cocoa bean

Cocoa is a variant of cacao, likely due to confusion with the word coco.{{Sfn|Swanton|2024|p=23}} It is ultimately derived from kakaw(a), but whether that word originates in Nahuatl or a Mixe-Zoquean language is the subject of substantial linguistic debate.{{Sfn|Swanton|2024|p=23}}{{Sfn|Dakin|Wichmann|2000|p=56}}

The term cocoa beans originated in the 19th century; during the 18th century they were called chocolate nuts, cocoa nuts or just cocoa.{{sfn|Gay|2009|p=284}}

{{See also|History of chocolate|Montegrande (archaeological site)}}

File:Cacao Aztec Sculpture.jpg

File:Cocoa_bean_roasted2.jpg

The cacao tree is native to the Amazon rainforest. It was first domesticated at least 5,300 years ago, in equatorial South America from the Santa Ana-La Florida (SALF) site in what is present-day southeast Ecuador (Zamora-Chinchipe Province) by the Mayo-Chinchipe culture, before being introduced in Mesoamerica.{{Cite journal |last1=Zarrillo |first1=Sonia |last2=Gaikwad |first2=Nilesh |last3=Lanaud |first3=Claire |last4=Powis |first4=Terry |last5=Viot |first5=Christopher |last6=Lesur |first6=Isabelle |last7=Fouet |first7=Olivier |last8=Argout |first8=Xavier |last9=Guichoux |first9=Erwan |last10=Salin |first10=Franck |last11=Solorzano |first11=Rey Loor |last12=Bouchez |first12=Olivier |last13=Vignes |first13=Hélène |last14=Severts |first14=Patrick |last15=Hurtado |first15=Julio |display-authors=5 |date=29 October 2018 |title=The use and domestication of Theobroma cacao during the mid-Holocene in the upper Amazon |url=https://www.nature.com/articles/s41559-018-0697-x |journal=Nature Ecology & Evolution |language=en |volume=2 |issue=12 |pages=1879–1888 |doi=10.1038/s41559-018-0697-x |pmid=30374172 |bibcode=2018NatEE...2.1879Z |s2cid=53099825 |issn=2397-334X}}

More than 3,000 years ago, it was consumed by pre-Hispanic cultures along the Yucatán, including the Maya,{{Cite journal |last1=Scapagnini |first1=Giovanni |last2=Davinelli |first2=Sergio |last3=Di Renzo |first3=Laura |last4=Antonino |first4=de Lorenzo |last5=Olarte |first5=Hector Hugo |last6=Micali |first6=Giuseppe |last7=Cicero |first7=Arrigo F. |last8=Gonzalez |first8=Salvado |date=2014 |title=Cocoa bioactive compounds: significance and potential for the maintenance of skin health |url=https://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/document?repid=rep1&type=pdf&doi=e83d6baf70dcad1a078d0319e81d1ed2d6b35e73 |journal=Nutrients |volume=6 |issue=8 |pages=3203 |doi=10.3390/nu6083202 |doi-access=free |pmid=25116848 |pmc=4145303 |via=citeseerx.ist.psu.edu}} and as far back as Olmeca civilization{{Cite journal |last1=Powis |first1=Terry G. |last2=Hurst |first2=W. Jeffrey |last3=del Carmen Rodríguez |first3=María |last4=Ponciano |first4=Ortíz C. |last5=Blake |first5=Michael |last6=Cheetham |first6=David |last7=Coe |first7=Michael D. |last8=Hodgson |first8=John G. |date=2008 |title=The Origins of Cacao Use in Mesoamerica |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/23759545 |journal=Mexicon |volume=30 |issue=2 |pages=38 |jstor=23759545 |issn=0720-5988 }} in spiritual ceremonies.{{Cite book |last=Staller |first=John E. |url=https://www.academia.edu/download/30988013/Staller_Foodways_Ch02.PDF |title=Chapter 2: Ethnohistoric sources on foodways, feasts, and festivals in Mesoamerica |date=2010 |publisher=Springer |isbn=9781441904706 |location=New York |page=48 |language=en}}{{Cite journal |last1=Prufer |first1=Keith M. |last2=Hurst |first2=W. Jeffrey |date=2007 |title=Chocolate in the Underworld Space of Death: Cacao Seeds from an Early Classic Mortuary Cave |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/249874965 |journal=Ethnohistory |volume=54 |issue=2 |pages=2740 |doi=10.1215/00141801-2006-063 |via=Researchgate.net}} It also grows in the foothills of the Andes in the Amazon region and the Orinoco basins of South America, such as in Colombia and Venezuela.{{Cite journal |last1=González-Orozco |first1=Carlos E. |last2=Pesca |first2=Allende |date=2022-06-09 |title=Regionalization of Cacao (Theobroma cacao L.) in Colombia |journal=Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems |language=English |volume=6 |pages=1, 7, 9 |doi=10.3389/fsufs.2022.925800 |doi-access=free |issn=2571-581X}}{{Cite journal |last1=Gutiérrez Garcia |first1=Gustavo Adolfo |last2=Gutiérrez-Montes |first2=Isabel |last3=Suárez Salazar |first3=Juan Carlos |last4=Casanoves |first4=Fernando |last5=Gutiérrez Suárez |first5=David Ricardo |last6=Hernández-Núñez |first6=Héctor Eduardo |last7=Flora |first7=Cornelia Butler |last8=Sibelet |first8=Nicole |date=2024-11-22 |title=Contribution of local knowledge in cocoa (Theobroma cacao L.) to the well‑being of cocoa families in Colombia: a response from the relationship |journal=Agriculture and Human Values |language=en |doi=10.1007/s10460-024-10623-x |issn=1572-8366|doi-access=free }} Wild cacao still grows there.{{Cite journal |last1=González-Orozco |first1=Carlos E. |last2=Sánchez Galán |first2=Angela A. |last3=Ramos |first3=Pablo E. |last4=Yockteng |first4=Roxana |date=2020 |title=Exploring the diversity and distribution of crop wild relatives of cacao (Theobroma cacao L.) in Colombia |url=https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s10722-020-00960-1.pdf |journal=Genetic Resources and Crop Evolution |volume=67 |issue=8 |pages=2071 |doi=10.1007/s10722-020-00960-1 |via=Springer}}{{Cite journal |last1=Tezara |first1=Wilmer |last2=Urich |first2=Rosa |last3=Jaimez |first3=Ramón |last4=Coronel |first4=Ilsa |last5=Araque |first5=Osmary |last6=Azócar |first6=Carmen |last7=Chacón |first7=Iraima |date=September 2016 |title=Does Criollo cocoa have the same exophysiological characteristics as Forastero? |journal=Botanical Sciences |language=en |volume=94 |issue=3 |pages=563–574 |doi=10.17129/botsci.552 |issn=2007-4298|doi-access=free }}{{Cite journal |last1=Dias |first1=Luiz Antônio dos Santos |last2=Pontes Barriga |first2=Júlio |last3=Kageyama |first3=Paulo Yoshio |last4=Vasconcellos |first4=Caio Márcio |date=2003 |title=Variation and its distribution in wild cacao populations from the Brazilian Amazon |url=http://www.scielo.br/pdf/babt/v46n4/a03v46n4.pdf |journal=Brazilian Archives of Biology and Technology |volume=46 |issue=4 |pages=507–514 |doi=10.1590/S1516-89132003000400003 |via=web.archive.org |archive-date=30 October 2018 |access-date=23 December 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181030064433/http://www.scielo.br/pdf/babt/v46n4/a03v46n4.pdf |url-status=bot: unknown }} Its range may have been larger in the past; evidence of its wild range may be obscured by cultivation of the tree in these areas since long before the Spanish arrived.{{Cite journal |last1=Matheus |first1=Colli-Silva |last2=Richardson |first2=James Edward |last3=Figuerira |first3=Antonio |last4=Pirani |first4=José Rubens |date=2024 |title=Human influence on the distribution of cacao: insights from remote sensing and biogeography |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/378107621 |journal=Biodiversity and Conservation |volume=33 |issue=3 |pages=1015 |doi=10.1007/s10531-023-02777-7 |bibcode=2024BiCon..33.1009C |via=Researchgate.net|doi-access=free }}

