSistemas, with the shared goal of protecting the Laguna and improving their quality of life.
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ORIGIN: Haiti
REGION/FARM: Askanya TYPE: Trinatario CERTIFICATIONS: Ethically and Sustainably Traded ABOUT: This cocoa hails from the Nord region in Northern Haiti, from Limonade and Grande Rivière du Nord. Currently this group works with approximately 500 farmers who average only 60 trees on a quarter hectare. Either whole pods or raw baba (the raw beans direct from the pod) are purchased from farmers and fermented centrally. The company is named after one of the founder’s German hometown “Aschersleben”. In its Latinized form “Ascania,” it connects to the ancient figure Ascanius. Just as Ascanius became the legendary King in Roman mythology, we are sure Askanya will become the Queen of chocolate in her new Caribbean home. |
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ORIGIN: Honduras
REGION/FARM: Wampusirpi
TYPE: Trinatario
CERTIFICATIONS: Uncertified direct trade, uncertified, organically grown and unfumigated
CHOCOLATE MAKER NOTES: Elegant and Smooth. Full chocolate flavor surprisingly lacking in bitterness and overt astringency for such a high %. This is Lauren Bacall in a long black gown.
ABOUT THE FARM/REGION/PEOPLE:
These beans are direct trade and organic. In the first case, that isn’t certifiable and in the second, in this case, they are not certified but organic nonetheless. These beans were sourced with care about the farmer and co-ops, premiums well above the market minimum were paid (nearly double in this case) and only the best beans were accepted. They come from a remote part of Honduras (two days by canoe) where there simply are no chemicals and they have never been used. In addition, these were shipped in and through customs with no fumigation and everything I can find about the Wampusirpi (goodness I love saying that name) district leads to the fact that the whole region is committed to organic. These are box fermented under the supervision of a local gentleman who has been doing so for the last two decades. Per his instruction the beans are checked and turned every four hours.
REGION/FARM: Wampusirpi
TYPE: Trinatario
CERTIFICATIONS: Uncertified direct trade, uncertified, organically grown and unfumigated
CHOCOLATE MAKER NOTES: Elegant and Smooth. Full chocolate flavor surprisingly lacking in bitterness and overt astringency for such a high %. This is Lauren Bacall in a long black gown.
ABOUT THE FARM/REGION/PEOPLE:
These beans are direct trade and organic. In the first case, that isn’t certifiable and in the second, in this case, they are not certified but organic nonetheless. These beans were sourced with care about the farmer and co-ops, premiums well above the market minimum were paid (nearly double in this case) and only the best beans were accepted. They come from a remote part of Honduras (two days by canoe) where there simply are no chemicals and they have never been used. In addition, these were shipped in and through customs with no fumigation and everything I can find about the Wampusirpi (goodness I love saying that name) district leads to the fact that the whole region is committed to organic. These are box fermented under the supervision of a local gentleman who has been doing so for the last two decades. Per his instruction the beans are checked and turned every four hours.
Origin: Madagascar
Region: Sambirano Valley
Type: Trinatario
Certifications: Organic
Akesson Single Estate Cacao from the Northern Ambanja region. Cocoa grower Bertil Akesson's father was a Swedish diplomat in Paris before starting a trading company and traveling the world. The family eventually settled in Madagascar in the 1970's and took over plantations on the island. Today, these plantations are controlled by Bertil himself in North West Madagascar where the plantations are divided into four smaller estates.
Region: Sambirano Valley
Type: Trinatario
Certifications: Organic
Akesson Single Estate Cacao from the Northern Ambanja region. Cocoa grower Bertil Akesson's father was a Swedish diplomat in Paris before starting a trading company and traveling the world. The family eventually settled in Madagascar in the 1970's and took over plantations on the island. Today, these plantations are controlled by Bertil himself in North West Madagascar where the plantations are divided into four smaller estates.
