Natural, organic chocolate from the tropical rain forest

Natural, organic chocolate from the tropical rain forest

Little is known about Bolivia’s small cocoa bean production or its potential for growth and genetic material. Most of the cocoa bean production is done by small farmers and is based on high-yielding hybrid plants that have been introduced in the country. Little or nothing has been done to promote “wild cocoa bean" production in the natural rain forest. Bolivia still has rich tropical forests (50% of the land) with cocoa plants that are part of the natural ecosystem. These forests are threatened by continuous deforestation from unplanned and uncontrolled timber enterprises. An objective of this project is to help preserve the remaining forest by consolidating markets for extractive natural forest products, such as cocoa beans and Brazil nuts. The wild cocoa beans from the forest are rich in fat content and have excellent aroma. The project is currently establishing new plots of cocoa bean production, using this natural forest variety of cocoa beans, in agroforestry systems that combine cocoa plants with medicinal, fruit and lumber producing trees. Therefore, the project has a strong reforestation component. Additionally, most cocoa production in the world has been affected by a disease called “witches’ broom". Interestingly enough, the wild cocoa variety that exists in Bolivia is very resistant to this disease.

This project is based on a “Genetic Improvement Plan for Wild Cocoa Production, Through Population Management", currently being designed in Bolivia by Dr. Martien Beek, PUM expert and specialist in cocoa from The Netherlands who is providing assistance to this project.

The project aims to raise the standard of living of at least 2,000 families of farmers and gatherers, organizing and strengthening cocoa growers’ associations, introducing organic production and establishing direct access to markets that pay higher premiums for good quality organic chocolate. This will be accomplished by establishing a processing plant that will purchase cocoa beans from the farmers at market values and will produce cocoa liquor, butter, powder and some end-user products such as energy bars produced with cocoa, brazil nut paste (a product recently developed by our company) and quinoa. This energy bar will be targeted to the celiac population of Europe, North and South America, since it will be gluten free.

The processing plant will be operated by our company and 30% of the shares will belong to the farmers. This plant can also be capitalized by a European partner through the PSOM program.