Fruit of the Cocoa Tree
Cocoa Pods
Cocoa trees begin to produce their first fruit at three to five years
of age. Cocoa trees produce football-shaped pods that contain
the seeds that will become cocoa beans. A shade-grown cocoa tree
can produce fruit for 75 to 100 years or more.
Cocoa Flowers
Tiny, intricate pink or whitish flowers grow along the trunk and main
branches of the cocoa tree. These flowers must be pollinated before
the tree can produce the pods that contain the seeds, or cocoa
beans. Tiny flies are the main natural pollinators, but less than five
percent of the flowers get pollinated. The cocoa farmer can also
pollinate the flowers by hand.
Varieties Of Cocoa Trees
There are two main types of cocoa, with thousands of variations
within these basic varieties, including some that have grown wild for
thousands of years.
Criollo : Sometimes called the prince of cocoas because it is a very high quality grade of cocoa with exceptional flavor and aroma. Less than 15 percent of the world's cocoa is Criollo, grown mainly in Central America and the Caribbean.
Forastero : A much more plentiful variety of high quality cocoa, representing most of the cocoa grown in the world. Grown mainly in Brazil and Africa, it is hardier, more productive (higher yielding) and easier to cultivate than Criollo and is used in just about every blend of chocolate that is made.
Trinitario : A third type of cocoa, Trinitario, originated in Trinidad. It is a cross between strains of the other two types.
Sustainable Cocoa Growing
Today, agricultural scientists are once again turning back to the original and more natural way of growing cocoa as a way to make cocoa production more consistently profitable for small farmers. This method, known as sustainable cocoa growing, lowers production costs for the farmer, stabilizes or even increases farm income and helps assure a rich and high quality supply of cocoa beans for generations to come.
Sustainable farming benefits the environment by minimizing impact on the rainforest environment. Sustainable farming relies on traditional methods rather than expensive chemicals and pesticides. And by integrating farming techniques with the natural ecosystem, farmers create more biodiversity and increase habitats for wildlife.