ORIGIN: Mexico
REGION: Chiapas, Sonconusco
TYPE: Trinatario
CERTIFICATIONS: Organic Uncertified
The Chiapanecan origin comes from Soconusco from a cooperative named Organizacion de Productores de Cacao Sostenible Rayen founded in 2016. The core "group" consists of around 30 members. With the help of the University they are devoted to the rescue of the heirloom varieties of local cacao under threat by the introduction of highly productive and pest-resistant "clones" as is the case in most cacao growing countries. They do so by researching the varieties already present in their lots (which can be over a hundred years old) and by propagating the ones that are more productive/tastier/healthier. Cacao in the region is typically a polyculture: in the cacao orchards you can find other fruits such as mamey, lemon, coconuts, pineapples, mangoes; timber-yielding trees (shade trees of the cacaos) like ceibas and cedars and tropical flower, amoung them hibiscus, ginger and heliconias. The cacao is organically grown, however not certified as such (too expensive).
Origin: Mexico
Region: Tabasco
Type: Almendra Blanca (White Almond)
Certifications: Direct Trade
Chocolate Makers Notes: Peanuts, almonds, & butterscotchy, oh my!
IAbout: This bean, reasonably delicate in nature, turns out a chocolate light brown resembling milk chocolate, hence the White Almond description. It is a very soft flavor, and lingers with a malty sweetness.
Almendra Blanca is a Mexican variety of cocoa, coming from the Chontalpa region in Tabasco Mexico. They come from around 30 farmers supported by Maxiterra’s Cocoa Program and based on Good Agricultural Practices (GAP), Sustainability and Fairtrade thru FAO’s Farmers Field Schools model (FFS).
REGION: Chiapas, Sonconusco
TYPE: Trinatario
CERTIFICATIONS: Organic Uncertified
The Chiapanecan origin comes from Soconusco from a cooperative named Organizacion de Productores de Cacao Sostenible Rayen founded in 2016. The core "group" consists of around 30 members. With the help of the University they are devoted to the rescue of the heirloom varieties of local cacao under threat by the introduction of highly productive and pest-resistant "clones" as is the case in most cacao growing countries. They do so by researching the varieties already present in their lots (which can be over a hundred years old) and by propagating the ones that are more productive/tastier/healthier. Cacao in the region is typically a polyculture: in the cacao orchards you can find other fruits such as mamey, lemon, coconuts, pineapples, mangoes; timber-yielding trees (shade trees of the cacaos) like ceibas and cedars and tropical flower, amoung them hibiscus, ginger and heliconias. The cacao is organically grown, however not certified as such (too expensive).
Origin: Mexico
Region: Tabasco
Type: Almendra Blanca (White Almond)
Certifications: Direct Trade
Chocolate Makers Notes: Peanuts, almonds, & butterscotchy, oh my!
IAbout: This bean, reasonably delicate in nature, turns out a chocolate light brown resembling milk chocolate, hence the White Almond description. It is a very soft flavor, and lingers with a malty sweetness.
Almendra Blanca is a Mexican variety of cocoa, coming from the Chontalpa region in Tabasco Mexico. They come from around 30 farmers supported by Maxiterra’s Cocoa Program and based on Good Agricultural Practices (GAP), Sustainability and Fairtrade thru FAO’s Farmers Field Schools model (FFS).
Origin: Mexico
Region: Tabasco, Chontalpa
Type: Mix of local varietals
Certifications: Direct Trade
Chocolate Makers Notes: Black forest cake - tart cherry.
Chontalpa Cocoa Beans are a mix of varieties of Criollo and Trinitario coming from the Chontalpa region in Tabasco Mexico from more than 3,500 small farms supported by Maxiterra’s Cocoa Program. Based on Good Agricultural Practices (GAP), Sustainability and Fairtrade thru FAO’s Farmers Field Schools model (FFS)
Process: Cocoa beans are fermented during 3-4 days (1+1+2) in wooden boxesand slowly sun dried to obtain 6.5%-7.5% moisture content.
Traceability: Every production batch or lot number is set on the daily income of raw cocoa coming from plantations, which contains details on farmer’s name and location, volume purchased and price paid, and general data on technical assistance, training and agricultural practices executed on every farm.
Region: Tabasco, Chontalpa
Type: Mix of local varietals
Certifications: Direct Trade
Chocolate Makers Notes: Black forest cake - tart cherry.
