Pinoy Chocophile

Cacao Farming Business Seminar

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 11 Nov 2018 11:37:00 +0000

Below are photos, videos and notes of my nephew Eman when he attended Sir Grover Rosit's Agri-Cacao Farming Business Seminar at Sunchamp Agri-Tourism Park, Rosario, Batangas last 9 November 2018.

Cacao Notes 2018 by Pete Rahon on Scribd

Invited to the Bloggys 2015 Gala Night

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 26 Sep 2015 20:40:00 +0000

Hi Pinoy Chocophile!

After careful deliberation, we're happy to inform you that pinoychocophile.blogspot.com has made it in the guest list of #bloggys2015, Philippine Blogging Awards Gala Night.

As a blogger and our guest of honor, you'll enjoy:

An awards show of the finest bloggers in the Philippines
Witnessing a key event in Philippine history
Networking with businesses who have freebies and perks for bloggers
Building relationship with niche influencers, trend setters and buzz ambasaddors

Please take note of the following:

1.) Please post a short invite in your blog. Use our poster located here: http://bloggys.ph/whos-attending/

2.) Invite everyone on Facebook/Twitter.

3.) Being a guest of honor, you don't have to pay for a ticket. You're also entitled to bring one (1) companion/friend for free. Just reply here if you have a +1.

4.) Have you nominated all your favorite blogs? If not yet, you can do so here:http://bloggys.ph/nominate-a-blog/

We hope there won't be any cancellations from your end, as your slot is reserved and confirmed. Our judges would be happy to meet you.

Ciao!

Best Regards,
- Misty Casul
Guests Committee
Bloggys 2015, Philippine Blogging Awards

By invitation only: Chef Lawrence Cheong Jun Bo Chocolate Demo

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 31 Aug 2015 15:56:00 +0000

Saw the post on my timeline from the Blogapalooza Bloggers FB group with the invite:

We will be sending invites to a select group of bloggers for an intimate chocolate tasting and demonstration of a World Champion Master Chef. Please send your email address via pm or post it here in this thread. Thank you!

An opportunity to revive this blog again. I hope I get invited to the event.

The profile of the celebrated chocolatier Chef Lawrence Cheong Jun Bo was taken from the internet.

Lawrence Cheong Jun Bo

Positions/Job Title
 Assistant Pastry Chef
Impiana hotel Kuala Lumpur

Working Experience
 One World Hotel 2007-2010 Commis
 Renaissance Kuala Lumpur 2010 Commis 1
 Hotel Maya kuala Lumpur 2010-2012 Chef De Partie

Awards / Achievements
 FHM 2009- Diploma Plated Dessert
 FHM 2010- Silver Medal Malaysia pastry Cup
 FHM 2010- Gold Medal Freestyle Confectionary
 FHA 2012- Gold Medal Chocolate Showpiece
 FHA 2012- Gold Medal Dress the Cake

Profile Story

Lawrence Cheong Jun Bo, 27 years old, currently working at Impiana hotel KLCC as an assistant pastry chef.

Lawrence decided to join pastry line as his major career after he graduated from secondary school, his mom has sent him to Taiwan to study – Food science and technology & Bakery – for 2 years by himself. Unfortunately food science is a course which need very strong knowledge in science, and Lawrence has totally zero knowledge, so he force to focus in bakery, from there he slowly became attracted in bakery and pastry. And now his target is to combine pastries and art into wonderful pieces to serve on the table.

For him, pastry is an art form in making food. Many unique design and taste could be created, it has an unlimited possibilities. And pastries always makes people feel warm, sweet and remember what they eat. No matter you yourself made it or made by others, it is truly an enjoying and satisfying experience.

Lawrence has started his first step at One World Hotel since April 2007 as a 3rd commis led by the First Chef Law Chii Ngien and 2nd Chef Joas Kam. With a very good opportunity and freedom given by chef Joas, Lawrence got for himself a very comfort space to have his experiment and tries with his best partner named Chong Ko Wai in the hotel.

Then he got promoted as a 2nd commis just on his 3rd year. As an upcoming talent he was recommended by a demi Chef Tan Wei Loon to join the Renaissance Kuala Lumpur as a 1st commis led by chef Niklesh Sharma, for 8th months hew was well mentored by chef Niklesh and then got a new recommendation by demi chef Kevin to join Maya Hotel in December 2010 as a Chef De Partie and trained by Chef Teh Chee Fook. After 20 months he has been offered by Chef Joseph from Impiana KLCC to be a Assistant Pastry up to this time.

With these 5 years experience, Lawrence was awarded Diploma in – Plated Desserts- in Food and Hotel Malaysia 2009, coming next would be Sliver Medal – Live Chocolate Showpieces and Dessert Challenge- and Gold Medal awarded in – Freestyle confectionery- in Food and Hotel Malaysia 2011, the Gold medal – Chocolate Showpieces- and another Gold medal – Live Cake dressing in Food and Hotel Asia in Singapore 2012. From these competitions Lawrence has found out his strength is in making art work presentation especially in display showpieces.

The hardest part in pastry life definitely would be the competitions trial run period, from that moment it needs a very big focus in every single part of the trials before the real competition. No room to fail in working especially when facing heavy functions during preparations of competitions. The responsibilities of such career is tremendous.

There is a chef who influenced me the most in pastry line, and he is Chef Chong Ko Wai my best partner ever in this line, without his passionate sharing of his knowledge and skills I won't be able to grow so fast. In my view, to be a successful chef besides having a good leader chef is to have a great guide, as well as the most important is to have a very good partner to grow together, and Iam lucky cause I have few of them.

If I could be someone else in the world, I will still choose to be a pastry chef, I believe people outside there wouldn’t know how much fun and how challenging it is to be a chef pastry, unless they have to try.

In my view, to become a successful pastry chef, one must be able to have deep passion in pastry and full passion to go through every single stage, “no pain, no gain “ is definitely the best word of advice.

In my future plan, I wish I could have my own very unique pastry shop that people haven’t seen before in Malaysia. A brand new concept designed pastry shop which is full of new modern pastries

and art pieces in it.

Source:
http://malaysiachefs.com/pa/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/pastry-chef-mar-2013-chef-lawrence-cheong-profile.pdf

UPDATE 8 September 2015

I was not lucky to be invited to the event. Sharing a blog post from one of the lucky ones who got invited to the event - http://www.rolledin2onemom.com/2015/09/academy-of-pastry-arts-chocolates.html

Call to Action to Save Heirloom Cacao

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 14 Dec 2014 11:36:00 +0000

November 21, 2014

Fine Chocolate Industry Association Issues a Call to Action to Save Heirloom CacaoIs Frankenstein Chocolate Our Future?

CORRECTION: Thanks to some of our dedicated and eagle-eyed friends and members for catching our mistake in the media release we sent out earlier today. We referred to "genetically modified" cacao when we should have said "hybrid" cacao. We've corrected our release and ask that you give it a second read so the main message of FCIA's Heirloom Cacao Preservation efforts comes through loud and clear. Please know that we're dedicated to providing accurate information about our fine chocolate industry.

NEW YORK, Nov. 21, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Recently, Bloomberg issued a report sounding the alarm on the dangerous state of chocolate globally. Drought, disease, and deterioration of cacao growth around the world is indeed an issue worth paying attention to especially given the exponential rise of chocolate consumption particularly in emerging markets. The report cited the progress made in hybrid cacao which is one solution many of the larger manufacturers of chocolate are pursuing. The piece made it seem as though the future of chocolate is one that is scientifically engineered with little to no focus on flavor, a nightmare to any chocolate lover who values the varied and rich flavors that varieties of chocolate from around the world produce.

Hybrid cacao is not our only option in the fight against global degradation of cacao. Numerous specialty chocolate manufacturers and chocolatiers whose livelihood depends on fine-flavored cocoa have come together to work with local farmers on every continent to preserve heirloom cacao. Known as the Fine Chocolate Industry Association they are spearheading the Heirloom Cacao Preservation (HCP) Initiative which is a joint effort with the USDA/ARS. The HCP begins by identifying and testing the finest flavored cacao which becomes the most flavorful chocolate in the world. Once identified, they are mapped and targeted for natural reproduction. Cocoas designated fine-flavored means more money to the individual farmers to ideally dissuade them from planting hybridcacao trees. By recognizing and rewarding the growers who cultivate this precious dwindling resource we can preserve and propagate heirloom cacao for future generations.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

Fine Chocolate Industry Association go to http://www.finechocolateindustry.org

Contact: Karen Bryant, FCIA, 206.577.9983 or info@finechocolateindustry.org

SOURCE Fine Chocolate Industry Association

RELATED LINKS
http://www.finechocolateindustry.org

FCIA thanks Guittard for assistance in creating and disseminating this media release.