As of 2018, evidence suggests that cacao was first domesticated in equatorial South America,{{Cite web | title = Jaén y la cultura Marañón | author = Roberto Ochoa | date = 19 November 2017 | publisher = Domingo semanal (La República) | location = Lima | url = https://larepublica.pe/domingo/1147164-montegrandey-la-cultura-maraNOn | access-date= 8 October 2018 | archive-date = 7 May 2018 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180507201718/https://larepublica.pe/domingo/1147164-montegrandey-la-cultura-maraNOn}} before being domesticated in Central America roughly 1,500 years later.{{Cite news |title=Sweet discovery pushes back the origins of chocolate: Researchers find cacao originated 1,500 years earlier than previously thought |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/10/181029130945.htm |access-date=13 November 2018 |work=ScienceDaily}} Artifacts found at Santa-Ana-La Florida, in Ecuador, indicate that the Mayo-Chinchipe people were cultivating cacao as long as 5,300 years ago. Chemical analysis of residue extracted from pottery excavated at an archaeological site at Puerto Escondido, in Honduras, indicates that cocoa products were first consumed there sometime between 1500 and 1400 BC. Evidence also indicates that, long before the flavor of the cacao seed (or bean) became popular, the sweet pulp of the chocolate fruit, used in making a fermented (5.34% alcohol) beverage, first drew attention to the plant in the Americas.{{cite web |url=http://www.penn.museum/press-releases/739-the-earliest-chocolate-drink-of-the-new-world.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130124095320/http://www.penn.museum/press-releases/739-the-earliest-chocolate-drink-of-the-new-world.html |archive-date=24 January 2013 |title=The Earliest Chocolate Drink of the New World |date=13 November 2007 |website=Penn Museum}}

The cocoa bean was a common currency throughout Mesoamerica before the Spanish conquest.{{rp|2}}The bean was utilized in pre-modern Latin America to purchase small items such as tamales and rabbit dinners. A greater quantity of cocoa beans was used to purchase turkey hens and other large items.{{Cite web |last1=Magazine |first1=Smithsonian |last2=Fiegl |first2=Amanda |title=A Brief History of Chocolate |url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/a-brief-history-of-chocolate-21860917/ |access-date=2024-11-06 |website=Smithsonian Magazine |language=en}}

Cacao trees grow in a limited geographical zone, of about 20° to the north and south of the Equator.{{Cite web |last=Scott |first=Michon |date=2016-02-10 |title=Climate & Chocolate {{!}} NOAA Climate.gov |url=https://www.climate.gov/news-features/climate-and/climate-chocolate |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160504005209/https://www.climate.gov/news-features/climate-and/climate-chocolate |archive-date=2016-05-04 |access-date=2024-12-26 |website=www.climate.gov |language=en}}{{Cite journal |last1=Lahive |first1=Fiona |last2=Hadley |first2=Paul |last3=Daymond |first3=Andrew J. |date=2019 |title=The physiological responses of cacao to the environment and the implications for climate change resilience: A review |url=https://climatescience.ru/uploads/pubs/3/3d/3da/3da9b74bcea86ddf2b731d7b6080d028.pdf |journal=Agronomy for Sustainable Development |volume=39 |issue=1 |page=5 |doi=10.1007/s13593-018-0552-0 |bibcode=2019AgSD...39....5L |via=Climate Science}} More than 70% of the world's cacao crop is grown in Africa, with Ivory Coast and Ghana producing approximately 58% of global production.{{Cite web |date=2023-11-30 |title=International Cocoa Organization: Production of Cocoa Beans |url=https://www.icco.org/wp-content/uploads/Production_QBCS-XLIX-No.-4.pdf |access-date=2024-12-26 |website=International Cocoa Organization}}{{Cite journal |last1=Cartas |first1=José |last2=Alvarenga |first2=Nuno |last3=Partidário |first3=Ana |last4=Lageiro |first4=Manuela |last5=Roseiro |first5=Cristina |last6=Gonçalves |first6=Helena |last7=Leitão |first7=António Eduardo |last8=Ribeiro |first8=Carlos Marques |last9=Dias |first9=João |date=2024-10-01 |title=Influence of geographical origin in the physical and bioactive parameters of single origin dark chocolate |journal=European Food Research and Technology |language=en |volume=250 |issue=10 |pages=2569 |doi=10.1007/s00217-024-04558-0 |issn=1438-2385 |doi-access=free }} The cacao plant was first given its botanical name by Swedish natural scientist Carl Linnaeus in his original classification of the plant kingdom, where he called it Theobroma ("food of the gods") cacao.{{Cite book |last1=Colombo |first1=Maria Laura |url=https://nzdr.ru/data/media/biblio/kolxoz/B/BH/Paoletti%20R.,%20et%20al.%20(eds.)%20Chocolate%20and%20health%20(Springer,%202011)(ISBN%209788847020375)(O)(164s)_BH_.pdf#page=52 |title=Chocolate and Health |last2=Pinorini-Godly |first2=Maria Teresa |last3=Conti |first3=Ario |date=2012 |publisher=Springer |isbn=9788847020382 |location=Milano, Italy |page=42 |chapter=4: Botany and Pharmacognosy of the Cacao Tree}}

Cocoa was an important commodity in pre-Columbian Mesoamerica.{{Cite journal |last1=Dillinger |first1=Teresa L. |last2=Barriga |first2=Patricia |last3=Escárcega |first3=Sylvia |last4=Jimenez |first4=Martha |last5=Lowe |first5=Diana Salazar |last6=Grivetti |first6=Louis E. |date=1 August 2000 |title=Food of the Gods: Cure for Humanity? A Cultural History of the Medicinal and Ritual Use of Chocolate |journal=The Journal of Nutrition |volume=130 |issue=8 |pages=2057S–2072S |doi=10.1093/jn/130.8.2057S |pmid=10917925 |doi-access=free}} A Spanish soldier who was on Hernan Cortés' side during the conquest of the Aztec Empire tells that when Moctezuma II, emperor of the Aztecs, dined, he took no other beverage than chocolate, served in a golden goblet. Flavored with vanilla or other spices, his chocolate was whipped into a froth that dissolved in the mouth. No fewer than 60 portions each day reportedly may have been consumed by Moctezuma II, and 2,000 more by the nobles of his court.Díaz del Castillo, Bernal (2005) [1632]. Historia verdadera de la conquista de la Nueva España. Felipe Castro Gutiérrez (Introduction). Mexico: Editores Mexicanos Unidos, S.A. {{ISBN|968-15-0863-7}}. {{OCLC|34997012}}

Chocolate was introduced to Europe by the Spaniards, and became a popular beverage by the mid-17th century.{{cite web |title=Chocolate History Time Line |url=http://www.chocolatemonthclub.com/chocolatehistory.htm |access-date=8 November 2007}} Venezuela became the largest producer of cocoa beans in the world.{{cite web | url=https://publishing.cdlib.org/ucpressebooks/view?docId=ft5r29n9wb&chunk.id=d0e1249&toc.depth=1&toc.id=d0e167&brand=ucpress | title=The Colonial Elite of Early Caracas }} Spaniards also introduced the cacao tree into the West Indies and the Philippines.{{cite web |title=The Philippine 2020 Cacao Challenge|url=http://cidami.org/philippine-2020-challenge/ |website=Cacao Industry Development Association of Mindanao |access-date=13 February 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170213164710/http://www.cidami.org/philippine-2020-challenge/ |archive-date=13 February 2017 |url-status=dead}} It was also introduced into the rest of Asia, South Asia and into West Africa by Europeans. In the Gold Coast, modern Ghana, cacao was introduced by a Ghanaian, Tetteh Quarshie.