Chontalpa Cocoa Beans are a mix of varieties of Criollo and Trinitario coming from the Chontalpa region in Tabasco Mexico from more than 3,500 small farms supported by Maxiterra’s Cocoa Program. Based on Good Agricultural Practices (GAP), Sustainability and Fairtrade thru FAO’s Farmers Field Schools model (FFS)
Process: Cocoa beans are fermented during 3-4 days (1+1+2) in wooden boxesand slowly sun dried to obtain 6.5%-7.5% moisture content.
Traceability: Every production batch or lot number is set on the daily income of raw cocoa coming from plantations, which contains details on farmer’s name and location, volume purchased and price paid, and general data on technical assistance, training and agricultural practices executed on every farm.
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ORIGIN: Philippines
REGION/FARM: Malagos TYPE: Trinatario CERTIFICATIONS: direct trade, Malagos Chocolate Here, the rich soil and favorable climate throughout the year give us ideal conditions to produce our cacao beans. We grow Trinitario clones — a cross between the Criollo and Forastero varieties. The beans we grow are considered as fine flavor beans. These beans are manually harvested then fermented on the farm to further enhance naturally the complex flavor of cocoa. These carefully nurtured beans deserve to be handled using processes that preserve and bring out their best qualities. Our beans are dried in covered solar dryers to protect them from the rain and debris. The Puentespina’s venture into cacao growing started in 2003 when founders, Roberto and Charita Puentespina, leased a cacao farm in Malagos, Baguio District, Davao City. A farmer at heart, Charita Puentespina rehabilitated the trees and soon after harvested the cacao pods. She now operates a 24-hectare cacao farm in Malagos and employs around 80 in-house farmers both in Malagos and on cacao farms outside of the Malagos area. (These are farmers whose passion is farming but unfortunately do not have their own lands to till). The Puentespinas also built a training facility on the farm to teach farmers good cacao growing practices. They provide farm inputs & run an Extension Service to those who need further assistance. |
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Origin: Peru
Region: Maranon Canyon
Type: Pure Nacional
Pure Nacional, once thought to be extinct, has been rediscovered in Peru. Pure Nacional, with its complex fruit and floral flavors, once dominated the fine chocolate market worldwide. In 1916, diseases struck the Pure Nacional population in Ecuador and within three years 95% of the trees were destroyed. The prized chocolate was thought to be lost, until now. The chocolate has been rediscovered growing in Peru. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), the world’s foremost genetics laboratory for the DNA testing of cacao, confirmed this discovery and after two years of hard work chocolate is being produced from these precious plants.
Late in 2007, Dan Pearson and Brian Horsley were sourcing fruit in Peru’s Marañón Canyon when they discovered cacao trees growing on small isolated farms in a remote horseshoe-shaped canyon surrounded by 6,000-feet canyon walls. The trees were growing football-shaped pods filled with a rare mix of 40% white beans and 60% purple beans in the same pods, or in some cases, the pods were completely filled with white beans. Familiar with only purple beans, they were curious about the rare white beans and sent leaf samples to the USDA for testing. “When they called with genetic test results and asked, ‘Are you sitting down?’ I knew we had found something special,” said Pearson.
Dr. Lyndel Meinhardt, Lead Researcher and Dr. Dapeng Zhang, Lead Geneticist from the USDA Sustainable Perennial Crops Laboratory in Beltsville, Maryland, analyzed the genetic structure of the beans and found that they were Pure Nacional plants native to Peru. “The international cacao database has 5,300 entries. None are Pure Nacional with white beans. Cacao pods with 40% and 100% white Pure Nacional beans are an unprecedented discovery,” said Meinhardt. They tested random leaf samples from various trees throughout the Marañón Canyon and confirmed that the Pure Nacional plants were growing throughout the valley. Dapeng said, “We are excited about this confirmation. It means that these cacao trees were indigenous to Peru. They are not exotic introductions from somewhere else.”
The high canyon walls in the Marañón Canyon created a unique microclimate for the trees. The trees thrive at some of the highest altitudes ever reported for cacao, between 3,500 and 4,100 feet. Horsley lives with the farmers and worked with them to turn the unique cacao into chocolate. The beans needed to be transported first by foot, then burro, then motorcycle and finally by all-terrain vehicle. Horsley said, “The small farmers and I had to learn quality practices together. White beans must be fermented and dried differently than purple beans, but it is unknowable in advance which is which,” said Horsley. After two years, several site visits by fermenting and drying specialists, independent laboratory testing and 81 fermenting and drying trials, they found the answers to processing the rare beans and founded Marañón Chocolate.