July 7 is Chocolate Day - Chocolate Infographics

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 04 Jul 2014 11:21:00 +0000

Food Science - Link source - http://www.elsevier.com/connect/infographic-what-science-says-about-chocolate

Infographic: What science says about chocolate

To celebrate Chocolate Day July 7, here are six things that may surprise you about chocolate

By members of the Elsevier community | Posted on 1 July 2014

Chocoholics have always argued that chocolate is good for the soul and psyche. Studies in Elsevier's scientific journals show that it can also be good for a lot of other things including our libido, blood pressure and coughs. It may even help prevent wrinkles.

In honor of Chocolate Day on Monday, July 7, Elsevier colleagues have prepared this infographic, followed by a list of "six things science says about chocolate."

Of course, many chocolate treats are laden with sugar and fats, so before you indulge, you may want to check out the actual studies here. (No science we could find justifies eating a steady diet of bonbons or downing a half liter tub of chocolate ice cream at one sitting.)

But in moderation ... bon appetite!

Fabros Farm: More than just a cacao farm, but a cacao forest

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 02 May 2014 16:40:00 +0000

If Fabros Farm accomplishes their goal of planting more than 50 hectares of their forests with cacao, then it would become one if not the biggest cacao farm in Northern Luzon.

My introduction to the Fabros Farm is by way of a blog post - My own Bean-to-Bar chocolate making experience. Mr. Ansel Fabros, a medtech in Canada got to read my blog and that started our exchange about cacao and chocolate.

He was also instrumental for the first cacao seminar I attended that was offered for free by SOAP. There I met with his brothers Arnold and Ariel and some of their farm technicians. They brought and gave me several cacao pods (they call native variety) that I am now growing as seedlings.

He agreed on my request to visit their farm. So past midnite, on a Holy Thursday (April 17, 2014) , with bus terminal jam packed with people, I joined the chaos of an hour-long queue of commuters wanting to get a ride. Lucky enough to get a seat to Cabanatuan and then a van ride to Aurora, I arrived safe for the first time in the province.

I was received at the public market and was brought to the nursery of the Fabros Farm. I was told that there are around 50,000 seedlings ready to be transferred to the site. Most of the seedlings were grafted. And that they have a 70% success rate of survival for their grafted seedlings. The grafted seedlings appear to be healthy, although some of the leaves shows sign of being eaten by insects. The farm uses insecticides to keep away insects from harming the seedlings. In some parts, the nursery is a bit grassy, almost serving as shade to the seedlings.

Aside from the seedlings located on the designated nursery plots, some of the seedlings were also under mango tree serving as shade. Although not prevalent, one of the problems identified is the presence of some fungus that seems to attack the roots of seedlings, making them rot. Solution to the problem is still being identified by the farm technician.

Cacao is endemic in the locality of Maria Aurora. In the neighborhood of Brgy. Diaat alone, cacao trees are grown in backyards. I was even shown of one resilient and abundantly fruiting cacao that is precariously thriving on a rocky ground on one end of the bridge just on top of its abutment. The tree appears like dangling on a cliff above the rushing water. In other locations close by the river are some tall cacao trees that are intercropped with coconut and other trees. The trees are more than five years old and showing some of the common cacao diseases.

Fabros Farm manages two separate locations for their cacao farm. One of the locations is called Agtedtedted more than 20 hectares and the other area is called Mumunsi, bigger area and several locations of more than 30 hectares. Both are forest areas that used to be logging sites where remnants of cut trunks of huge and giant trees are on a state of decay. And the road system for 6x6 trucks remain passable.

Agtedteded is the pioneer farm. The location is about two kilometers away from the residential areas. Going to the area one has to traverse the long and winding river system. Given also the condition of the bumpy roads, the seedlings from the nursery are allowed to recover for a week after they get transported to their new location. After more than six months, almost half of the cleared area are now replanted with cacao seedlings and other intercrops. The distance they implement is 3.5m x 3.5m for coconut and cacao intercrop and 3m x 3m for cacao to cacao. The location has a spring that serves as a source of potable water for drinking and farm use.

Several farmers are tending the farm doing different farm duties. Some are clearing the farm for planting. Others are making charcoals from the fallen trees. Others do the spraying of a cocktail of foliar, fungicide, and insecticide. Spraying is one of the most challenging tasks given the hills get steep. Additional workers are being considered so as to cover spraying the wide expanse of the area.

Corn is used as shade and intercropped with cacao. Other vegetables are grown as well to serve as source of food for farmers who prefer to stay in the farm for the whole duration of the weekdays. Fruit trees and other trees (madre de kakaw) are also planted to serve as wind breakers.

Meanwhile the Mumunsi is the second location for the cacao which is more expanse. In an adjacent area are some old coffee trees which will be rehabilitated and soon planted with new coffee trees. Plots of coffee seedlings are also maintained in that location. There's a small cottage being built on top of the farm. And just below it is a swimming pool size pond to raise fresh water fishes as future source of food for farmers. Water source is from a spring. An almost kilometer length of water pipe was laid out from the spring to the cottage.

There are lots of work that still needs to be done in the area. Much of the cutting of trees and clearing are still on-going, although in the cleared area close by the cottage it is already planted with cacao seedlings. Transport of the cacao seedlings are being scheduled since the river gets swollen during rainy days and the rainy months is soon to come. Since the location is surrounded by forests, it gets cool in the late afternoon and sometimes showers at night.

Mr. Ansel Fabros is well aware of the challenges and concerns that they are faced with. But since he has invested most of his savings and support from angel investors, there's no more turning back. Fabros Farm continues to invest in training their farm technicians. They are scheduled this summer for a 2-week cacao farming immersion with Mr. Peter Cruz in Davao.

So what was the inspiration for setting up the farm? Below is a quote from Mr. Fabros:

When I went home in 2012, I saw many folks are jobless and just hanging around in our barangay (village). Also, I felt like that some of the amount we give as investment for the family business back home are going nowhere. Some of our properties remain idle so I started reading about High Value Crops and cacao got my attention. I did research on the internet and communicated with some cacao players. And was frustrated BIG TIME with government's lack of reply to my queries.

When I consulted a friend about cacao growing and believes in the profitability of the project, that's when Fabros Farm started. I have high hopes about this project. It is a very ambitious and daring and I credit my brothers effort. They are all absorbing the stress and pressure from me. I hope someday, it will not only my family that will benefit but the rest of the folks in our barangay. When the cacaos are fruiting and we have added income, it is my plan to do "contract growing, intercropped with coconut" with or without government assistance.

Fabros Farm's pioneering spirit and noble goal of providing livelihood to the people of their barangay is laudable. Despite the many challenges and their lack of experience, the family enterprise make up for it with their collective effort and enthusiasm to see to it that their venture succeed. With its humongous size Fabros Farm is not just a cacao farm but a cacao forest full of potentials.

More fotos here - https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.617984204937828.1073741830.365825456820372&type=3

https://www.flickr.com//photos/pinoychocophile/sets/72157644081493630/show/

Guide to Chocolate by MyChocolate

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 27 Apr 2014 09:57:00 +0000

Thank you Mr. Edwards, Maraming salamat po, for the offer to feature your infographics. Below is an excerpt of his letter to me:

Good Morning,

My name is James Edwards and I work with MyChocolate; a specialist provider of chocolate making workshops in London.

I’m excited to tell you about a fun infographic we’ve just created which acts as a ‘Guide to Chocolate’! It’s packed with interesting facts and statistics all about the history of this delightful food, the varied characteristics of the cocoa bean and the lesser known health benefits it holds.

Given the nature of your site, I thought that your readership would really like to have a look at it as well, so I’m offering it to you to use totally free of charge.

Many thanks for your time.

Kind regards,

James

Provided by MyChocolate

Cacao Sense: The story of Dingayan Cacao Farm

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 21 Apr 2014 15:35:00 +0000

Little did I know that cacao is also grown in several farms up north of the Philippines. I found out of such farm that has already been existing the last six years in Lasam, Cagayan through the presentation made by Mr. Wiley Dingayan, the owner and farm manager of Dingayan Cacao Farm (DCF) at the Philippine Chocolate Festival held last 15 February 2014 at SM Masinag. I inquired if I could visit the farm someday and Mr. Wiley was polite enough to accede to my request.