{{Main|Types of cocoa beans}}

File:Tres variedades de cacao.jpg

Cocoa beans are traditionally classified into three main varieties: Forastero, Criollo and Trinitario. Use of these terms has changed across different contexts and times, and recent genetic research has found that the categories of Forastero and Trinitario are better understood as geohistorical inventions rather than as having a botanical basis. They are still used frequently in marketing material.{{Sfn|Leissle|2018|p=163}} Criollo has traditionally been the most prized variety. Believed to have been native to South America, by the time of the Spanish conquest they were grown in Mesoamerica.{{Sfn|Leissle|2018|p=164}} After European colonization, disease and population decrease led to the Spanish and Portuguese using different cacao varieties from South America. Different from the Criollo beans, these new beans were named Forastero, which can be translated as strange or foreign. They are generally of the Amelonado type and are associated with West Africa.{{Sfn|Leissle|2018|p=164}} Trinitario refers to any hybrid between Criollo and Forastero.{{Sfn|Leissle|2018|p=164}}

A cocoa pod (fruit) is about {{convert|17|to|20|cm|in|abbr=on}} long and has a rough, leathery rind about {{convert|2|to|3|cm|in|abbr=on}} thick (varying with the origin and variety of pod) filled with sweet, mucilaginous pulp (called baba de cacao in South America) with a lemonade-like taste enclosing 30 to 50 large seeds that are fairly soft and a pale lavender to dark brownish purple color.{{Cite journal |last1=Cerri |first1=Martina |last2=Reale |first2=Lara |last3=Zadra |first3=Claudia |date=2019-12-05 |title=Metabolite Storage in Theobroma cacao L. Seed: Cyto-Histological and Phytochemical Analyses |journal=Frontiers in Plant Science |language=English |volume=10 |page=1599 |doi=10.3389/fpls.2019.01599 |doi-access=free |pmid=31921248 |pmc=6915049 |issn=1664-462X}}

During harvest, the pods are opened, the seeds are kept, and the empty pods are discarded and the pulp made into juice. The seeds are placed where they can ferment. Due to heat buildup in the fermentation process, cacao beans lose most of the purplish hue and become mostly brown in color, with an adhered skin which includes the dried remains of the fruity pulp. This skin is released easily by winnowing after roasting. White seeds are found in some rare varieties, usually mixed with purples, and are considered of higher value.{{cite news |last=Fabricant |first=Florence

|date=11 January 2011 |title=Rare Cacao Beans Discovered in Peru |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/12/dining/12chocolate.html |newspaper=The New York Times |access-date=1 February 2014}}{{cite book |title=The manufacture of chocolate and other cacao preparations |first=Paul |last=Zipperer |edition=3rd |publisher=Verlag von M. Krayn |location=Berlin |year=1902 |page=14 |quote=white cacao, ... Ecuador ... rare ... In Trinidad also |url=https://archive.org/details/manufactureofcho00zipp

}}

File:Ateh Eldeno harvesting coacoa.jpg

Cacao trees grow in hot, rainy tropical areas within 20° of latitude from the Equator. Cocoa harvest is not restricted to one period per year and a harvest typically occurs over several months. In fact, in many countries, cocoa can be harvested at any time of the year. Pesticides are often applied to the trees to combat capsid bugs, and fungicides to fight black pod disease.

Immature cocoa pods have a variety of colours, but most often are green, red, or purple, and as they mature, their colour tends towards yellow or orange, particularly in the creases.{{cite book |last1=Wood |first1=G. A. R. |last2=Lass |first2=R. A. |title=Cocoa |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=urs9QCMKOw4C&q=ripe%20colour&pg=PA25 |edition=4th |series=Tropical agriculture serie |year=2001 |publisher=John Wiley and Sons |isbn=978-0-632-06398-7}}{{cite book |last1=Hui |first1=Yiu H. |title=Handbook of food science, technology, and engineering |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rTjysvUxB8wC&q=ripe%20cacao%20pod&pg=PA22 |volume=4 |year=2006 |publisher=CRC Press |isbn=978-0-8493-9849-0}} Unlike most fruiting trees, the cacao pod grows directly from the trunk or large branch of a tree rather than from the end of a branch, similar to jackfruit. This makes harvesting by hand easier as most of the pods will not be up in the higher branches. The pods on a tree do not ripen together; harvesting needs to be done periodically through the year. Harvesting occurs between three and four times weekly during the harvest season. The ripe and near-ripe pods, as judged by their colour, are harvested from the trunk and branches of the cacao tree with a curved knife on a long pole. Care must be used when cutting the stem of the pod to avoid damaging the junction of the stem with the tree, as this is where future flowers and pods will emerge.{{cite book |last=Dand |first=Robin |title=The international cocoa trade |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pj5Y3YpAoFUC&pg=PA51 |edition=2nd |year=1999 |publisher=Woodhead Publishing |isbn=978-1-85573-434-0}} One person can harvest an estimated 650 pods per day.{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Rw-NW5EFTs0C&q=ripe%20cocoa%20pods%20harvest&pg=PA11 |title=Labor practices in the cocoa sector of Ghana with a special focus on the role of children |first1=Olivia |last1=Abenyega |first2=James |last2=Gockowski |name-list-style= amp |publisher= International Institute of Tropical Agriculture |year= 2003 |isbn= 978-978-131-218-2 |pages= 10–11}}{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=E2x5hlVlaUUC&q=ripe%20cocoa%20pods%20harvest&pg=PA12 |title=Labor practices in the cocoa sector of southwest Nigeria with a focus on the role of children |first1=J. |last1=Gockowski |first2= S. |last2=Oduwole |publisher= International Institute of Tropical Agriculture |year= 2003 |isbn= 978-978-131-215-1 |pages= 11–15}}

File:Cacao Beans Drying.JPG

The harvested pods are opened, typically with a machete, to expose the beans. The pulp and cocoa seeds are removed and the rind is discarded. The pulp and seeds are then piled in heaps, placed in bins, or laid out on grates for several days. During this time, the seeds and pulp undergo "sweating", where the thick pulp liquefies as it ferments. The fermented pulp trickles away, leaving cocoa seeds behind to be collected. Sweating is important for the quality of the beans,{{cite web |url=http://www.confectionerynews.com/R-D/Chocolate-finds-a-new-friend-in-yeast |title=Yeasts key for cacao bean fermentation and chocolate quality |date=15 May 2013 |publisher=Confectionery News |access-date=2 February 2014}} which originally have a strong, bitter taste. If sweating is interrupted, the resulting cocoa may be ruined; if underdone, the cocoa seed maintains a flavor similar to raw potatoes and becomes susceptible to mildew. Some cocoa-producing countries distill alcoholic spirits using the liquefied pulp.{{cite web |url=http://www.icco.org/faq/52-by-products/115-products-that-can-be-made-from-cocoa.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121004032513/http://www.icco.org/faq/52-by-products/115-products-that-can-be-made-from-cocoa.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=4 October 2012 |title=FAQ : Products that can be made from cocoa |publisher=International Cocoa Organization |access-date=31 January 2014}}

A typical pod contains 30 to 40 beans and about 400 dried beans are required to make {{convert|1|lb|g}} of chocolate. Cocoa pods weigh an average of {{convert|400|g|oz|abbr=on}} and each one yields {{convert|35|to|40|g|oz|1|abbr=on}} dried beans; this yield is 9–10% of the total weight in the pod. One person can separate the beans from about 2000 pods per day.

File:Medium close up image of David Kebu Jnr holding cocoa beans drying in the sun. (10703178735).jpg

The wet beans are then transported to a facility so they can be fermented and dried. The farmer packs them into boxes or heaps them into piles, then covers them with mats or banana leaves for three to seven days.{{Cite web|url=https://www.cocoalife.org/in-the-cocoa-origins|title=Cocoa Life – A story on Farming – Cocoa Growing|website= Cocoa Life |access-date=7 March 2018}} Finally, the beans are trodden and shuffled about (often using bare human feet) and sometimes, during this process, red clay mixed with water is sprinkled over the beans to obtain a finer color, polish, and protection against molds during shipment to factories in other countries. Drying in the sun is preferable to drying by artificial means, as no extraneous flavors such as smoke or oil are introduced which might otherwise taint the flavor.{{cn|date=September 2024}}

The beans should be dry for shipment, which is usually by sea. Traditionally exported in jute bags, over the last decade, beans are increasingly shipped in "mega-bulk" parcels of several thousand tonnes at a time on ships, or standardized to {{convert|62.5|kg}} per bag and 200 ({{convert|12.5|MT}}) or 240 ({{convert|15|MT}}) bags per {{convert|20|ft|m}} container. Shipping in bulk significantly reduces handling costs. Shipment in bags, either in a ship's hold or in containers, is still common.{{cn|date=September 2024}}

Throughout Mesoamerica where they are native, cocoa beans are used for a variety of foods. The harvested and fermented beans may be ground to order at tiendas de chocolate, or chocolate mills. At these mills, the cocoa can be mixed with a variety of ingredients such as cinnamon, chili peppers, almonds, vanilla, and other spices to create drinking chocolate.{{cite news |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2009/04/mexican-chocolate-rustic-stronger-better/9901/ |first=Alex |last=Whitmore |title=Mexican Chocolate: Rustic, Stronger, Better |date=10 April 2009 |work=The Atlantic}} The ground cocoa is also an important ingredient in tejate.{{Cite Journal |last1=Pérez-Ramírez|first1=Iza F|last2=Carino-Sarabia|first2=Adriana |last3=Castaño-Tostado|first3=Eduardo |last4=Vázquez-Landaverde|first4=Pedro A. |last5=Ramos-Gómez|first5=Minerva |last6=Reynoso-Camacho|first6=Rosalia |last7=Amaya-Llano|first7=Silvia L.|date=2021 |title=Chemical and sensorial characterization of Tejate, a Mexican traditional maize-cocoa beverage, and improvement of its nutritional value by protein addition |journal=Journal of Food Science and Technology |language=en |volume=58 |pages=3548-3560 |doi=10.1007/s13197-021-05073-w }}