Origin: Peru
Region: Oxapampa
Farm: Cacao Ecologico Fundo El Triumfo Palcazu
Type: Criollo/Trinatario
Chocolate Makers Notes: Sweet and creamy with bright tangy notes.
Region: Oxapampa
Farm: Cacao Ecologico Fundo El Triumfo Palcazu
Type: Criollo/Trinatario
Chocolate Makers Notes: Sweet and creamy with bright tangy notes.
Origin: Tanzania
Region/Farm: Kokoa Kamili
Type: Criollo/Trinatario
Certifications: Direct Trade, Kokoa Kamili Cooperative, Organic
Chocolate Makers Notes: Orangey, Lemon shortbread cookies finishing with a lingering soft bittering spice note.
About: Kokoa Kamili currently works with approximately 1,500 small shareholder farmers, most of whom farm between 0.5-2 acres of cocoa. Kokoa Kamili pays a premium--well above the market rate--to farmers for their ‘wet’ cocoa, and conducts its own fermentation and drying. By taking over the fermentation and drying process, Kokoa Kamili can produce more consistently higher quality cocoa beans. This method gives farmers a reduced workload, along with greater compensation, and the farmers are paid immediately after the cooperative receives its wet beans. The cocoa is fully box fermented in locally sourced and constructed eucalyptus three tier boxes. The typical fermentation length is 6 days with turns on days three and five. The beans are 100% sun-dried on raised drying tables.
The Area: The catchment area borders the Udzungwa Mountains National Park, an area known for its abundance of bird and mammal wildlife. It is most famous for the eleven different primate species, bird life, and is one of three remaining sites that support Savannah Elephants in a mountainous environment. Current estimates of 2,000 elephants reside in and around the Udzungwa area.
Social Impact: Prior to Kokoa Kamili’s Cooperative a single buyer dominated the area – the local arm of one of the world’s largest soft commodity trading houses. A sole buyer meant it had the power to set the price for cocoa, and farmers had little alternatives. Historically, farmers in the Kilombero Valley received some of the lowest prices for cocoa in the country. In Kokoa Kamili’s first year alone Kilombero farmers received the highest prices in Tanzania for their cocoa.
Region/Farm: Kokoa Kamili
Type: Criollo/Trinatario
Certifications: Direct Trade, Kokoa Kamili Cooperative, Organic
Chocolate Makers Notes: Orangey, Lemon shortbread cookies finishing with a lingering soft bittering spice note.
About: Kokoa Kamili currently works with approximately 1,500 small shareholder farmers, most of whom farm between 0.5-2 acres of cocoa. Kokoa Kamili pays a premium--well above the market rate--to farmers for their ‘wet’ cocoa, and conducts its own fermentation and drying. By taking over the fermentation and drying process, Kokoa Kamili can produce more consistently higher quality cocoa beans. This method gives farmers a reduced workload, along with greater compensation, and the farmers are paid immediately after the cooperative receives its wet beans. The cocoa is fully box fermented in locally sourced and constructed eucalyptus three tier boxes. The typical fermentation length is 6 days with turns on days three and five. The beans are 100% sun-dried on raised drying tables.
The Area: The catchment area borders the Udzungwa Mountains National Park, an area known for its abundance of bird and mammal wildlife. It is most famous for the eleven different primate species, bird life, and is one of three remaining sites that support Savannah Elephants in a mountainous environment. Current estimates of 2,000 elephants reside in and around the Udzungwa area.
Social Impact: Prior to Kokoa Kamili’s Cooperative a single buyer dominated the area – the local arm of one of the world’s largest soft commodity trading houses. A sole buyer meant it had the power to set the price for cocoa, and farmers had little alternatives. Historically, farmers in the Kilombero Valley received some of the lowest prices for cocoa in the country. In Kokoa Kamili’s first year alone Kilombero farmers received the highest prices in Tanzania for their cocoa.