So when I went back to Ilocos for the graduation of my niece, I made arrangement to visit the farm. The story below was related to me both by Engr. Fred and Mr. Willey of DCF during our exchange when I visited their farm in Lasam, Cagayan.

DCF Inspiration

It was a Pastor of United Methodist Church, Pastor Joey Nitura, who suggested that we plant cacao. He informed us that Mr. Arthur Cruz (a Methodist church member at Gattaran) had already planted 3,000 cacao trees that came from Davao, in his farm in Brgy. Minanga, Lasam Cagayan. We got interested, so we paid him a visit and read some of his brochures and books about cacao. We invited Mang Arthur to visit the property we planned to plant cacao and he told us it was okay to grow cacao there.

What inspired us to persevere in the farm is the recognized demand and need of cacao supply both in the local and global market that is not being met with the current Philippine cacao production. Although, it is not an easy task, it is our aspiration and mission here in Lasam to increase cacao production.

We started planting cacao in our lot in Nicolas Agatep, Lasam Cagayan. The cost then of the 50 seedlings we bought was PhP25.00/seedling. During that time, we had zero knowledge of actual cacao growing and encountered problems in its maintenance. Then, there was drought, not one of our cacao plants survived.

So, before we tried planting again. We made several researches and then decided to do massive planting, we created a nursery, then, we purchased 1,000 seedlings from Mang Arthur.

We were then using iron bar and spade for digging, but it was very slow. So, we invented a new hole digger, which made digging faster and easier. That innovation has become one of the most useful tool we now have in our farm. Since the farm is now bigger we recruited people to help us maintain the farm. When the property adjacent to our farm was sold to us, it was a sign for us to go massive cacao planting. We were quite choosy with the people who work for us. We only selected people who are dedicated, and true enough they still remained with us.

Cacao sense is common sense

Most of our practices are based on common sense, keen observations and experiences gained throughout the years of our operations. In the farm, we have existing shade trees, like madre de kakaw and the big grasses served also as shade. Since our seedlings were being transported from another place we made sure that the seedlings recovered first, before they get re-planted. We even dug deeper and wider holes using our invented hole digger for planting the trees.

Our approach to pest is more of an integrated pest management. Most of the time we use organic inputs, but as a balance, we also use chemical pesticides, herbicides, and weedicides, especially, at that time when the cacao seedlings were still growing. Through time we have learned the life cycle of insects. We also learned when and where to spray, and where these insects hide during day time.

We had a very bad experience on grafted cacao trees. Of the 100 field grafted cacao seedlings, only one survived. So we stopped grafting and let the cacao seedlings grow naturally. Besides, the life span of un-grafted seedlings is longer than the grafted ones.

We are also particular at record keeping. We have assigned one of our workers in monitoring and filling data of the farm journal we devised. It contains information as to their daily, weekly and monthly tasks. That way, we can keep track of their output and can also know the status of the cacao trees. At first, we even kept data of the weight of the harvested pods including its thickness; weight of beans, before and after mucilage is removed; the weight of beans before and after fermentation; and weight loss before and after drying the beans.

Harvest Target

Our target harvest is at least 2800 pods/week from the 5000 trees that are now flowering. If we can attain that this year, we can already sustain our operations and fund our next expansion. Last year, we were already harvesting more or less 1200 pods weekly, but due to typhoon “vinta”, we are down to 80-100 pods a week. The trees have just recovered, and they are flowering and fruiting right now, by June or July we are optimistic that we will be back to 1200 pods/week harvest or more. We have instructed the farmers to prioritize the flowering trees and then focus on what intervention to do next with the non-flowering trees.

Looking back, during our first few harvests, we were able to harvest 50 pods, our biggest that time, and we were so happy that we invited some friends to come over our house and eat the cacao mucilage, and that’s when we formed the, what we called, "molmol club". We did that for a few months, it was good way to introduce cacao to our town folks.

Post Harvest

Our process from harvesting to drying has improved through the years. As we learned the nuances of the operation, we try to adjust, modify and innovate according to our needs, but without sacrificing the quality of our beans. Our aim is to produce clean and high quality beans. So, we always keep that in mind every time we make changes.

The first step after harvest is to break the pods to get the cacao beans. The usual practice was to use a wooden pallet to break the pod or bolo. We found this very tedious and very slow, so we made a portable pod breaker to make the process faster and it is what we are using now. And since it is portable, it is easier to clean and we can bring the pod breaker anywhere in the farm.

The second step is fermentation. The beans are placed in a container and are fermented for 6-7days. Even our containers have changed. The one we are using now makes it very convenient to get the juice for wine, vinegar and fertilizer making.

The third step is to wash and sort the beans. At first, we were only using a pail and a strainer, but as the volume of harvest increased, so is the time do the task. So we designed a device where we can easily wash the beans, and at the same time, sort out the small-sized beans, as well as the empty beans. And this saved us so much time. Another reason for this idea, is that when small beans and empty beans are NOT separated from the bigger beans, the beans takes longer to dry, and they are more prone to have molds. So, we opted to separate them before drying.

The fourth step is drying, we used to dry cacao beans in a bilao (native baskets). And we had to use old mosquito nets to shield the cacao beans from being infested by flies. We are very particular with cleanliness, so as much as possible; we don’t want insects and flies on our beans. So, in 2012, when our harvest increased, we decided to create a portable solar dryer, it’s another innovation for our farm. And, as the harvest grew we constructed more solar dryers for drying the beans.

We are also planning to invest on a mechanical dryer useful especially during the rainy season. With a mechanical dryer we can control the drying of cacao beans as compared to the conventional drying we are using now. Also, we are considering a “pugon” (oven) type of drying like they do when drying Virginia tobacco.

Even our cacao grinder for making tablea is also a product of innovation. We based it on existing equipments we have seen, like that of a peanut grinder that make peanut butter.

Government support for Cacao Entrepreneur

It is high time for the government to give support not only to cooperatives, but also to individual cacao entrepreneurs. And the support should come in the form of cash. This way it gives entrepreneurs the freedom to choose a suitable equipment for his/her farm.

Another thing that we would like for the government to do is to establish a ceiling price for cacao, just like rice and corn, so that more farmers will be encouraged to plant cacao.

Tsokolate drink tradition with cacao farmers

Every morning before the workers go to the farm they come to our house for a chocolate drink. I personally make and serve them their energy drink. It is one of our farm’s regular activity that we have institutionalized. During our chocolate drinking session we exchange, update and discuss what’s to be done for the day. It is good for the workers to have a taste of the fruit of their labor.

Our workers take care of our farm, so we also care for their welfare and well being. That is why, aside from their daily wage, we also give them daily meal and transportation allowance. And we also provide scholarships to the children of our workers. We planned to give them more benefits once we generate enough income to sustain our operations and have funds for those additional benefits.

Dingayan Cacao Farm (DCF)

Owner: Willette “Wiley” Medrano-Dingayan

Add: #127 Centro 01, Lasam, Cagayan 3524

dingayancacaofarm@gmail.com

www.facebook.com/dingayancacao

Strangled Cacao: Debunking Coconut-Cacao Inter-cropping?

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 12 Apr 2014 14:40:00 +0000

The account and personal experience below of Mr. Lazaro was pointed out to me by Mr. Wiley of DCF when I visited their farm. I mentioned to them that I saw an article about inter-cropping cacao and coconut so I shared it on this blog through these posts:

http://pinoychocophile.blogspot.com/2013/11/intercropping-coconut-with-cacao.html#.Uz7B66g-rpo

http://pinoychocophile.blogspot.com/2014/01/intercropping-coconut-and-cacao.html#.Uz7CUKg-rpo

An excerpt from the book:

One big mistake Lazaro distinctly remembers is a decision he made while still with the Benguet Corporation, when he strangled... cacao. "I wanted to move into the agricultural filed in a non-traditional way, so we identified a location that appeared ideal for citrus development. We spent a lot of money to develop the farm, but it did not produce the kinds of fruits we wanted. We planted cacao under coconut trees because cacao needs shade, and we thought there was a symbiosis between the two - we could fertilize the cacao and the coconut at the same time. But we ended up with two cropfields that lost a lot of money because, as we fertilized cacao. which is the higher value crop, the roots of the coconut went after the fertilizer, and you know the roots of the coconut are so strong so they eventually strangled the cacao. We produced coconuts that were so big, but lost the higher value crop, the cacao, was lost."

