Origine Vanille Ouganda

Rio Caribe Superior cacao grows in agroforestry, in which cacao trees are intercropped with other crops. This agricultural system promotes biodiversity and forms a buffer zone protecting remaining forests and the national park, Península de Paria Growing cacao helps to protect the natural environment while giving farmers an opportunity to earn an income. Venezuela Rio Caribe Superior is from Trinitario and Criollo varieties. The beans are low in acidity, and have an intense and strong chocolaty body with sweet, nutty and floral hints. Consistent application of protocols during harvest and postharvest results in an outstanding quality, labelled as ‘superior’. After manual picking, the farmers bring the wet beans to a central fermentation unit, where they are fermented for 6 or 7 days in wooding boxes, with controlled turning based on temperature.

The Comoros are made up of 4 islands Mayotte and three islands independent of France forming the Union of the Comoros (Grande Comore, Anjouan and Moheli). Grande Comore is a volcanic island. The island suffers from a severe lack of water, the volcanic rocks do not retain water and there is little source. The main economic resource is the cultivation of vanilla. Vanilla, introduced in the Comoros before the 1930s, is cultivated on the four islands in a traditional way. This capricious orchid offers a beautiful cluster flower. Fertilization is carried out manually by women at dawn. A good worker “marries” 1000 to 1500 vanilla flowers per day. During the harvesting time, one picks pod by pod, to a precise degree just before “technical maturation”.

Despite its importance for food production and biodiversity, the Kilombero Valley is facing serious challenges, such as declines in water quantity, water pollution, and degrading wetlands and forests. Kokoa Kamili cacao grows in smallscale agroforestry and is intercropped with shade trees, bananas, corn and other crops. This production system is an ecological alternative for monoplantations and helps to preserve biodiversity. It also creates a natural buffer zone for the Udzungwa Mountains National Park, a birdwatchers’ paradise and famous for its primates, elephants and vast variety in flora. Smallholder cocoa farmers in the Kilombero Valley are practicing organic farming since time immemorial, simply because pesticides and chemical fertilizers were not available. In 2015 this was officially awarded with organic certification for Europe, the US and Japan! Electricity for the Kokoa Kamili fermentation centre comes from solar power.

Colombia is known for its beautiful Amazonian and Orinoco rainforest, rich in biodiversity and an important carbon sink for the world. Unfortunately, illegal logging, mining and conversion of land to cattle ranching threatens Colombia’s indigenous forests. Many forest areas have been cleared for coca production. The government is enticing coca farmers to switch to palm oil or cacao production. From a biodiversity perspective cacao is by far the preferred option palm grows in monoculture, while cacao trees are intercropped with other trees and plants. An estimated 25,000 hectares of cacao grown in Colombia were formerly used for illegal crops, and this number is growing. Which is good news for the planet, for the farmers and for chocolate lovers in Colombia and abroad, because there will be more fine flavour cocoa from Colombia available.