Short Term Gain can Create Long Term Cost for Cacao

Chocolate may be a Billion dollar business, but more often than not, the farmers who labor on these small farms are barely getting by.  As we have mentioned before Cacao trees are part of the under-story plants and only a small party of the symphony of biodiversity in a native forest.  When Cacao is grown in a sustainable way the farmers mimic native forest.  What it cost in lower yields and increased labor is compensated in fine flavor.

Deforestation is a problem almost everywhere Cacao is grown.  Small farm families are often faces with choices for short-term gains that destroy habitat for Cacao which can take decades to rehabilitate.  Here is a first-hand account of such a story from Carolyn in Costa Rica:

It’s been a challenging week in Puerto Viejo as many trees have been cut down in the neighborhood behind Mom and Barry’s house and the soup kitchen “The Bridge”. The path the howler monkeys took behind their home which brought them countless hours of joy have been laid down and are now being made into planks. The sadness that she and Barry feel and the look of the cleared lots where it looks as if it were struck by a large tornado has our hearts sunk. I wonder how mom will find peace in the daily reminder of the destruction right under her nose. I remember last year we painted over a red X on a tree to keep it from being cut down, that tree is gone too along with countless others.

I forgive them, because they have to feed their families somehow. I am grateful for the love the trees have given us over the centuries, and for all that Mother Nature gives. 

I learned that a lady named Mrs. Hunter who came from Jamaica to set up homestead and once lived just down the road from where we are now. She encouraged family and friends to move to the area and planted cocoa. It was a time of great community and sharing and cocoa was king, creating joyful and steady income for the people.

I met an older British man at the local sports bar and grill, The Point, his father was born in Limon, and was involved in setting up the railroad for the United Fruit Company. Before the fruit company the entire region was cocoa and primary forest. The fruit Co. bought land and planted bananas and pineapple. In less than 100 years the area has seen lush Caribbean jungle, jungle with organic cocoa plantations and thriving communities deforested and replaced with non-organic bananas. 

Rich says there are programs that purchase land to save it from destruction. I have a friend who is part of a project in Tennessee; they have saved thousands of acres of precious land and resources. There is hope for us too. In a land of such beauty with many lovely resources, miracles abound! 
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We have only begun, but one of our goals is to create a land trust that not only rehabilitate land, but prevent deforestation in the first place.  The long-term relationship with our farmers is important.  They are well compensated for their Cacao crop so they are not faced with tough decisions for short-term gains.  It might be easier to grow Cacao with less shade, more fertilizers and fungicides, but the cost involved in the loss of heirloom organic fine flavored beans are never worth that easier road.

We currently sell single source Matina Cacao harvested around April 15th, 2014. It was grown in the Matina conton in the Talamanco region of Costa Rica. The beans have been fermented, sun-dried and certified organic by APPTA. They are raw and clean. Even with dark roasting this bean is fruity, not bitter and considered one of the best tasting beans by the ICCO.  Please consider purchasing a sample here and contacting me here in the U.S. by email: pniemann@hotmail.com  I look forward to hearing from you and talking about your chocolate making business and how we may work together.
-Piper