How to deal with such a blunder? Lazaro is quick to answer:"You just accept it and write it of."

Extraordinary Stories for Aspiring Leaders
Editors, Victor L. Madaraog and Nikki Katherine M. Dy-Liacco

page 121, Anvil, 2008

The book features fifty-one extraordinary men and women business leaders whose life challenges, experiences and achievements have given them insights into the kind of leadership that inspires, ignites and propels positive change in our society. Written for aspiring leaders, this book features extraordinary accounts that can inspire and instill hope for those who are searching for present-day role models. http://www.anvilpublishing.com/shop/extraordinary-bookpaper/

I will verify with PCA if they have farms to demonstrate and validate what they've proposed is really working and will contradict the account above. Perhaps there are farms that would prove PCA's suggestion is really effective based on their own experience and I would like to visit and see the place for myself, because I am even proposing such scheme to a group of farmers in Quezon. Now I have to refrain from pursuing the suggestion until I have personally verified it myself.

Hope readers of this blog could point me if there are farms that effectively, efficiently, and productively inter-crop of cacao and coconut. Would appreciate any lead. Salamat po.

Chocolates in the Philippines by Joy Kristel L. Orzales

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 04 Apr 2014 21:00:00 +0000

The Sweet World of Chocolates in the Philippines1

April 2011

Joy Kristel L. Orzales
Researcher
Center for Food and Agri Business
University of Asia and the Pacific

Chocolate is one of the most craved foods in the world. Ever wondered why many people turn to chocolates when they are sad?

Studies show that chocolates have many chemicals that interact with the brain and enhance the mood. Some of the known chemicals are anandamide that causes the feeling of well-being, phenylephylamine that changes the blood pressure and blood sugar and increases the pulse rate similar to the feeling when in love, and endorphin, better known as the happy hormone, because it can lessen pain and decrease stress. This is the reason why there is a steady demand for chocolates all around the globe.

Performance

Chocolate manufacturing is a billion peso industry in the country. Based on the latest Census of Philippine Business Industry (2006), there are eight local establishments with total employment of 20 and above that manufacture chocolate and cocoa products including chocolate candies with total revenues of P3 billion.

Meanwhile, according to the National Statistics Office-Family Income and Expenditure Survey, Filipinos spent P4.8 billion in 2009 for sugar products that consist of candies and chocolates, among others. Spending was up by 10 percent per annum from P3.6 billion in 2006, or 4.7 percent per annum if adjusted for inflation.

Trade

The Philippines is a net importer of chocolates. The trade deficit (exports minus imports) increased by 15.7 percent per annum from US$2.1 million in 2006 to US$3.7 million in 2010.

Imports. In 2010, the country imported 1,818 tons of chocolates valued at US$5.4 million. There was a decrease of 0.5 percent per annum from 2,166 tons (US$4.2 million) in 2006. Imports peaked in 2009 at 3,051 tons valued at US$8.2 million.

Figure 1. Total Volume and Value of Chocolate Imports*, 2006-2010
(Volume in tons, CIF value in US$ '000)

Description

* includes chocolate confectionery and white chocolate
Source: BAS

The United States (US) was the major source of chocolates from 2006 to 2010 except in 2007 where Malaysia was the major origin. In 2010, it supplied 361 tons valued at US$534 thousand, which was 20 percent of total imports. Other leading sources of chocolates during the year were Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Indonesia, and China.

The popular brands imported from the US are Hershey's, Mars, Snickers, and M&M. Gandour chocolates like Tofiluk, Demolino, and Safari are from Saudi Arabia. Delfi chocolates like Delfi Chocolate Sticks and Chic Choc biscuits are from Singapore under the management of Petra Foods Ltd.

Exports. Philippine exports of chocolates were volatile from 2006 to 2010, with peak in 2007 at 898 tons valued at US$2.8 million. Exports decreased from 747 tons (US$2.1 million) in 2006 to 591 tons (US$1.7 million) in 2010. Volumes contracted by an average of 2.6 percent per annum although export values increased during the period.

Figure 2. Total Volume and Value of Chocolate Exports, 2006-2010
(Volume in tons, FOB value in US$'000)

Description

Source: BAS

In 2010, Korea was the major market of Philippine chocolates, followed by Canada and the US.

Key Players

There are several companies engaged in chocolate manufacturing in the country. The three largest are Universal Robina Corporation, Commonwealth Foods, Inc. and Goya, Inc. under Delfi Foods Inc.

Universal Robina Corporation. Universal Robina Corporation (URC) is the market leader in chocolates and the leading branded convenience food and beverage company in the Philippines. It manufactures enrobed chocolates and panned chocolates. Its popular enrobed chocolate brands are Cloud 9, Big Bang, Chooey, and Monster Munch while its panned chocolate, Nips, is the most popular in its category. It also exports chocolates to Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, and Hong Kong.
Commonwealth Foods, Inc. Commonwealth Foods, Inc. (Comfoods) is a manufacturer of chocolates as well as other products like coffee, cookies, biscuits, milk products, coffee beans, flour, and sugar. Its chocolate brands are Flat Tops, Curly Tops, Choco Mallows, and Chocolate Crunchies.
Goya, Inc. Goya, Inc. is now under Delfi Foods Inc., which is a wholly owned subsidiary of Petra Foods Inc., a Singapore-based manufacturer of branded consumer confectionery. Delfi bought the manufacturing plant and sales and distribution assets of Nestle Philippines together with Goya for an aggregate deal of US$5 million in March 2006. Currently, Knick Knacks and all of the Goya products are under Petra's subsidiary in the Philippines. Delfi Foods Inc. had net sales of P1.2 billion in 2009, according to Business World's Top 1000 Corporations in the Philippines. The popular Goya products are chocolate coins and eggs.
Other players. There are other chocolate manufacturers like Multirich Foods Corp. (Choco Mucho), Columbia International Food Products Inc. (Klicx Cruncher and Chocquick bars), Monde Nissin (Snitch Choco Bar), Twin Oaks Foods Corp. (Mayfair), Stateline Snack Food Corp. (Stateline Nimble Chocolates), New Unity Sweets Mfg. Corp. (Choc-Nut), Annie Candy Manufacturing (Hany Milk Chocolate), and Gracepoint Enterprises (Lala).

Aside from the manufacturers, there are also importers and distributors in the industry. These include Nestlé Philippines Inc. (Kitkat and Crunch), Hershey's Philippines Inc. (Hershey's Kisses and Hershey's Milk Chocolates), Valiant Distribution Inc. (Hershey's Kisses), Cadbury Adams (Philippines) Inc. (Cadbury), Grand Dragon Ent. Inc. (Meiji chocolates, Yan Yan and Hello Panda), Mars Philippines Inc. (Mars, M&M, Snickers, and Malteeser), Sweetie Shoppe Inc. (Toblerone), Gandour Philippines Inc. (Tofiluk, Demolino, Safari, and Pik-One), Kenda International Inc. (Butterfinger, Baby Ruth, Frey, Swiss Delice, and Rittersport), Delfi Marketing Inc. (Delfi), Mega Marketing Inc. (Ferrero Rocher and Ferrero Tronky), and Rustan Marketing Specialists, Inc. (Marks and Spencer).

There are also kiosks that sell high-end chocolates like Royce' and Leonidas. Royce' is a Japanese chocolate manufactured by Royce' Confect Co., Ltd. which offers chocolate-powdered chocolates that melts in the mouth. Royce' chocolates cost more than P500 for a 20-piece chocolate box. Kiosks can be seen at Powerplant Mall and Greenbelt 5 in Makati, Trinoma Mall and Eastwood Mall in Quezon City, and Robinson's Place in Manila.

Meanwhile, Leonidas is a Belgian brand that offers 100 percent pure cocoa butter for the coating with many flavors available. The price ranges from P1,700 to P3,500 for tin cans, P250 to P2,500 for boxes, and P200 for singles. Leonidas kiosks are located at SM Mall of Asia in Pasay, Alabang Town Center in Ayala-Alabang, The Podium in Ortigas, and Shangri-La Plaza Mall in Mandaluyong.

Prices and Distribution

People can buy local chocolate bars for as low as P4.95 for a 28-gram (g) Klicx Cruncher or Chocquick to as high as P78.50 for a Goya Chunky chocolate. Meanwhile, packed chocolate prices ranged from P21.50 (Curly Tops, 15 pieces) to P154.50 (Goya chocolate coins). Imported chocolates are much more expensive. Prices can vary from as low of P20.00 (Nestle Kitkat) to as high as P149.50 (Lindt Almond) for chocolate bars and from P54.50 (Ferrero Rocher, 3 pieces) to P564.50 (Ferrero Rocher, 30 pieces) for packed chocolates.