ORIGIN: Uganda
REGION/FARM: Rwenzururu - Semuliki Forest
TYPE: Mostly Trinitario and Amelonado
CERTIFICATIONS: direct trade, uncertified organic
CHOCOLATE MAKER NOTES: Surprising panela-like sweetness with a clean and balanced brightness. Reminiscent lemon notes. Silky chocolate base and nuance of fresh rose petals with a lively and lasting finish. BTW, so far I'm the only one who notices rose petal - but then again, not many people eat roses.
ABOUT THE FARM/REGION/PEOPLE: The Rwenzururu sub-region of Uganda sits at 3,000 feet above sea level and borders the DR Congo, the Rwenzori Mountain range and Semuliki National Park. The climate is tropical with over 1,000mm of rainfall which typically occurs in 2 seasons, March to April and September to January. The region suffers from recurring conflict between cultural and rebel groups straddling the DR Congo border. Bundibugyo district likely accounts for more than 70% of cocoa production in Uganda.
The fermentation facility and store is located in a converted B&B in the village of Bumate at the base of the hills leading into the mountains. With a shortage of available land in the district, the site is designed to take advantage of all possible available sunshine while limiting runoff from heavy rainfall.
REGION/FARM: Rwenzururu - Semuliki Forest
TYPE: Mostly Trinitario and Amelonado
CERTIFICATIONS: direct trade, uncertified organic
CHOCOLATE MAKER NOTES: Surprising panela-like sweetness with a clean and balanced brightness. Reminiscent lemon notes. Silky chocolate base and nuance of fresh rose petals with a lively and lasting finish. BTW, so far I'm the only one who notices rose petal - but then again, not many people eat roses.
ABOUT THE FARM/REGION/PEOPLE: The Rwenzururu sub-region of Uganda sits at 3,000 feet above sea level and borders the DR Congo, the Rwenzori Mountain range and Semuliki National Park. The climate is tropical with over 1,000mm of rainfall which typically occurs in 2 seasons, March to April and September to January. The region suffers from recurring conflict between cultural and rebel groups straddling the DR Congo border. Bundibugyo district likely accounts for more than 70% of cocoa production in Uganda.
The fermentation facility and store is located in a converted B&B in the village of Bumate at the base of the hills leading into the mountains. With a shortage of available land in the district, the site is designed to take advantage of all possible available sunshine while limiting runoff from heavy rainfall.
ORIGIN: Vietnam
REGION/FARM: Mekong Delta - Tien Giang
TYPE: Trinatario
CERTIFICATIONS: direct trade, Marou
CHOCOLATE MAKER NOTES: caramel, raisin, sweet heirloom tomato, with nutty nibs. Rich and unusual - in a really good way.
Flavor note from chief taster Bruce, commenting after a moment of contemplation: “tastes like when you are riding your motorcycle through delta lowlands on a warm summer day and you ride through a warm pocket of air that smells like the soil and the water and the grasslands and trees; that’s what this chocolate tastes like.” indeed this chocolate comes from the Mekong Delta, grown among the coconut groves.
ABOUT MAROU
Marou was founded in 2011 to support the Vietnamese cacao industry and has been tremendously successful at putting Vietnamese cacao in the international spotlight with their line of bean-to-bar chocolates. Besides crafting award-winning chocolate, Marou works directly with family-owned cocoa farms across Vietnam to bring their fine cocoa to markets. They provide these farms with technical support and financial assistance, purchasing the cocoa well beyond Fair Trade cocoa prices. Marou sources from a variety of regions throughout Vietnam. In each region, they partner with cacao groups of 30-40 members. Each group has a leader who, besides having a farm of 2-3 hectares, also buys wet beans from the others in the group and ferments them in wooden boxes at their farm. Marou has a very hands on approach to quality control; each bag is tested at selection, and farmers received feedback and technical assistance throughout the harvest season.
CACAO IN VIETNAM
Cacao arrived in Vietnam in the late 19th century. It remained a small crop until about 15 years ago, when development organizations began encouraging the planting of seedlings in the Mekong Delta region. While this dramatically increased the amount of cacao grown in Vietnam, it still remains a tiny share of Vietnam’s agriculture compared to its massive rice, cashew, and coffee industries.
REGION/FARM: Mekong Delta - Tien Giang
TYPE: Trinatario
CERTIFICATIONS: direct trade, Marou
CHOCOLATE MAKER NOTES: caramel, raisin, sweet heirloom tomato, with nutty nibs. Rich and unusual - in a really good way.
