The Long Journey of Cocoa

Cocoa is of great importance in Colombia: First of all hot chocolate is essential part of almost every typical breakfast. Mixed with hot water or milk, it is often served with a slice of cheese, which is dipped into the chocolate and melts. Secondly about 27.000 families in the entire country live of cultivation of cocoa and export of cocoa is an important good. Reason enough for us to take a closer look and provide you with some information about the cultivation and harvest of cocoa in Colombia.

The cocoa tree requires high temperatures and precipitation, but also shade, which is why it is often cultivated with other shady plants like palmtrees, banana plants, caoutchouc, avocado or mango trees. The Colombian tropical regions provide the perfect conditions and according to estimations by the ministry of promotion of exports Procolombia there are about 2 million hectares suitable for the cultivation of cocoa.

Within the scope of his Project “Der Lange Weg der Schokolade” (the long journey of cocoa), Guido Kunze visited a cococa finca, situated only 3 hours by car from Bogotá. We accompanied him on his journey and had a closer look at Finca San Luis.

The journey is adventurous and simultaneously beautiful: A dirtroad takes you uphill from Nilo, passing jungle, rivers and streams, until reaching German´s and Liliana´s, our hosts and owners of the finca of 90 hectars. The next day we explored the surroundings with cocoa trees in the middle of the jungle a designated cultivable land is barely recognizable. Liliana explains that this particular fact is one of the secrets for their high quality cocoa. Monocultural cultivation of cocoa requires artificial fertilizers and pesticides which doesn’t meet their requirements for ecological agriculture and will never result in the same high quality.

After harvesting the cocoa, the seeds are taken out right underneath the trees and the husks serve as fertilizer. The seeds, embedded in the pulp, are put in buckets and stored for fermentation. After about one week, the fermented cocoa seeds are dried and after another week are ready to be packed and sold. German and Liliana ask about 4 Euros for 1 kg of cocoa – definitely not expensive considering the effort.