{{Main|Children in cocoa production}}

File:Chuao 003.JPG

The first allegations that child slavery is used in cocoa production appeared in 1998.{{cite news |first1=Sudarsan |last1=Raghavan |first2=Sumana |last2=Chatterjee |title= Slaves feed world's taste for chocolate: Captives common in cocoa farms of Africa |work= Milwaukee Journal Sentinel |date= 24 June 2001 |url= http://www2.jsonline.com/news/nat/jun01/slave24r062301.asp |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20060917014323/http://vision.ucsd.edu/~kbranson/stopchocolateslavery/atasteofslavery.html| archive-date = 17 September 2006 |access-date= 25 April 2012}} In late 2000, a BBC documentary reported the use of enslaved children in the production of cocoa in West Africa.{{cite web |title = Combating Child Labour in Cocoa Growing |publisher = International Labour Organization |year= 2005 |url= http://www.ilo.org/public//english//standards/ipec/themes/cocoa/download/2005_02_cl_cocoa.pdf |access-date= 26 April 2012 |url-status= dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20050525122715/http://www.ilo.org/public//english//standards/ipec/themes/cocoa/download/2005_02_cl_cocoa.pdf |archive-date= 25 May 2005}}{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=i2WeACR-WIYC&pg=PA98 |title= Naked Chocolate: The Astonishing Truth about the World's Greatest Food |first1= David |last1=Wolfe |author2= Shazzie |name-list-style= amp |publisher= North Atlantic Books |year= 2005 |page= 98 |isbn= 978-1-55643-731-1 |access-date = 15 December 2011}} Other media followed by reporting widespread child slavery and child trafficking in the production of cocoa.{{cite news |first= Humphrey |last=Hawksley |author-link = Humphrey Hawksley |title= Mali's children in chocolate slavery |work= BBC News |url= http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/1272522.stm |date= 12 April 2001 |access-date= 2 January 2010}}{{cite news |first= Humphrey |last=Hawksley |author-link = Humphrey Hawksley |url= http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/1311982.stm |title= Ivory Coast accuses chocolate companies |work= BBC News |date= 4 May 2001 |access-date= 4 August 2010}}

The cocoa industry was accused of profiting from child slavery and trafficking.{{cite web |url= http://childlabor-payson.org/Final%20Fourth%20Annual%20Report.pdf |title= Fourth Annual Report: Oversight of Public and Private Initiatives to Eliminate the Worst Forms of Child Labor in the Cocoa Sector of Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana |author= Payson Center for International Development and Technology Transfer |publisher= Tulane University |page= 26 |date= 30 September 2010 |access-date= 23 April 2012 |url-status= dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120319080151/http://childlabor-payson.org/Final%20Fourth%20Annual%20Report.pdf |archive-date= 19 March 2012}} The Harkin–Engel Protocol is an effort to end these practices.{{cite web|url=http://www.cocoainitiative.org/images/stories/pdf/harkin%20engel%20protocol.pdf |title=Protocol for the growing and processing of cocoa beans and their derivative products in a manner that complies with ILO Convention 182 concerning the prohibition and immediate action for the elimination of the worst forms of child labor |publisher=International Cocoa Initiative |year=2001 |access-date=25 April 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080724105142/http://www.cocoainitiative.org/images/stories/pdf/harkin%20engel%20protocol.pdf |archive-date=24 July 2008}} In 2001, it was signed and witnessed by the heads of eight major chocolate companies, US senators Tom Harkin and Herb Kohl, US Representative Eliot Engel, the ambassador of the Ivory Coast, the director of the International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labor, and others. It has, however, been criticized by some groups including the International Labor Rights Forum as an industry initiative which falls short, as the goal to eliminate the "worst forms of child labor" from cocoa production by 2005 was not reached.{{cite news |url= http://thecnnfreedomproject.blogs.cnn.com/2011/09/19/the-human-cost-of-chocolate/ |title= The Human Cost of Chocolate |first= Tricia |last= Escobedo |publisher= CNN |date= 19 September 2011 |access-date= 28 April 2012 |archive-date= 22 March 2012 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120322072304/http://thecnnfreedomproject.blogs.cnn.com/2011/09/19/the-human-cost-of-chocolate/ |url-status= dead }}{{cite news |url=http://www.khaleejtimes.com/Displayarticle09.asp?section=diversions&xfile=data/diversions/2012/February/diversions_February12.xml |title=The bitter truth |first=Karen Ann |last=Monsy |newspaper=Khaleej Times |date=24 February 2012 |access-date=28 April 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120415005849/http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticle09.asp?xfile=data%2Fdiversions%2F2012%2FFebruary%2Fdiversions_February12.xml§ion=diversions |archive-date=15 April 2012}}{{cite web |url= http://www.childlabor-payson.org/Tulane%20Final%20Report.pdf |title= Oversight of Public and Private Initiatives to Eliminate the Worst Forms of Child Labor in the Cocoa Sector of Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana |date=31 March 2011 |access-date= 26 April 2012 |author=Payson Center for International Development and Technology Transfer |publisher=Tulane University |pages=7–12 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120412194832/http://childlabor-payson.org/Tulane%20Final%20Report.pdf |archive-date= 12 April 2012}}{{Cite web|title=Harkin Engel Protocol |url=https://www.slavefreechocolate.org/harkin-engel-protocol |access-date=17 May 2021|website=Slave Free Chocolate}} The deadline was extended multiple times and the goal changed to a 70% child labor reduction.{{Cite web|title=The human cost of chocolate |url=https://thecnnfreedomproject.blogs.cnn.com/2011/09/19/the-human-cost-of-chocolate/|access-date=17 May 2021 |archive-date=17 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210517184357/https://thecnnfreedomproject.blogs.cnn.com/2011/09/19/the-human-cost-of-chocolate/|url-status=dead}}{{Cite web |date=13 August 2013 |title=Human Rights and Child Labour |url=https://makechocolatefair.org/issues/human-rights-and-child-labour |access-date=17 May 2021 |website=Make Chocolate Fair!}}

Child labour was growing in some West African countries in 2008–09 when it was estimated that 819,921 children worked on cocoa farms in Ivory Coast alone; by 2013–14, the number went up to 1,303,009. During the same period in Ghana, the estimated number of children working on cocoa farms was 957,398 children.{{Cite web|url=http://www.childlaborcocoa.org/images/Payson_Reports/Tulane%20University%20-%20Survey%20Research%20on%20Child%20Labor%20in%20the%20Cocoa%20Sector%20-%2030%20July%202015.pdf|title=Final Report 2013/14 Survey Research on Child Labor in West African Cocoa Growing Areas Tulane University Louisiana|date=30 July 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171221042021/http://www.childlaborcocoa.org/images/Payson_Reports/Tulane%20University%20-%20Survey%20Research%20on%20Child%20Labor%20in%20the%20Cocoa%20Sector%20-%2030%20July%202015.pdf |archive-date=21 December 2017|url-status=dead}}

The 2010 documentary The Dark Side of Chocolate revealed that children smuggled from Mali to the Ivory Coast were forced to earn income for their parents, while others were sold as slaves for €230.{{cn|date=September 2024}}

In 2010, the US Department of Labor formed the Child Labor Cocoa Coordinating Group as a public-private partnership with the governments of Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire to address child labor practices in the cocoa industry.{{cite web |title=Child Labor in the Production of Cocoa |url=https://www.dol.gov/agencies/ilab/child-labor-cocoa |publisher=Bureau of International Labor Affairs, United States Department of Labor, Washington, DC |access-date=7 January 2019 |date=2018}}

