The Origins of Cocoa
The story of chocolate begins in the lush tropical rainforests of Mesoamerica, present day Central and South America, where the Theobroma cacao tree first took root thousands of years ago. Theobroma is derived from Latin and means "food of the gods," a name that speaks to the reverence ancient cultures held for this extraordinary plant.
Archaeologists have found cacao residue in pottery used by the ancient Mayo-Chinchipe culture over 5,300 years ago in what is now southeastern Ecuador. The ancient Olmecs of southern Mexico are among the earliest civilizations known to have cultivated chocolate, as early as 1750 BC.
Chocolate Through the Ages
The Mayans embraced chocolate as a drink enjoyed by everyone regardless of class or status. They used cacao beans as currency and incorporated them into ritual ceremonies. The Aztecs took reverence for the cacao bean even further, considering cacao beans more valuable than gold.
According to legend, the Aztec emperor Montezuma II drank up to 50 cups of cacao each day from a golden chalice. Both the Aztecs and Mayans consumed their chocolate as a drink, adding chili pepper, allspice, vanilla and honey to create rich, complex beverages that bear little resemblance to the chocolate we know today.
Where Cocoa Grows Today
Cocoa Growing Regions of the World
The map below illustrates the distribution of cocoa production across the top 15 producing countries, showing harvest areas and sustainability compliance levels worldwide.
The Theobroma cacao tree grows exclusively in hot, humid climates near the equator, within 20 degrees on either side, in a region known as the Cacao Belt. The tree is extraordinarily delicate, and farmers lose an average of 30 percent of their crop each year to environmental factors.
Today, 70 percent of the world's cocoa comes from West Africa, with Cote d'Ivoire alone providing roughly 40 percent of the global supply. The world's top cocoa producing regions include:
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West Africa
Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana, Nigeria, Cameroon and Togo, home to an estimated 1.5 million cocoa farms -
South America
Ecuador, Brazil, Peru, Colombia and Venezuela, birthplace of the cacao tree and source of some of the world's finest single origin beans -
Central America and Caribbean
Mexico and the Dominican Republic, where ancient chocolate traditions remain alive -
Asia Pacific
Indonesia and Papua New Guinea, emerging sources of distinctive flavor profiles -
East Africa
Uganda, a growing producer of high quality cocoa
Worldwide, 40 to 50 million people depend on cocoa for their livelihood, the vast majority working on small, family-owned farms averaging just 7 to 10 acres.
From Bean to Bar, The Refining Process
Transforming a raw cacao pod into the sublime chocolate in our collection is a journey of extraordinary craft and precision. It takes two to four days to make a single chocolate bar, and up to 400 cocoa beans to make just one pound of chocolate. Here is the remarkable process:
Harvesting
Ripe cacao pods are harvested entirely by hand using a machete. The leathery skin of the pod turns from green to yellow as it ripens. Each pod contains an average of 30 cacao beans surrounded by a sweet, mucus-like white pulp.
Fermentation
The beans and pulp are covered with banana leaves and left to ferment for several days. Microorganisms digest the pulp and convert sugars into acids, reducing bitterness and developing the floral aromas that define great chocolate. The composition of chocolate contains over 200 different flavor compounds, many of which develop during fermentation.
Drying
After fermentation, beans are spread on wooden boards or bamboo mats and dried under the hot sun for 7 to 14 days, continuously raked and turned for even drying. Once dry, beans are packed and shipped to chocolate makers around the world.
Roasting
Upon arrival, beans are cleaned then roasted at low temperatures to develop flavor and aroma. A cascade of chemical reactions occurs between amino acids and sugars, creating the compounds responsible for chocolate's distinctive flavor and its deep, rich brown color.
Winnowing and Grinding
The roasted shells are cracked open to reveal cacao nibs, the pure meat of the bean. These nibs are ground into a thick paste called chocolate liquor. Under extreme pressure this paste yields two essential products, cocoa powder and cocoa butter.
Conching
The chocolate is continuously rolled, kneaded and aerated in a large agitator called a conche, designed by Rudolph Lindt, whose machine bed was curved like a conch shell. The longer the chocolate is conched, the smoother it becomes. This is where the final flavors are defined and refined.
Tempering and Moulding
The finished chocolate is carefully heated and cooled to stabilize cocoa butter crystals, a process called tempering. This gives chocolate its characteristic snap and shiny finish. The tempered chocolate is then poured into moulds, cooled and prepared for delivery to chocolatiers.
Extraordinary Facts About Cocoa
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It takes 400 cocoa beans
To make just one pound of chocolate -
Each cacao tree produces approximately 2,500 beans,
But a farmer must wait four to five years for a tree to produce its first beans -
Some cacao trees are over 200 years old,
Though most produce marketable beans for only their first 25 years -
Cacao beans were used as currency
By ancient Mesoamerican civilizations who considered them more valuable than gold -
Benjamin Franklin sold chocolate
In his print shop in Philadelphia -
Chocolate comes from a fruit tree,
It is made from a seed, not a nut or grain as many assume -
German chocolate cake was not from Germany,
It was named for Sam German, who developed a sweet bar for Baker's Chocolate