Table 1 shows the indicative prices of selected imported and local chocolates.

Table 1. Indicative Prices of Selected Imported and Local Chocolates
(in pesos)
Chocolates Imported (90-100g)	Price
Lindt Almond	149.50
Lindt Double Milk	139.50
Frey Classiq	84.50
Rittersport White	83.50
Toblerone Chocolate	84.50
Toblerone White	91.50

Table 1. Indicative Prices of Selected Imported and Local Chocolates
(in pesos) - continued
Chocolates Imported (90-100g)	Price
Goya Chunky	78.50
Goya Indulgence	78.50

Table 1. Indicative Prices of Selected Imported and Local Chocolates
(in pesos) - continued
Chocolates Imported (35-55g)	Price
Nestle Kitkat	20.00
Butterfinger Crisp	31.50
Nestle Crunch	31.50
Snickers Almonds	44.50
Snickers Classic	31.50
Toblerone White	46.50
Toblerone Chocolate	44.50
Cadburry Dairy Milk	42.50
M&M peanut	31.50

Table 1. Indicative Prices of Selected Imported and Local Chocolates
(in pesos) - continued
Chocolates Local (35-55g)	Price
Nips	11.50
Goya Cookies n' Cream	18.50
Goya Almond Choco	17.50
Goya Milk Choco	17.50
Goya Strawberry n' Cream	17.50

Table 1. Indicative Prices of Selected Imported and Local Chocolates
(in pesos) - continued
Chocolates Local (25-30g)	Price
Cloud 9 Crunchy	6.50
Cloud 9 Berry Burst	5.95
Cloud 9 Nougat	5.95
Goya O' Nuts	15.00
Goya Dark Chocolate	19.50
Goya Intense Dark	28.50
Choco Mucho	5.50
Klicx Cruncher	4.95
Snitch Chocolate Bar	5.50
Chocquick	4.95

Table 1. Indicative Prices of Selected Imported and Local Chocolates
(in pesos) - continued
Chocolates Imported (In Packs)	Price
Ferrero Rocher, 30 pieces	564.50
Ferrero Rocher, 16 pieces	314.50
Ferrero Rocher, 5 pieces	99.50
Ferrero Rocher,3 pieces	54.50
Ferrero Tronky, 108g 6's	112.50
Hershey's Kisses, 235 g	239.50
Hershey's Kisses Almonds, 235g	239.50

Table 1. Indicative Prices of Selected Imported and Local Chocolates
(in pesos) - continued
Chocolates Local (In Packs)	Price
Flat tops, 30's	38.50
Choc-Nut, 24's	33.50
Curly tops, 15's	21.50
Curly tops, 24's	34.50
Goya Chocolate coins, 500 g	154.50
Goya Silver cups, 420 g	104.50

Source: Selected Supermarkets in Metro Manila, March 2011

Chocolates are patronized by people from all ages and gender. They are highly in demand during the months of February (Valentine's Day) and December (Christmas) because people usually give them as gifts.

Chocolates can be bought in supermarkets, grocery stores, convenience stores, drugstores, department stores, and duty free shops. They are usually packed in foil or boxes.

Challenges and Opportunities

Local chocolate manufacturers face several challenges. For one, production of cocoa, a key raw material, remains lacking in terms of both quantity and quality. It also has to be shared by different industries like beverage, baking, ice cream, food service, and chocolate, among others.

Manufacturers are also affected by the rising prices of sugar, another important ingredient. In late March this year, the retail price for refined sugar stood at P64 per kilogram (kg) from only P53 per kg during the comparable period last year.

Aside from the price of sugar, tariff is also a concern. The current tariff imposed on imported sugar is higher than the tariff for processed chocolate imports. Since 2009, the tariff is 38 percent for in-quota and out-quota shipments from countries under the ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA) and 50 percent for in-quota and 65 percent for out-quota from other countries. This is higher than the tariff imposed on processed chocolates which is zero for AFTA countries and seven percent from other countries. This puts local chocolate manufacturers at a disadvantage compared to just importing processed chocolates. Tariff on sugar though will be lowered to 18 percent in 2013 and to five percent by 2015 for AFTA countries.

The lower tariff on chocolates has also led to intensified competition between local and imported chocolates. Local producers have to exert more effort to be competitive in the local market.
Amid the challenges, there are opportunities in the local and international markets. The advantage that local chocolate manufacturers have is the ability to cater to the majority of the population by offering low- to mid-priced chocolates in small packages. They also pursue continuous product innovations to cater to changing consumer tastes and preferences. Some have products which are already comparable with imported brands.

There are also international chocolate manufacturers like Askinosie Chocolate and Mars, Inc. thathave started to import Philippine cacao. Askinosie Chocolate sources out some of its cocoa bean requirements from Davao. Mars, Inc. has established a Mars Cocoa Development Center in Davao to help farmers produce quality cocoa beans, which has started to import at market value. This shows that the Philippines has the potential to produce high quality chocolates that can compete in the international market.

An increase in the production of high quality cacao beans will help propel the local chocolate industry. In this regard, the government provides support in terms of improving the production of high quality cacao beans such as Criollo. A research, development, and extension program for cacao from 2008 to 2012 has been funded by Department of Agriculture - Bureau of Agricultural Research (DA-BAR). The agency's National Research and Development Extension Agenda and Programs for 2011 to 2015 has listed cacao as a priority crop. The DA Agri-Pinoy High Value Crops Development Program also includes cacao production that will give the farmers technical assistance, technologies, and choice planting materials.

There are also programs for the development of the local cacao industry initiated by private organizations such as Cocoa Foundation of the Philippines (CocoaPhil), a non-stock and non-profit organization of farmers, cacao buyers and processors, and professionals. A cocoa road map, which aims to plant 50 million cacao trees by 2020 to supply the demand of 30,000 tons of cacao beans per year by the local manufacturers, was initiated by CocoaPhil and the Agricultural Cooperative Development International/Volunteers in Overseas Cooperative Assistance (ACDI/VOCA), a US-based non-government organization. ACDI/VOCA also implemented the SUCCESS Alliance program aimed to improve cocoa production and marketing linkages in the country from 2002 to 2005 for the first phase and 2006 to 2009 for the second phase. The project was funded by US Agency for International Development and US Department of Agriculture (USDA), respectively.
Another project of ACDI/VOCA is the CoCoPal (Cocoa, Coconut, and Palayamanan), a three-year USDA-funded project that aims to equip the farmers with skills and introduce them to new technologies so they can produce beans and sell premium black chocolate that will pass international standards. This project started in 2010, in collaboration with four local agencies: CocoaPhil, PhilRice, Landcare Foundation, and Philippine Association of Small Coconut Farmers.

All these initiatives to increase the production of high quality cacao beans will help boost the local chocolate industry. And hopefully, the industry will enjoy sweet success in the future.

References

BusinessWorld Top 1000 Corporations in the Philippines 2010.
Bureau of Agricultural Statistics.
Galvez, Marie Annette. A Bite of the Philippine Chocolate Industry. Food and Agri Business Monitor. University of Asia and the Pacific. August 2001.
National Statistics Office. Census of Philippine Business Industry, 2006 and 2009.Family Income and Expenditure Survey, 2006 and 2009.
Philippine Sugar Millers Association. Retail Prices of Refined Sugar (monthly
Philippine Tariff Commission. ASEAN Harmonized Tariff Nomenclature Book 2010 MFN Rates.
Remo, Amy. Cocoa: Answer to RP's need for a cash crop? Manila Bulletin, May 24, 2008.
Sarian, Zac. Ambitious Cacao Production Program. Manila Bulletin, March 4, 2011.

Various company websites.

www.cocoaphil.org
www.thesuccessalliance.org

1. Published in the April 2011 issue of the Food and Agri Business Monitor, a monthly magazine of the University of Asia and the Pacific's Center for Food and Agri Business, Pasig City, Philippines.