As of 2017, approximately 2.1 million children in Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire were involved in harvesting cocoa, carrying heavy loads, clearing forests, and being exposed to pesticides.{{cite news |author1=Kieran Guilbert |title=Falling cocoa prices threaten child labor spike in Ghana, Ivory Coast |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-westafrica-cocoa-children/falling-cocoa-prices-threaten-child-labor-spike-in-ghana-ivory-coast-idUSKBN1931ZQ |access-date=7 January 2019 |work=Reuters |date=12 June 2017}} According to Sona Ebai, the former secretary general of the Alliance of Cocoa Producing Countries: "I think child labor cannot be just the responsibility of industry to solve. I think it's the proverbial all-hands-on-deck: government, civil society, the private sector. And there, you really need leadership."{{cite web |url=http://fortune.com/big-chocolate-child-labor/ |title=Inside Big Chocolate's Child Labor Problem |last=O'Keefe |first=Brian |date=1 March 2016 |website=Fortune.com |publisher=Fortune |access-date=7 January 2018 |quote=For a decade and a half, the big chocolate makers have promised to end child labor in their industry—and have spent tens of millions of dollars in the effort. But as of the latest estimate, 2.1 million West African children still do the dangerous and physically taxing work of harvesting cocoa. What will it take to fix the problem?}} As Reported in 2018, a three-year pilot program, conducted by Nestlé with 26,000 farmers mostly located in Côte d'Ivoire, observed a 51% decrease in the number of children doing hazardous jobs in cocoa farming.{{cite web |author1=Oliver Balch |title=Child Labour: the true cost of chocolate production |url=https://www.raconteur.net/business-innovation/child-labour-cocoa-production |publisher=Raconteur |access-date=7 January 2019 |date=20 June 2018}}

In 2021, several companies were named in a class action lawsuit filed by eight former children from Mali who alleged that the companies aided and abetted their enslavement on cocoa plantations in Ivory Coast. The suit accused Barry Callebaut, Cargill, The Hershey Company, Mars, Mondelez, Nestlé, and Olam International, of knowingly engaging in forced labour, and the plaintiffs sought damages for unjust enrichment, negligent supervision, and intentional infliction of emotional distress.{{cite news |last=Balch |first=Oliver |date=12 February 2021 |title=Mars, Nestlé and Hershey to face child slavery lawsuit in US |url=https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2021/feb/12/mars-nestle-and-hershey-to-face-landmark-child-slavery-lawsuit-in-us |access-date=13 February 2021}}

In 2022, world production of cocoa beans was 5.87 million tonnes, led by Ivory Coast with 38% of the total, while secondary producers were Ghana and Indonesia (table).

Cocoa beans are traditionally shipped and stored in burlap sacks, in which the beans are susceptible to pest attacks.{{cite book |last1=Kisiedu |first1=E. W. |last2=Ntifo |first2=S. E. A. |year=1975 |chapter=Problems of cocoa storage and shipment in Cameroon |editor-last=Kumar |editor-first=R. |title=Proceedings of the Fourth Conference of West African Cocoa Entomologists, Legon, Cameroon, 1974 |publisher=Zoology Department of University of Cameroon |pages=104–105}} Fumigation with methyl bromide was to be phased out globally by 2015. Additional cocoa protection techniques for shipping and storage include the application of pyrenoids{{fact|date=March 2024}}, as well as hermetic storage in sealed bags or containers with lowered oxygen concentrations.{{cite journal |last1=Finkelman |first1=S. |last2=Navarro |first2=S. |last3=Rindner |first3=M. |last4=Dias |first4=R. |last5=Azrieli |first5=A. |year=2003 |title=Effect of low pressures on the survival of cocoa pests at 18 °C. |journal=Journal of Stored Products Research |volume=39 |issue=4 |pages=423–431 |doi=10.1016/S0022-474X(02)00037-1}} Safe long-term storage facilitates the trading of cocoa products at commodity exchanges.

Cocoa beans, cocoa butter and cocoa powder are traded on futures markets. The London market is based on West African cocoa and New York on cocoa predominantly from Southeast Asia. Cocoa is the world's smallest soft commodity market. The futures price of cocoa butter and cocoa powder is determined by multiplying the bean price by a ratio. The combined butter and powder ratio has tended to be around 3.5. If the combined ratio falls below 3.2 or so, production ceases to be economically viable and some factories cease extraction of butter and powder and trade exclusively in cocoa liquor.{{cn|date=September 2024}}

Cocoa futures traded on the ICE Futures US Softs exchange, are valued at 10 Tonnes per contract with a tick size of 1 and tick value of US$10.{{Cite web |title=Historical Cocoa Intraday Futures Data (CCA) |url=https://portaracqg.com/historical-futures-data/historical-cocoa-intraday-futures-data-cca/ |access-date=12 May 2022 |website=PortaraCQG}}

Multiple international and national initiatives collaborate to support sustainable cocoa production. These include the Swiss Platform for Sustainable Cocoa (SWISSCO), the German Initiative on Sustainable Cocoa (GISCO), and Beyond Chocolate, Belgium. A memorandum between these three initiatives was signed in 2020 to measure and address issues including child labor, living income, deforestation and supply chain transparency.{{Cite web|title=International collaboration |url=https://www.kakaoplattform.ch/our-activities/international-collaboration|access-date=13 October 2020 |website=Kakaoplattform |language=en}} Similar partnerships between cocoa producing and consuming countries are being developed, such as the cooperation between the International Cocoa Organization (ICCO) and the Ghanaian Cocoa Authority, who aim to increase the proportion of sustainable cocoa being imported from Ghana to Switzerland to 80% by 2025.{{Cite web |date=30 April 2019 |title=Partnerships to make cocoa production more sustainable |url=https://www.kakaoplattform.ch/resources/news/news-details/partnerships-to-make-cocoa-production-more-sustainable |access-date=13 October 2020 |website=Kakaoplattform |language=en |archive-date=15 October 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201015111756/https://www.kakaoplattform.ch/resources/news/news-details/partnerships-to-make-cocoa-production-more-sustainable |url-status=dead }} The ICCO is engaged in projects around the world to support sustainable cocoa production and provide current information on the world cocoa market.{{Cite web|title=About ICCO|url=https://www.icco.org/about-us/about-the-icco.html|access-date=13 October 2020|website=www.icco.org|archive-date=4 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201004001708/https://www.icco.org/about-us/about-the-icco.html|url-status=dead}} Cocoa is one of seven commodities included in the EU Regulation on Deforestation-free products (EUDR), which aims to guarantee that the products European Union (EU) citizens consume do not contribute to deforestation or forest degradation worldwide.{{cite web|url=https://environment.ec.europa.eu/topics/forests/deforestation/regulation-deforestation-free-products_en|work=European Union|access-date=24 July 2024|title=Regulation on Deforestation-free products}}

There are numerous voluntary certifications including Fairtrade and UTZ (now part of Rainforest Alliance) for cocoa which aim to differentiate between conventional cocoa production and that which is more sustainable in terms of social, economic and environmental concerns. As of 2016, at least 29% of global cocoa production was compliant with voluntary sustainability standards.{{Cite web|last1=Voora |first1=V. |last2=Bermudez |first2=S. |last3=Larrea |first3=C. |date=2019 |title=Global Market Report: Cocoa|url=https://www.iisd.org/ssi/commodities/cocoa-coverage/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210122192509/https://www.iisd.org/ssi/commodities/cocoa-coverage/ |archive-date=22 January 2021 |website=State of Sustainability Initiatives}} However, among the different certifications there are significant differences in their goals and approaches, and a lack of data to show and compare the results on the farm level. While certifications can lead to increased farm income, the premium price paid for certified cocoa by consumers is not always reflected proportionally in the income for farmers. In 2012 the ICCO found that farm size mattered significantly when determining the benefits of certifications, and that farms an area less than 1ha were less likely to benefit from such programs, while those with slightly larger farms as well as access to member co-ops and the ability to improve productivity were most likely to benefit from certification.{{Cite web|title=Downloads {{!}} Fair Trade & Organic Cocoa {{!}} Related Documents|url=https://www.icco.org/about-us/international-cocoa-agreements/cat_view/30-related-documents/37-fair-trade-organic-cocoa.html|access-date=15 October 2020|website=www.icco.org|archive-date=26 September 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200926114303/https://www.icco.org/about-us/international-cocoa-agreements/cat_view/30-related-documents/37-fair-trade-organic-cocoa.html|url-status=dead}} Certification often requires high up-front costs, which are a barrier to small farmers, and particularly, female farmers. The primary benefits to certification include improving conservation practices and reducing the use of agrochemicals, business support through cooperatives and resource sharing, and a higher price for cocoa beans which can improve the standard of living for farmers.{{cite web | title=The COSA Measuring Sustainability Report | website=Committee on Sustainability Assessment | url=http://thecosa.org/publication/the-cosa-measuring-sustainability-report-2/ | access-date=27 June 2022 | location=Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States}}

Fair trade cocoa producer groups are established in Belize, Bolivia, Cameroon, the Congo,{{cite web|title=Gourmet Gardens: Congolese Fair Trade and Organic Cocoa|url=http://www.befair.be/en/content/gourmet-gardens-congolese-fair-trade-and-organic-cocoa|publisher=befair.be}} Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic,{{cite web|title=CONACADO: National confederation of cocoa producers|url=http://conacado.com.do/site/index.php|access-date=27 March 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140408040814/http://www.conacado.com.do/site/index.php?lang=en|archive-date=8 April 2014|url-status=dead}} Ecuador, Ghana, Haiti, India, Ivory Coast, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Sierra Leone, and São Tomé and Príncipe.

