Have you ever had a delicious tasting chocolate bar, or even had a nice cup of hot cocoa on
a cold winter day? Have you ever wondered where your chocolate came from? Hi, my name
is David Gopaulchan, I'm a Research Fellow at University of Nottingham, and I'm interested
in understanding the fermentation of cocoa beans and finding ways to improve the flavour
and quality of chocolates.
Our story starts thousands of miles away, close to the equator.
Greetings from Columbia!
You see, cocoa is the principal ingredient used to make chocolate, and cocoa is made
from cocoa beans. The beans are the seeds from mature fruits of the cacao tree, a tropical
plant native to the Amazon rainforest. Over the centuries, humans have brought cocoa to
other continents, and today it is cultivated in many tropical countries close to the equator.
Most of our cocoa, about 70%, comes from West Africa with Ivory Coast and Ghana by far being
the two largest producers. But Latin America, the Caribbean, Asia and Oceania are also important
producing regions with around 5 million tons being produced globally each year. About five
to six million farmers grow cocoa with more than 90% of the world s cocoa beans being
grown and harvested on small, family-run farms.
Growing cocoa is no simple task. The cocoa tree is a delicate and sensitive plant. It
requires high rainfall and temperatures to grow, as well as shade trees to protect it
from too much light and damage caused by wind. Because the trees are so sensitive to these
conditions, they only grow best in tropical regions around the equator, where the climate
is suitable. Farmers must protect trees from wind and sun, fertilize the soil, and watch
for signs of disease or distress. With proper care, most cocoa trees can mature to bear
fruit by the fourth or fifth year after seedlings are planted, and this can continue for another
30 years. A typical pod contains 30 to 40 beans and a tree can produce about 30 pods
per year. Approximately 400 beans are required to make one pound of cocoa.
Most countries have two periods of peak harvest: a main harvest, and a smaller minor harvest.
When the fruits have ripened, the farmers use long-handled steel tools to reach
the pods and cut them without wounding the soft bark of the tree. The pods are then collected
and cracked open to extract the cocoa beans together with the creamy white, sweet mucilage
covering them, called the pulp.
After the beans have been removed from the pods, they are packed into boxes, baskets
or heaps and then covered with mats or banana leaves for up to seven days. During this time
the beans ferment, and many of the desirable flavour compounds are formed while undesirable
ones are broken down. This process has a huge impact on cocoa quality and taste. After fermentation
the beans are dried - usually by leaving them in the sun for seven days.
The dried beans are packed into sacks, and the farmer will sell their beans to a buying
station. The buyer transports the beans to warehouses, where the sacks are
inspected and stored. Once enough beans have been collected, usually from many different
trees and farms, they are shipped to a chocolate manufacturer.
Wow this is a lot of beans!
Cocoa is among the most important agricultural crops. However, unlike the large agribusiness
farm models that produce many of our major crops, cocoa farming remains a small, family
enterprise, much as it was 100 years ago. The challenges of low productivity, pests,
diseases and low farmer incomes, all limit the development of cocoa farming communities.
By giving farmers information to make better quality tasting beans, we will give them more
control over their harvest and ultimately their livelihoods.
The Future Food Beacon, exploring news ways of feeding the world.