Source - http://www.ats-sea.agr.gc.ca/ase/5846-eng.htm

(Thanks to Tsokolate Abe! for this link)

Global Approaches to Cacao Germplasm Utilization and Conservation by Eskes and Efron

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 23 Mar 2014 11:31:00 +0000

Source - http://www.bioversityinternational.org/e-library/publications/detail/global-approaches-to-cocoa-germplasm-utilization-and-conservation/

Cocoa is a commodity produced in the developing countries of the tropics and consumed mostly in the middle- and high-income countries of the world's temperate zones. Currently, over 50 countries engage in cocoa production, of which some heavily rely on cocoa exports for their economic development as they contribute significantly to their foreign exchange earnings.

From a level of 1.5 million tonnes in 1983-84, world production of cocoa beans is steadily rising and has reached a peak of 3.5 million tonnes in 2003-04. This significant increase is almost entirely due to an expansion of production area. Over 90% of world cocoa is produced by smallholder farmers who rely almost entirely on the supply of improved planting material from national and international research institutes. Nearly all producing countries grow cocoa on an extensive basis resulting in low average yields, which - on global average - have only increased little over the past three decades. This contrasts with the often dramatic advances in yields of other tropical or temperate crops and in particular for other raw materials, often used to manufacture snack foods which are competitive with cocoa. Gains in global yield and productivity of cocoa are now essential. As pressure on available land increases, the need for higher yielding, pest- and disease-resistant cocoa varieties becomes ever more urgent. This Technical Paper is the result of work undertaken in the CFC/ICCO/IPGRI project: "Cocoa Germplasm Utilization and Conservation: a Global Approach", which aimed at a more sustainable production of cocoa at lower costs, by making optimal use of cocoa germplasm. Special attention was paid to the evaluation and selection of resistance to some of the major diseases and pests, such as black pod, witches' broom, vascular streak dieback, moniliasis, cocoa swollen shoot virus and mirids, which together cause losses of an estimated 40% percent of annual world cocoa production. The Common Fund for Commodities acknowledges the significant inputs of both the International Cocoa Organization (ICCO) as Project Supervisory Body, and the International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI) as Project Executing Agency for the successful implementation of the project in 12 countries. In line with the policy to disseminate the information produced by activities financed by the Fund, it is my expectation that this publication will be instrumental to make the results and experiences of this project available to a wider audience. It is hoped that extension workers, researchers and policy-makers would find this publication useful and relevant for improving access of higher yielding, good bean quality and disease-resistant cocoa varieties to farmers.

Category: Technical guidelines/Technical bulletins
Author: Eskes, A.B.; Efron, Y. (eds.)
Corporate Author: International Cocoa Organization (ICCO), London (United Kingdom); International Plant Genetic Resources Instit., (IPGRI), Rome (Italy)
Pages: 224 p.
Publication Year: 2006
Publication Format: A4; PDF
ISBN-10: 92-9043-734-0
ISBN-13: 978-92-9043-734-5
Language: EN

World Cocoa Conference 2014

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 10 Mar 2014 10:11:00 +0000

The 2014 World Cocoa Conference is being organized by the International Cocoa Organization (www.icco.org) and will be hosted by the government of The Netherlands.

With the theme 'Towards a Sustainable Cocoa Economy', the second edition of the World Cocoa Conference, will look at the progress made in achieving the goals outlined in the Global Cocoa Agenda and the Abidjan Cocoa Declaration, signed by the key stakeholders at the first edition in Cote d'Ivoire in 2012.

Scheduled for 9-13 June, 2014, in Amsterdam, the event will include a wide-ranging and very international Conference focusing on all the important issues in the cocoa and chocolate industry, an Exhibition showing the latest products and services available to the sector, a Conference Dinner, sightseeing, site visits and more.

Sustainable cocoa is a major goal, and the Conference will look at the ways in which major cocoa and chocolate companies, national governments of producing and consuming countries, and NGOs and development agencies are tackling the issues involved.

Check website here - http://worldcocoaconference.org/

Facebook page - https://www.facebook.com/WorldCocoaConference

Sustainable Cocoa and Certification

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 08 Mar 2014 14:52:00 +0000

While doing research on cacao certification I was led to ICCO website and found out lots of documents from their site. The Philippines is not yet a member of ICCO give that it is not producing big quantity of cacao/cocoa, but forward looking, the Philippine government should consider becoming a member with the renewed enthusiasm of cacao growers and farmers to plant more cacao trees and produce tons of cocoa.

This is a good read and reference but what I am after is a standard also for organic cacao, still this is a good basis for setting up such standards. In the framework though - dominance of profit over planet and people seems to me a very striking representation on the issue of sustainability. What would be the more appropriate representation for this diagram - that's the challenged that ought to be addressed!

The following are the main description of the framework:

Basic People (Social Responsibility) Principles
There is no specific definition of social sustainability and there is strong overlap and influence of the other dimensions. For the purposes of this discussion, the social dimension places people at the center. Focusing on commonalities of initiatives operating in the cocoa sector, issues of Human Rights, Communities, Labor Rights and Working Conditions (including Health and Safety) are included. These principles also consider The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), as well as the Ethical Trading Initiative and Social Accountability International's SA8000 standard. Italicized issues have a high degree of overlap but not consistently across other initiatives.

Basic Planet (Environmental) Principles
Responsible environmental stewardship in cocoa‐farms and communities. Sustainable cocoa farming seeks to utilize natural resources in such a way that they can regenerate their productive capacity, and also minimize harmful impacts on ecosystems beyond a farm boundary.

Basic Profit (Economic) Principles
The viability of cocoa farming systems depends on its ability to contribute to the economic security of the key actors. At the farm level, economic viability security includes individual producers, producer groups, as well as maintaining household economic security while maintaining or increasing the quality of life for farm families and workers. Historically, the goal of economic viability and sustainable farmer livelihoods has been an assumption of outcomes of the sustainability standards, not necessarily integrated into the standard requirements.

Sustainable Cocoa and Certification
Working Document for Direct Dialogues workshop
March 6th‐ 7th, 2014
February 22, 2014
Prepared for the ICCO
Aimee Russillo

Source - http://www.icco.org/about-us/international-cocoa-agreements/cat_view/68-icco-workshops-and-seminars/136-direct-dialogue-workshop-on-cocoa-certification-zurich-march-2014.html

Issues

Demand for “sustainable” cocoa in developed countries has been increasing and major chocolate manufacturers such as Mars Incorporated, Mondeléz International, Nestlé, Ferrero and Hershey have now publicly committed to source only cocoa that is certified sustainable that will eventually reach 100% fully certified by 2020. As these five leading companies represent about 50% of global cocoa use, the impact of such a strong commitment on the cocoa supply chain cannot be underestimated. This commitment and partnerships with voluntary sustainability standards has driven double and triple digit growth across the major sustainability standard schemes active in the sector (Fairtrade, Organic, Rainforest Alliance and UTZ Certified). Global market penetration over the four years to 2012 as expanded from 3% to 22% according to a recently released report.1

Of concern to some stakeholders is that the current models are certifying the status quo i.e. cocoa producers that are already well organized in successful cooperatives who can more easily meet (or invest in) compliance requirements. Due to the relative early stages of the sector, voluntary standard systems have most likely focused on those early adopters as “the low hanging fruits”. Considering that poverty represents one of the main sustainability issues of commodity production more generally, the vast majority of cocoa farmers remain marginalized and unable to benefit from certification. Evidence on economic gains through certification for cocoa producers is still scarce.

In addition, The European Committee for Standardization (CEN) has developed a technical committee as part of an ISO process to develop a sustainable and traceable cocoa standard CEN/TC 415. Most recently, the ISO/TC 34 working group 4 on cocoa has been elevated to a subcommittee designed to ensure more producing country participation. Some industry players have also developed their own sustainable cocoa programs and codes for their supply chains.

In view of multiplicity of standards and perceived limitations, (including relevance and applicability to local conditions and capacities), national authorities in some producing countries are now considering developing their own criteria to promote sustainable cocoa. A national standard may offer the advantage of including sector experience and thus making standards requirements more adapted to local reality, as well as improve smallholder access. These efforts are generally harmonized around standard criteria for certification. It remains to be seen whether the recent establishment of the ISO/TC 34 cocoa sub‐committee, with equal participation of producing countries, will integrate any current national level efforts.

Multiple standards are not necessarily a negative thing. Different standards with different approaches offer farmers, producer groups and buyers the opportunity for choice and alternatives that best suit their needs and interests. A marketplace with options can lead to real innovation and can drive performance improvement of the standards through competition. However, the proliferation of certification initiatives at the national, international, private and public levels, all claiming to achieve sustainability and targeting the same cocoa producers, has led to confusion and supply chain pressure to the detriment of smallholders. One of the main challenges is how each of the different systems defines sustainability and how they can complement one another.