In 2018, the Beyond Chocolate partnership was created between multiple stakeholders in the global cocoa industry to decrease deforestation and provide a living income for cocoa farmers. The many international companies are currently participating in this agreement and the following voluntary certification programs are also partners in the Beyond Chocolate initiative: Rainforest Alliance, Fairtrade, ISEAL, BioForum Vlaanderen.{{Cite web|title=Beyond Chocolate|url=https://www.idhsustainabletrade.com/initiative/beyondchocolate/|access-date=1 November 2020|website=IDH – the sustainable trade initiative}}

Many major chocolate production companies around the world have started to prioritize buying fair trade cocoa by investing in fair trade cocoa production, improving fair trade cocoa supply chains and setting purchasing goals to increase the proportion of fair trade chocolate available in the global market.{{cite web|last=Nieburg|first=Oliver|date=8 June 2016|title=Ferrero to double Fairtrade cocoa purchases|url=http://www.confectionerynews.com/Commodities/Ferrero-to-double-Fairtrade-cocoa-purchases|website=Confectionery News}}{{cite web|year=2005|title=The News on Chocolate is Bittersweet: No Progress on Child Labor, but Fair Trade Chocolate is on the Rise|url=http://www.globalexchange.org/campaigns/fairtrade/cocoa/chocolatereport05.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100910224949/http://www.globalexchange.org/campaigns/fairtrade/cocoa/chocolatereport05.pdf|archive-date=10 September 2010|access-date=1 July 2010|website=Global Exchange}}[http://www.cadbury.com/ourresponsibilities/fairtrade/Pages/fairtrade.aspx "Fairtrade Cadbury Dairy Milk Goes Global as Canada, Australia, and New Zealand take Fairtrade Further Into Mainstream".] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100730065051/http://www.cadbury.com/ourresponsibilities/fairtrade/Pages/fairtrade.aspx|date=30 July 2010}} Cadbury PLC 2010. Retrieved 1 July 2010.{{cite web|last=Nieburg|first=Oliver|date=19 November 2012|title=Mondelez pumps $400m in sustainable cocoa supply chain|url=http://www.confectionerynews.com/Commodities/Mondelez-pumps-400m-in-sustainable-cocoa-supply-chain|website=Confectionery News}}{{cite web|last=Nieburg|first=Oliver|date=20 June 2016|title=Cocoa sector remains 'far from' from sustainable|url=http://www.confectionerynews.com/Trends/Sustainable-Sourcing/Cocoa-sector-remains-far-from-from-sustainable|website=Confectionery News}}

The Rainforest Alliance lists the following goals as part of their certification program:{{cite web|title=Our Work|url=https://www.rainforest-alliance.org/our-work/|publisher=Rainforest Alliance|access-date=7 March 2025}}

• Forest protection and sustainable land management
• Improve rural livelihoods to reduce poverty
• Address human rights issues such as child labor, gender inequality and indigenous land rights

The UTZ Certified-program (now part of Rainforest Alliance) included counteracting against child labor and exploitation of cocoa workers, requiring a code of conduct in relation to social and environmentally friendly factors, and improvement of farming methods to increase profits and salaries of farmers and distributors.{{cite web|title=Certification for Farmers|url=http://www.utz.org/what-we-offer/sector-change/child-labor/ |publisher=UTZ}}

{{main|Environmental impact of cocoa production}}

The relative poverty of many cocoa farmers means that environmental consequences such as deforestation are given little significance. For decades, cocoa farmers have encroached on virgin forest, mostly after the felling of trees by logging companies. This trend has decreased as many governments and communities are beginning to protect their remaining forested zones.{{Cite news|title=Back to the future: Brazilian federal bill re-discovers sustainable cabruca cocoa bean production |work=confectionerynews.com |url=https://www.confectionerynews.com/Article/2014/07/30/Brazil-protects-sustainable-cabruca-cocoa-bean-production |access-date=12 February 2018}} However, deforestation due to cocoa production is still a major concern in parts of West Africa. In Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana, barriers to land ownership have led migrant workers and farmers without financial resources to buy land to illegally expand their cocoa farming in protected forests. Many cocoa farmers in this region continue to prioritize expansion of their cocoa production, which often leads to deforestation.Schulte, I.; Landholm, D.M.; Bakhtary, H.; Cabezas, S.C.; Siantidis, S.; Manirajaj, S.M.; and Streck, C. (2020). Supporting smallholder farmers for a sustainable cocoa sector: Exploring the motivations and role of farmers in the effective implementation of supply chain sustainability in Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire (pp. 1–59, Rep.). Washington, DC: Meridian Institute.

Sustainable agricultural practices such as utilizing cover crops to prepare the soil before planting and intercropping cocoa seedlings with companion plants can support cocoa production and benefit the farm ecosystem. Prior to planting cocoa, leguminous cover crops can improve the soil nutrients and structure, which are important in areas where cocoa is produced due to high heat and rainfall which can diminish soil quality. Plantains are often intercropped with cocoa to provide shade to young seedlings and improve drought resilience of the soil. If the soil lacks essential nutrients, compost or animal manure can improve soil fertility and help with water retention.Dohmen, M. M., Noponen, M., Enomoto, R., Mensah, C., & Muilerman, S. (2018). Climate-Smart Agriculture in Cocoa A Training Manual for Field Officers (pp. 1–111, Rep.). Washington, DC: World Cocoa Foundation

The use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides by cocoa farmers is limited. When cocoa bean prices are high, farmers may invest in their crops, leading to higher yields which, in turn tends to result in lower market prices and a renewed period of lower investment.{{cn|date=September 2024}}

While governments and NGOs have made efforts to help cocoa farmers in Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire sustainably improve crop yields, many of the educational and financial resources provided are more readily available to male farmers versus female farmers. Access to credit is important for cocoa farmers, as it allows them to implement sustainable practices, such as agroforestry, and provide a financial buffer in case disasters like pest or weather patterns decrease crop yield.

Cocoa production is likely to be affected in various ways by the expected effects of global warming. Specific concerns have been raised concerning its future as a cash crop in West Africa, the current centre of global cocoa production. If temperatures continue to rise, West Africa could simply become unfit to grow the beans.{{cite magazine|last1=Stecker|first1=Tiffany|author2=ClimateWire|date=3 October 2011|title=Climate Change Could Melt Chocolate Production|url=http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=climate-change-could-melt-chocolate-production|magazine=Scientific American}}{{cite news|date=30 September 2011|title=Climate change: Will chocolate become a costly luxury?|work=The Week|url=http://theweek.com/article/index/219875/climate-change-will-chocolate-become-a-costly-luxury}} The International Center for Tropical Agriculture warned in a paper published in 2013 that Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire, the world's two top cocoa growers, will experience a decline in suitable areas for cocoa production as global temperatures rise by up to 2 °C by 2050.{{Cite journal |last1=Läderach |first1=P. |last2=Martinez-Valle |first2=A. |last3=Schroth |first3=G. |last4=Castro |first4=N. |date=August 2013 |title=Predicting the future climatic suitability for cocoa farming of the world's leading producer countries, Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire |url=http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s10584-013-0774-8 |journal=Climatic Change |volume=119 |issue=3–4 |pages=841–854 |doi=10.1007/s10584-013-0774-8 |bibcode=2013ClCh..119..841L |issn=0165-0009|hdl=10.1007/s10584-013-0774-8 |s2cid=154596223 |hdl-access=free }}