Flavor note from chief taster Bruce, commenting after a moment of contemplation: “tastes like when you are riding your motorcycle through delta lowlands on a warm summer day and you ride through a warm pocket of air that smells like the soil and the water and the grasslands and trees; that’s what this chocolate tastes like.” indeed this chocolate comes from the Mekong Delta, grown among the coconut groves.
ABOUT MAROU
Marou was founded in 2011 to support the Vietnamese cacao industry and has been tremendously successful at putting Vietnamese cacao in the international spotlight with their line of bean-to-bar chocolates. Besides crafting award-winning chocolate, Marou works directly with family-owned cocoa farms across Vietnam to bring their fine cocoa to markets. They provide these farms with technical support and financial assistance, purchasing the cocoa well beyond Fair Trade cocoa prices. Marou sources from a variety of regions throughout Vietnam. In each region, they partner with cacao groups of 30-40 members. Each group has a leader who, besides having a farm of 2-3 hectares, also buys wet beans from the others in the group and ferments them in wooden boxes at their farm. Marou has a very hands on approach to quality control; each bag is tested at selection, and farmers received feedback and technical assistance throughout the harvest season.
CACAO IN VIETNAM
Cacao arrived in Vietnam in the late 19th century. It remained a small crop until about 15 years ago, when development organizations began encouraging the planting of seedlings in the Mekong Delta region. While this dramatically increased the amount of cacao grown in Vietnam, it still remains a tiny share of Vietnam’s agriculture compared to its massive rice, cashew, and coffee industries.
ORIGIN: Vietnam
REGION/FARM: Mekong Delta - Lam Dong
TYPE: Trinatario
CERTIFICATIONS: direct trade, Marou
From Marou: "ACT 1: FRANCE’S CHOCOLATE-COVERED FAILURE
French missionaries and luminaries brought cacao to Vietnam in the 19th century.
The famous Dr. Alexandre Yersin (disciple of Louis Pasteur, discoverer of the bubonic plague bacillus and formidable presence in Indochina until 1943) is said to have tried his hand at cacao farming Vietnam.
Let’s just say it might not have been his most successful enterprise. That or the records disappeared.
We know with a bit more certainty that a missionary, Father Gernot, planted cacao trees in Ben Tre in the late 1800s.
Administrative records from the early 20th century reveal the Lieutenant General rescinded subsidies to cacao farmers after just 17 years.
“It seems, effectively, useless to encourage this culture which has, until now, not yielded any satisfying result,” he noted in a decree dated January 24, 1907.
A few trees nevertheless remained in the Mekong Delta, where the fruit was mostly eaten fresh.
Without any significant investment or know-how, cacao remained a marginal product in Vietnam’s colonial days.
ACT 2: COCOA FOR THE USSR
The second act of the Vietnamese cacao story takes place in the bleak hours of the 1980s, when a meager trade with the USSR (and a few other Eastern Bloc states) kept the Vietnamese economy afloat. Soviet chocolate experts and their Cuban friends tried heir hand in Vietnam, but by the time the first cacao trees were yielding pods, the Berlin Wall had fallen and Russian buyers had vanished.
Once again, the farmers had no customers and cut back all but a handful of trees.
ACT 3: VIETNAM’S CACAO RENAISSANCE
Following the end of the US Embargo, International commodity traders, NGOs and foreign development programs (USAID’s Success Alliance program, in particular) saw Vietnam as a possible boon for the world’s growing chocolate appetite.
As wallets and waistlines grew in nearby China, corporate candymen hoped to cut significant cost by making MARS bars out of cacao pods grown in nearby Vietnam.
Academics like Dr Phuoc of the Nong Lam agricultural university helped create programs that supported the effort of small farmers in a number of provinces.
Government collectives threw the shrub everywhere to see what stuck. The idea, of course, was volume. Experts estimate that cultivation boomed with a peak at five-thousand tons in 2010 only to shrink as farmers turned to more lucrative crops like pepper or pomelo.
During that time, however, many of the country’s aging farmers saw cacao as a stable and promising alternative. They could inter-crop the shrub with coconut and other low-maintenance products. They could also earn extra money by harvesting, fermenting and drying their own beans.