Lack of Common Definition for Sustainability

Yet, there is no common agreement on what “sustainable” cocoa means, with some overlap between private, public and national efforts. Numerous past and current initiatives have attempted to address this challenge including The Roundtable for a Sustainable Cocoa Economy (RSCE), ISEAL, GIZ's Cocoa Forum, the World Cocoa Foundation among others. Despite considerable efforts made to harmonize the criteria and approach to measure and reward sustainability, there is a general recognition among cocoa stakeholders that much remains to be done. With the scale and complexity of the challenges in the sector, more cooperation is essential to secure social responsibility, environmental stewardship and economical viability for a sustainable cocoa economy. Different approaches towards sustainable cocoa production are needed and there is increasing attention for solutions in the pre‐competitive domain.

Moving Forward Collaboratively

Against this background, the ICCO organized an international workshop on cocoa certification which was held in Cameroon in June 2013. A recommendation from the workshop was that the ICCO would facilitate a follow‐up workshop, called direct dialogue, initially between the cocoa and chocolate industry and cocoa producing /exporting countries. Subsequently, it was recognized that the inclusion of all stakeholders, including NGOs, development organizations and standard systems were necessary for this direct dialogue.

The follow up workshop has been developed in coordination with the United Nations Forum on sustainability Standards (UNFSS) and takes place early March 2014. Participation will include representatives from cocoa producing countries and the cocoa and chocolate industry, as well as private voluntary standards schemes, CEN/ISO and national standards either already established or being considered by cocoa‐producing countries.

1The State of Sustainability Initiatives Review 2014: Standards and the Green Economy.
http://www.iisd.org/pdf/2014/ssi_2014.pdf

Read more - http://www.icco.org/about-us/international-cocoa-agreements/cat_view/68-icco-workshops-and-seminars/136-direct-dialogue-workshop-on-cocoa-certification-zurich-march-2014.html

CNN on Cocoa-nomics

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 01 Mar 2014 20:00:00 +0000

This CNN cocoa-nomics infographics is very interesting. Philippines is consuming (import data, I suppose) more cacao and chocolate than it is producing. But one thing missing for sure in this data is households use of cacao for drink that is tablea. There are several households scattered in the whole Philippines that grow in their backyard cacao and make their own tableya for drink (or use to flavor champorado and other dish). I have yet to see data on this regard. So the data above is informed mostly of those importations made by the country.

Below are several article and video links on CNN's take on Chocolate or cocoa-nomics:

http://edition.cnn.com/2014/02/13/world/africa/cocoa-nomics-does-chocolate-grow-on-trees/index.html

http://thecnnfreedomproject.blogs.cnn.com/2012/01/19/child-slavery-and-chocolate-all-too-easy-to-find/

http://cnnpressroom.blogs.cnn.com/2014/02/26/cocoa-nomics-a-cnn-freedom-project-documentary/

CNN Short Videos/Teasers (take time to stream - slow connection):

Cocoa farmers taste chocolate for first time

http://cnn.it/1evsnKj

'Cocoa-nomics': The issue of child labour

http://cnn.it/1esfIrm

'Cocoa-nomics': Certified child free cocoa

http://cnn.it/1ciRtMy

Schedule of documentary showing

‘Cocoanomics’ can also be seen at the following times:

Thursday 27 February at 2100 GMT / 2200 CET

Friday 28 February at 0400 GMT / 0500 CET and 1030 GMT / 1130 CET

Saturday 1 March at 1400 GMT / 1500 CET and 1130 GMT / 1230 CET

Sunday 2 March at 1030 GMT / 1130 CET and 1930 GMT / 2030 CET

Monday 3 March at 0100 GMT / 0200 CET, 0430 GMT / 0530 CET and 0830 GMT / 0930 CET

Wednesday 5 March at 1730 GMT / 1830 CET

Online Course on Cacao Production

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 28 Feb 2014 17:58:00 +0000

I found this online and sharing it here for all those interested to know more about cacao production, growing or farming. I hope that this kind of training gets translated in the different Philippine languages to benefit more people especially cacao farmers.

The production of good quality cacao beans starts with the right variety or clones. It is then assured with the adoption of appropriate tree culture and farm practices, harvesting, fermentation and drying. It requires conscious effort on the part of the farmers to ensure that cacao beans meet the standard of quality required in the market.
While this concern addresses the economic and well being of a cacao farmer, he should also be responsible in assuring the well being of the future cacao farmers. The farmer’s endeavor must, therefore, be hinged on the concept of sustainability and environmental accountability.

The farmer’s effort necessitates continued support primarily in terms of technology and market updates. The availability, accessibility and timeliness of such information obtained at least cost, are major enabling factors to farmers to arrive at sound farm decisions. This context emphasizes the significant role of the extension agents and the farmer-leaders as links between farmers and technology sources, as well as between farmers and the market. Thus, the extension capabilities of the extension agents and the farmer-leaders should be enhanced to help the cacao farmers maintain a steady source of income and be at the mainstream of the cacao industry.

This eLearning module shall be a friendly guide on the verified technologies and practices on cacao production that could share when they conduct training to farmers. It contains basic steps, methodologies, practices and considerations in growing cacao based on technologies from both private and public research institutions.

If this is your first experience of an eLearning program, click here to get started and learn how to navigate through the program, find out what different icons mean and know how to get support. Make sure you also familiarize yourself with this program before starting.

Otherwise, if you are ready to begin the Cacao Production program, click the topics below for the lesson links:

Establishment of Budwood Garden or Scion Grove

Establishment and Management of Cacao Nursery

Propagation of Planting Materials

Field Planting

Pruning

Plant Nutrition

Making Compost Using Pod Husks

Management of Common Cacao Pests and Diseases

Harvesting and Post Harvest Operations

Standard Quality Specification

Marketing

Rehabilitation of Cacao Trees

Module Quiz

Source - http://www.damrdp.net/eLearning/Cacao/

Related link - http://pinoychocophile.blogspot.com/2014/02/soap-holds-free-seminar-on-cacao.html#.UwjTWeOSx20

SOAP Holds Free Seminar on Cacao Production

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 22 Feb 2014 16:34:00 +0000

I was able to attend this free seminar through my new online friend Emong Fabros who is in the process of building their Fabros Cacao Farm. I was able to get new cacao from Maria, Aurora courtesy of his brothers who also attended the seminar and brought the speaker Mr. Grover Rosit to their farm.

SOAP or Spread Organic Agriculture in the Philippines aims “to be your one stop hub for all your organic agriculture needs. For everything, everyone and anything organic agriculture. Let us link you to them....our advocacy. I-Hub It!”. The group composed of individuals who advocate organic agriculture provides free seminar every 3rd Friday of the month on different topics on agriculture such as raw food, pro-biotic chicken, coco-sugar processing, etc. Last February 21 they invited Mr. Grover Rosit of Rosit Cacao Farms of Baguio, Davao City for the Cacao Production Seminar.

Seminar participants came from as far as Cagayan and Aurora up North and Samar and Davao down South. The texts below are my notes of the lecture based on the power point presented and exchange among the participants. Refer to his presentation in PDF file below for the data and visuals. The following are highlights from his talk:

Sources - http://www.mediafire.com/download/fpo83joa2185d7h/rosit+final.pptx

Original Source (PPT) - http://www.mediafire.com/view/fpo83joa2185d7h/rosit_final.pptx

Alternative Source (PDF) - https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B1K31tSbc4mBX0tXTFUwMGgtTzg/edit?usp=sharing

Pods Selection

Choose the biggest pod with the biggest seed. Have them soaked in water and discard those that float then allow them to germinate ( put in a warm and dark place) and then transfer to seedling bags. Once they are transferred to seedling bags keep the cover for moisture. Sun and air causes dehydration. Critical time to water seedlings is between 11AM-2PM. UF18 is known to be drought and pest resistant. The pod size and seed most often is half the size of other varieties.

Soil Mixing

Use organic manure/fertilizer. If the soil is clay/sticky add rice hulk and saw dust. If it is sandy add loom and clay soil.

Seedling bag

Use black 6x8 with holes seedling bag.

Nursery

Seeds on its day 1 up to the 3rd week is the most critical period. It is better to have the seedlings on an elevated ground to prevent them from being flooded, especially in areas that might be prone to flooding.