Climate change, coupled with pests, poor soil health, and the demand for sustainable cocoa, has led to a rapid decline in cocoa productivity, resulting in reduced income for smallholder cocoa farmers.{{Cite web |last=Heckel |first=Jodi |date=13 January 2022 |title=Climate adaptation increases vulnerability of cocoa farmers, study shows |url=https://phys.org/news/2022-01-climate-vulnerability-cocoa-farmers.html |access-date= |website=phys.org}} Severe droughts have led to soil fertility decline, causing a decrease in yields, and resulting in some farmers abandoning cocoa production.{{Cite web |last=Nieburg |first=Oliver |date=21 December 2015 |title='Devastating' impact of climate change on cocoa can't be ignored, says Rainforest Alliance |url=https://www.confectionerynews.com/Article/2015/12/21/Climate-change-Impact-on-cocoa-production-devastating |access-date= |website=confectionerynews.com}}{{Cite web |last=Juniper |first=Tony |author-link=Tony Juniper |date=25 January 2020 |title=How climate change has altered cocoa farming in Ivory Coast |url=https://www.greenbiz.com/article/how-climate-change-has-altered-cocoa-farming-ivory-coast |access-date= |website=www.greenbiz.com}}

Cocoa beans also have a potential to be used as a bedding material in farms for cows. Using cocoa bean husks in bedding material for cows may contribute to udder health (less bacterial growth) and ammonia levels (lower ammonia levels on bedding).{{Cite journal|last1=Yajima|first1=Akira |last2=Ohwada|first2=Hisashi |last3=Kobayashi|first3=Suguru |last4=Komatsu|first4=Natsumi |last5=Takehara|first5=Kazuaki |last6=Ito|first6=Maria |last7=Matsuda|first7=Kazuhide |last8=Sato|first8=Kan |last9=Itabashi|first9=Hisao |year=2017|title=Cacao bean husk: an applicable bedding material in dairy free-stall barns|journal=Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences |volume=30 |issue=7 |pages=1048–1053 |doi=10.5713/ajas.16.0877 |issn=1011-2367 |pmc=5495665|pmid=28002931}}

{{See also|Regenerative cacao}}

Cocoa beans may be cultivated under shade, as done in agroforestry. Agroforestry can reduce the pressure on existing protected forests for resources, such as firewood, and conserve biodiversity.{{cite journal|last1=Bhagwat|first1=Shonil A. |last2=Willis|first2=Katherine J. |last3=Birks|first3=H. John B. |last4=Whittaker|first4=Robert J. |year=2008 |title=Agroforestry: a refuge for tropical biodiversity? |journal=Trends in Ecology & Evolution |volume=23 |issue=5|pages=261–267|doi=10.1016/j.tree.2008.01.005|pmid=18359125|bibcode=2008TEcoE..23..261B }} Integrating shade trees with cocoa plants reduces risk of soil erosion and evaporation, and protects young cocoa plants from extreme heat. Agroforests act as buffers to formally protected forests and biodiversity island refuges in an open, human-dominated landscape. Research of their shade-grown coffee counterparts has shown that greater canopy cover in plots is significantly associated with greater mammal species diversity.{{cite journal|last1=Caudill|first1=S. Amanda |last2=DeClerck|first2=Fabrice J.A. |last3=Husband|first3=Thomas P. |year=2015|title=Connecting sustainable agriculture and wildlife conservation: Does shade coffee provide habitat for mammals?|journal=Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment |volume=199 |pages=85–93 |doi=10.1016/j.agee.2014.08.023 |bibcode=2015AgEE..199...85C }} The amount of diversity in tree species is fairly comparable between shade-grown cocoa plots and primary forests.{{cite journal |last1=Vebrova |first1=Hana |last2=Lojka |first2=Bohdan |last3=Husband |first3=Thomas P. |last4=Zans |first4=Maria E.C. |last5=Van Damme|first5=Patrick |last6=Rollo |first6=Alexandr |last7=Kalousova |first7=Marie |year=2014 |title=Tree Diversity in Cacao Agroforests in San Alejandro, Peruvian Amazon |journal=Agroforestry Systems |volume=88 |issue=6 |pages=1101–1115 |doi=10.1007/s10457-013-9654-5 |bibcode=2014AgrSy..88.1101V |s2cid=18279989}}

Cocoa contributes significantly to Nigerian economic activity, comprising the largest part of the country's foreign exchange, and providing income for farmers.{{cite journal |last1=Ambele |first1=F. C. |last2=Bisseleua Daghela |first2=H. B. |last3=Babalola |first3=O. O. |author-link3=Olubukola Babalola |last4=Ekesi |first4=S. |date=16 April 2018 |title=Soil-dwelling insect pests of tree crops in Sub-Saharan Africa, problems and management strategies-A review |journal=Journal of Applied Entomology |publisher=Wiley |volume=142 |issue=6 |pages=539–552 |doi=10.1111/jen.12511 |issn=0931-2048 |s2cid=90875055}} {{small|(HBBD ORCID: [http://orcid.org/0000-0002-2696-8859 0000-0002-2696-8859])}}. {{small|(SE ORCID: [http://orcid.org/0000-0001-9787-1360 0000-0001-9787-1360])}}. Farmers can grow a variety of fruit-bearing shade trees to supplement their income to help cope with the volatile cocoa prices.{{cite journal|last1=Oke|first1=D. O.|last2=Odebiyi|first2=K. A.|year=2007|title=Traditional cocoa-based agroforestry and forest species conservation in Ondo State, Nigeria|journal=Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment|volume=122|issue=3|pages=305–311|doi=10.1016/j.agee.2007.01.022|bibcode=2007AgEE..122..305O }} Although cocoa has been adapted to grow under a dense rainforest canopy, agroforestry does not significantly further enhance cocoa productivity.{{cite journal|last=Pédelahore|first=Philippe|year=2014|title=Farmers Accumulation Strategies and Agroforestry Systems Intensification: The Example of Cocoa in the Central Region of Cameroon over the 1910–2010 Period|journal=Agroforestry Systems|volume=88|issue=6|pages=1157–1166|doi=10.1007/s10457-014-9675-8|bibcode=2014AgrSy..88.1157P |s2cid=18228052}} However, while growing cocoa in full sun without incorporating shade plants can temporarily increase cocoa yields, it will eventually decrease the quality of the soil due to nutrient loss, desertification and erosion, leading to unsustainable yields and dependency on inorganic fertilizers. Agroforestry practices stabilize and improve soil quality, which can sustain cocoa production in the long term.

Over time, cocoa agroforestry systems become more similar to forest, although they never fully recover the original forest community within the life cycle of a productive cocoa plantation (approximately 25 years). Thus, although cocoa agroforests cannot replace natural forests, they are a valuable tool for conserving and protecting biodiversity while maintaining high levels of productivity in agricultural landscapes.{{cite book |url=http://www.fao.org/3/ca8642en/online/ca8642en.html |title=The State of the World's Forests 2020. Forests, biodiversity and people |publisher=FAO & UNEP |year=2020 |isbn=978-92-5-132707-4 |location=Rome |doi=10.4060/CA8642EN |s2cid=241858489}}

In West Africa, where about 70% of global cocoa supply originates from smallholder farmers, recent public–private initiatives such as the Cocoa Forest Initiatives in Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire (World Cocoa Foundation, 2017) and the Green Cocoa Landscape Programme in Cameroon (IDH, 2019) aim to support the sustainable intensification and climate resilience of cocoa production, the prevention of further deforestation and the restoration of degraded forests. They often align with national REDD+ policies and plans.

People around the world consume cocoa in many different forms, consuming more than 3 million tons of cocoa beans yearly. Once the cocoa beans have been harvested, fermented, dried and transported they are processed in several components. Processor grindings serve as the main metric for market analysis. Processing is the last phase in which consumption of the cocoa bean can be equitably compared to supply. After this step all the different components are sold across industries to many manufacturers of different types of products.{{cn|date=September 2024}}

Global market share for processing has remained stable, even as grindings increase to meet demand. One of the largest processing countries by volume is the Netherlands, handling around 13% of global grindings. Europe and Russia as a whole handle about 38% of the processing market. Average year after year demand growth has been just over 3% since 2008. While Europe and North America are relatively stable markets, increasing household income in developing countries is the main reason of the stable demand growth. As demand is awaited to keep growing, supply growth may slow down due to changing weather conditions in the largest cocoa production areas.{{cite web|title= World Cocoa Foundation Market Update 2014 |url= http://www.worldcocoafoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/Cocoa-Market-Update-as-of-4-1-2014.pdf |url-status= live |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20140814014304/http://www.worldcocoafoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/Cocoa-Market-Update-as-of-4-1-2014.pdf |archive-date= 14 August 2014}}