Marou now works closely with farmers who are passionate about cacao, whose hard work is making Vietnam one of the most exciting new producers of cacao in the world.
In 2016 Vietnam was recognized as a fine-flavored origin for cacao seekers. Thanks, in no small part to the free advertising offered by Marou, cacao junkies began showing up in Vietnam looking for its distinct and spicy beans.
THE FUTURE?
Slowly but surely, Cacao cultivation is ticking up again in areas where it has managed to survive boom and bust.
It faces some formidable challenges.
Climate change has limited freshwater supplies in the Mekong Delta and created vicious cycles of drought and storm in the highlands. We’re experimenting now with a sustainable, low-impact crop grown inside a mountainous native forest.
As the first artisan chocolate maker based in Vietnam, we’re committed to finding a sustainable path forward for the farmers we now consider family."
REGION/FARM: Mekong Delta - Lam Dong
TYPE: Trinatario
CERTIFICATIONS: direct trade, Marou
From Marou: "ACT 1: FRANCE’S CHOCOLATE-COVERED FAILURE
French missionaries and luminaries brought cacao to Vietnam in the 19th century.
The famous Dr. Alexandre Yersin (disciple of Louis Pasteur, discoverer of the bubonic plague bacillus and formidable presence in Indochina until 1943) is said to have tried his hand at cacao farming Vietnam.
Let’s just say it might not have been his most successful enterprise. That or the records disappeared.
We know with a bit more certainty that a missionary, Father Gernot, planted cacao trees in Ben Tre in the late 1800s.
Administrative records from the early 20th century reveal the Lieutenant General rescinded subsidies to cacao farmers after just 17 years.
“It seems, effectively, useless to encourage this culture which has, until now, not yielded any satisfying result,” he noted in a decree dated January 24, 1907.
A few trees nevertheless remained in the Mekong Delta, where the fruit was mostly eaten fresh.
Without any significant investment or know-how, cacao remained a marginal product in Vietnam’s colonial days.
ACT 2: COCOA FOR THE USSR
The second act of the Vietnamese cacao story takes place in the bleak hours of the 1980s, when a meager trade with the USSR (and a few other Eastern Bloc states) kept the Vietnamese economy afloat. Soviet chocolate experts and their Cuban friends tried heir hand in Vietnam, but by the time the first cacao trees were yielding pods, the Berlin Wall had fallen and Russian buyers had vanished.
Once again, the farmers had no customers and cut back all but a handful of trees.
ACT 3: VIETNAM’S CACAO RENAISSANCE
Following the end of the US Embargo, International commodity traders, NGOs and foreign development programs (USAID’s Success Alliance program, in particular) saw Vietnam as a possible boon for the world’s growing chocolate appetite.
As wallets and waistlines grew in nearby China, corporate candymen hoped to cut significant cost by making MARS bars out of cacao pods grown in nearby Vietnam.
Academics like Dr Phuoc of the Nong Lam agricultural university helped create programs that supported the effort of small farmers in a number of provinces.
Government collectives threw the shrub everywhere to see what stuck. The idea, of course, was volume. Experts estimate that cultivation boomed with a peak at five-thousand tons in 2010 only to shrink as farmers turned to more lucrative crops like pepper or pomelo.
During that time, however, many of the country’s aging farmers saw cacao as a stable and promising alternative. They could inter-crop the shrub with coconut and other low-maintenance products. They could also earn extra money by harvesting, fermenting and drying their own beans.
Marou now works closely with farmers who are passionate about cacao, whose hard work is making Vietnam one of the most exciting new producers of cacao in the world.
In 2016 Vietnam was recognized as a fine-flavored origin for cacao seekers. Thanks, in no small part to the free advertising offered by Marou, cacao junkies began showing up in Vietnam looking for its distinct and spicy beans.
THE FUTURE?
Slowly but surely, Cacao cultivation is ticking up again in areas where it has managed to survive boom and bust.
It faces some formidable challenges.
Climate change has limited freshwater supplies in the Mekong Delta and created vicious cycles of drought and storm in the highlands. We’re experimenting now with a sustainable, low-impact crop grown inside a mountainous native forest.
As the first artisan chocolate maker based in Vietnam, we’re committed to finding a sustainable path forward for the farmers we now consider family."