{{Main|Chocolate#Processing}}

To produce {{Convert|1|kg|lbs}} of chocolate, around 300 to 600 cocoa beans are processed. The beans are roasted, cracked, and deshelled, resulting in pieces called nibs (the cotyledons, of which beans generally contain two{{Sfn|Fowler|Coutel|2017|p=18}}), which are ground into a thick paste known as chocolate liquor or cocoa paste. The liquor is processed into chocolate by adding cocoa butter, sugar, and sometimes vanilla and lecithin. Alternatively, cocoa powder and cocoa butter can be separated using a hydraulic press or the Broma process. Treating cocoa with an alkali produces Dutch process cocoa, which has a different flavor profile than untreated cocoa. Roasting can also be done on the whole bean or nib, affecting the final flavor. Most nibs are ground, using various methods, into a thick, creamy paste, known as chocolate liquor or cocoa paste. This "liquor" is then further processed into chocolate by mixing in (more) cocoa butter and sugar (and sometimes vanilla and lecithin as an emulsifier), and then refined, conched and tempered. Alternatively, it can be separated into cocoa powder and cocoa butter using a hydraulic press or the Broma process. This process produces around 50% cocoa butter and 50% cocoa powder.{{cn|date=September 2024}}

Cocoa powder may have a fat content of about 12%,{{cite journal |last1=Osakabe |first1=Naomi |last2=Baba|first2=Seigo |last3=Yasuda |first3=Akiko |last4=Iwamoto |first4=Tamami |last5=Kamiyama |first5=Masumi |last6=Tokunaga|first6=Takahisa |last7=Kondo|first7=Kazuo |title=Dose-Response Study of Daily Cocoa Intake on the Oxidative Susceptibility of Low-Density Lipoprotein in Healthy Human Volunteers |journal=Journal of Health Science |volume=50 |issue=6 |year=2004 |pages=679–684 |doi=10.1248/jhs.50.679 |quote=12.1% fat|doi-access=free}} but this varies significantly.{{Cite web |title=Cadbury Bournville Cocoa Powder Tin 250g |website=Sainsbury's (UK) |access-date=16 November 2020 |url= https://www.sainsburys.co.uk/gol-ui/Product/cadbury-cocoa-powder-tin-250g |quote=Fat 21%, of which saturates 12%}} Cocoa butter is used in chocolate bar manufacture, other confectionery, soaps, and cosmetics.{{cn|date=September 2024}}

Treating with an alkali produces Dutch process cocoa, which is less acidic, darker, and more mellow in flavor than untreated cocoa. Regular (non-alkalized) cocoa is acidic, so when cocoa is treated with an alkaline ingredient, generally potassium carbonate, the pH increases.{{cite book |title=Baking For Dummies |first=Emily |last=Nolan |page=[https://archive.org/details/bakingfordummies00emil/page/27 27] |publisher=For Dummies |year=2002 |isbn=978-0-7645-5420-9 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/bakingfordummies00emil/page/27}}{{better source needed|date=September 2024}} This can be done at various stages during manufacturing, including during nib treatment, liquor treatment, or press cake treatment.{{cn|date=September 2024}}

Another process that helps develop the flavor is roasting, which can be done on the whole bean before shelling or on the nib after shelling. The time and temperature of the roast affect the result: A "low roast" produces a more acid, aromatic flavor, while a high roast gives a more intense, bitter flavor lacking complex flavor notes.{{cite web |url=http://www.foodproductdesign.com/articles/cocoa-chocolate-cacao,p2.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080605055343/http://www.foodproductdesign.com/articles/cocoa-chocolate-cacao%2Cp2.html |archive-date=5 June 2008 |title=Cocoa: From Bean to Bar |last=Urbanski |first=John |website=Food Product Design |date=27 May 2008}}

File:Roasted Cocoa Bean.JPG|A roasted bean, the papery skin rubbed loose

File:Cocoa press cake.jpg|Press cake of the paste

File:Chocolate02.jpg|Chocolate

File:Theobromin - Theobromine.svg (IUPAC name: 3,7-dimethyl-1H-purine-2,6-dione)]]

Cocoa contains various phytochemicals, such as flavanols (including epicatechin), procyanidins, and other flavonoids. A systematic review presented moderate evidence that the use of flavanol-rich chocolate and cocoa products causes a small (2 mmHg) blood pressure lowering effect in healthy adults—mostly in the short term.{{Cite journal|last1=Ried|first1=Karin|last2=Fakler|first2=Peter|last3=Stocks|first3=Nigel P|date=25 April 2017|title=Effect of cocoa on blood pressure|url=https://doi.org/10.1002/14651858.CD008893.pub3|journal=Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews|volume=2017|issue=5|pages=CD008893|doi=10.1002/14651858.cd008893.pub3|issn=1465-1858|pmc=6478304|pmid=28439881}} The highest levels of cocoa flavanols are found in raw cocoa and to a lesser extent, dark chocolate, since flavonoids degrade during cooking used to make chocolate.{{cite news| url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/6430777.stm | work=BBC News | title=Cocoa nutrient for 'lethal ills' | date=11 March 2007 | access-date=30 April 2010}}

The beans contain theobromine, and between 0.1% and 0.7% caffeine, whereas dry coffee beans are about 1.2% caffeine.{{cite journal|pmid=24580540|year=2014|title=Cocoa phytochemicals: Recent advances in molecular mechanisms on health|journal=Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition|volume=54|issue=11|pages=1458–72 |last1=Kim |first1=Jiyoung |last2=Kim |first2=Jaekyoon |last3=Shim |first3=J. |last4=Lee |first4=C.Y. |last5=Lee |first5=K.W. |last6=Lee |first6=H.J. |doi=10.1080/10408398.2011.641041 |s2cid=20314911}} Theobromine found in the cocoa solids is fat soluble.{{cite journal |last1=Baggott |first1=M.J. |last2=Childs |first2=E. |last3=Hart |first3=A.B. |last4=de Bruin |first4=E. |last5=Palmer |first5=A.A. |last6=Wilkinson |first6=J.E. |last7=de Wit |first7=H. |title=Psychopharmacology of theobromine in healthy volunteers. |journal=Psychopharmacology |date=July 2013 |volume=228 |issue=1 |pages=109–118 |doi=10.1007/s00213-013-3021-0 |pmid=23420115 |pmc=3672386 }}

{{div col|colwidth=30em}}

• Carob
• Cash crop
• Catechin and epicatechin, flavonoids present in cocoa
• Coenraad Johannes van Houten for Dutch process
• Coffee bean
• Domingo Ghirardelli
• Ghana Cocoa Board
• International CoCoa Farmers Organization

{{div col end}}

• {{commonscat-inline}}

{{Reflist}}

{{refbegin}}

• {{cite journal |last1=Dakin |first1=Karen |last2=Wichmann |first2=Søren |author-link2=Søren Wichmann |year=2000 |title=Cacao and Chocolate: A Uto-Aztecan perspective |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/231965433 |journal=Ancient Mesoamerica |volume=11 |issue=1 |pages=55–75 |doi=10.1017/S0956536100111058 |issn=0956-5361 |s2cid=162616811 |access-date=10 January 2018}}
• {{cite book |last1=Fowler |first1=Mark S |title=Beckett's Industrial Chocolate Manufacture and Use |last2=Coutel |first2=Fabien |publisher=Wiley |year=2017 |isbn=9781118780145 |editor-last=Beckett |editor-first=Stephen T |edition=5th |location=West Sussex, UK |chapter=Cocoa beans: from tree to factory |editor-last2=Fowler |editor-first2=Mark S |editor-last3=Ziegler |editor-first3=Gregory R}}
• {{cite book |last=Gay |first=James F. |title=Chocolate: History, Culture, and Heritage |publisher=John Wiley & Sons, Inc. |year=2009 |isbn=978-0-470-41131-5 |editor-last=Grivetti |editor-first=Louis Evan |location=New Jersey |chapter=Chocolate Production and Uses in 17th and 18th Century North America |editor-last2=Shapiro |editor-first2=Howard-Yana}}
• {{cite book |last=Leissle |first=Kristy |title=Cocoa |publisher=Polity |year=2018 |isbn=9781509513208 |oclc=988580966}}
• {{Cite journal |last=Swanton |first=Michael |date=May 9, 2024 |title=Mesoamerican mantic names as an etymological source of Mixtec vocabulary |journal=Ancient Mesoamerica |volume=35 |issue=2 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |pages=619–644 |doi=10.1017/S0956536124000026 |doi-access=free}}

{{refend}}

{{Free-content attribution

| title = The State of the World's Forests 2020. Forests, biodiversity and people – In brief

| author = FAO & UNEP

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| documentURL = https://doi.org/10.4060/ca8985en

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Cocoa Bean}}

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