There should be a pathway/road where the seedlings could easily be transported say on a wheel barrow so as not to stress the seedling too much. There should also be a clean source of water supply. Dirty water will cause fungus. Seedlings should also be away from falling objects (example it is not advisable to create nursery underneath coconut trees). Better to arrange the seedlings in a way that it is easy to count for example 10 rows x 100 bags - for a thousand seedlings.

Nursery Construction

Ideal place is a shaded area. Net could be used and other materials to prevent the seedlings from the acidity of rain and direct ultraviolet rays of the sun. It advisable to put matting underneath the seedlings so as to prevent the main root’s protrusion to the soil (cacao roots are sensitive). Create knee deep canal to prevent the seedlings from being constantly soaked in water. Cacao should be prevented from a water logged condition. If water does not dries up 2-3 days after a heavy rain then the place is considered water logged and this is not a good area for cacao to thrive.

Expose seedlings by just the mist of pesticide and fungicide and it is advisable to do it at 6PM since most insects (75%) are nocturnal. Should there be infestation do spraying at least twice a week.

Grafting

Seedlings can be grafted after 3-4 months when the stem have grown into pencil size. Make sure to have the necessary tools for grafting. Those trees that are 30 years old could be considered senile and thus become less productive. Younger trees could produce as much as 200 pods. Cut undesirable trees and introduce new scion (bud stick) from a new and good variety. It will help improve the quality of fruit. Plastic cover for the grafted scion could be removed after 18/21 days. The plastic/cellophane tied cover will help to keep the moist to encourage faster budding. It should be covered from bottom to top (where it was joined). Make sure to have at least a leaf remaining from the root stock ( the leave/s will help with the photosynthesis). The size of the root stock should be the same size of the scion that will be introduced (a longer scion can break the root stock).

Those seedlings that are grafted on the field tend to be more resistant to pest and stress (wind, etc.) than those grafted at the nursery. Water these grafted seedlings at least every 2 days. In a row of seedlings those that gets easily dehydrated are those along the sides, so they need to be watered on a more regular basis.

The importance of grafting is to make the tree to have a high fruiting capacity. It will also prevent the trees from growing tall. A dwarfed tree would be easier to wrap and put plastic on the cacao pods to prevent it from being infested by insects (pod borer).

Check this videos:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TSJQNZD9El4&feature=youtu.be

(running time 8mins)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZh2jKLQElM

(running time 6mins 30 secs)

Transplant of seedlings

Make sure than when transferring the seedling they get acclimatized in their new environment. Do not plant seedlings immediately on the prepared holes but have the seedling stay in their new surrounding for awhile before transplanting them (a day or two maybe?).

Field planting

It is advisable to wait for a heavy rain before planting the seedling. That way water will have seeped through and will prevent organic fertilizers from being washed away once they are in the base of the hole. The advantage of organic fertilizer is that it is a lot more cooler to the seedlings than the inorganic fertilizer.

Cacao thrive in different soil types for as long as it is a tropical place. Cacao is very adaptable in adjusting to any soil type. An exception, if the area is elevated or above 600 meters (e.g.Baguio City) from sea level although coconut may thrive but not fruit then the same is true with cacao.

A three year old cacao could produce as much as 4-6 kilos of beans. On a peak season harvest of cacao could reach as high as 5 to 8 times the regular harvest. It is observed that cacao can have their highest fruiting capacity in an open space/plantation type of set-up.

Ideal distance for cacao is 3 meters by 3 meters, in a rolling area it can be 3 meters by 2.5 meters.

Fronding cover

Sack could be used to protect the seedling - have it supported by 3 sticks on the sides. When spraying the sack could be sprayed upon and preventing the seedling from getting direct sprays.

Pruning

It is important to prune cacao so nutrients is not consumed by unnecessary branches. Champagne glass principle could be employed where the tree is not allowed to grow high but instead branches out on both sides (leave at least 3-4 branches at the lower part of the tree) are encouraged to grow so the middle resembles an open receptacle. The method also allows flowers to dry faster thus becoming fruits. When the tree is about 8 months old pruning could be made already. In a long dry season, the sun stresses the tree in bearing more fruits on its next season of fruiting.

Side grafting /budding could also be introduced to big and older trees. Make sure than when grafting insert cellophane into the wounded and joint scion to prevent water from entering and then wrap around the section with plastic tightly to have the graft heal and join together. Grafting helps rejuvenate an old tree.

Pollination

When the tree reached its 7th year in order to introduce a cross pollinator have another variety like BR25 grafted in the middle, which will be allowed to grow higher than the branches of the a UF 18 variety. As to the principle of gravity and air applies (which is the main pollination process for cacao), the pollens of BR25 would then fall down to the branches and pollinates UF18 flowers. When fruiting those fruits of BR 25 are easily identified from the UF18 should fruits/pods segregation (which is advisable) is applied. Once the fruits of the tree becomes smaller it is a sign of introducing new pollinator (on or after the 8th year of the tree).

Organic Fertilizer

Use organic and readily available materials. Apply fertillizer on the base of the tree at least every 3 months in the first 2 years of the tree. The organic base for cacao for transplant could lasts for 1.5 years so fertilizing of the tree could be applied on the side of the tree.

Composition of an organic fertilizer

Chicken dung/manure 50%

plant waste/saw dust 30%

carbonize rice hull 10%

agri lime 10%

IMO 1 (bacteria) 1 liter

IMO 2 (bacteria) 1 liter

Molasses 5 kilo

Liquid mix diluted in a drum of water (liquid solution) and applied to 2.5 tons of solid materials above. To fully mix apply one layer on top of another solid material, one after the other and spraying it with the liquid solution to moisten mix. Cover for 15 days then mixed again. Then used a basal for the hole and apply as fertilizer on the base of the seedling/tree.

Spraying

It is needed to control fungus and insects. At least spray once every 3 months. On other occasion do spraying as a preventive maintenance of the orchard.

Wrapping pods

Will assure 100% that the fruit will not be attacked by pod borer. Also it will prevent them from exposure from chemicals when spraying is done. It will be a lot of cost savings on the part of the farmer. Pod rot is a common cacao disease.

Harvest

After 160 days cacao become mango size the pods can be harvested when they have turned yellowish. In a year there could be 3 fruiting harvest season.

Opportunities of Cacao Farming

(please double check the items with that of the powerpoint presentation in PDF)

1 kg = 800 - 1000 seeds = P150.00

1 kg = 16 pods

Scions sells at P3.00-4.00 ( since you prune you might as well sell)

Tablea - 1 kg = P300-400 pesos (process involved roasting and molding)

Financial Analysis for a 1 hectare of plantation

(please double check the items with that of the powerpoint presentation in PDF)

3m x 3m of 1 has = 1,000 seedlings

= 60-100 pods/tree/year

=3-4 kilos of dried beans

= 4 k - 4 tons = 120/kilo = P 480,000/year/has

= less 15-20% overhead

= after 4-5 years earning is P 384,000/year

- on the succeeding year the plantation/farm will be self-sustaining

- P 25,000.00 maintenance cost

- P 80,000.00/has

- on the 7th year investment would have been gained back

Budget for 1 hectare (Davao rate)

(please double check the items with that of the powerpoint presentation in PDF)

Seedling = 1,200 x P25.00

Hauling - P 1.00/seed (every 2 km pick-up)

Plowing - tractor P 5,000.00

- carabao P 3,000.00

Total cost = P 55,000 - 60,000/ has

Fermentation

As innovation for small farms, use sack that can be easily turned upside down so that the liquid gets equally distributed once the topmost part gets dried. US requires 8-10 days of fermentation but for European requires 10-12 days. The longer the cacao gets fermented the better and stronger aroma. But for tableya need not fermented for long at least 4-5 days, the longer it is fermented it turns sour when made into drink.

Related links:

A. Classics and Historical Readings about Cacao and Chocolate

Cocoa and Chocolate Their History from Plantation to Consumer

The Natural History Of CHOCOLATE by D. de Quelus

The Chocolate Plant and Its Products

An Account of Cacao History in the Philippines

Cacao Culture in the Philippines by William S. Lyon

B. Cacao Farming

Cocoa Nursery Manual

Cacao 101 published by Bureau of Agricultural Research

Transport of cacao

Intercropping coconut with cacao

http://pinoychocophile.blogspot.com/2013/11/intercropping-coconut-with-cacao.html#.UwjOPuOSx20

http://pinoychocophile.blogspot.com/2014/01/intercropping-coconut-and-cacao.html#.UwjPu-OSx20

Philippine Chocolate Festival 2014

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 19 Feb 2014 17:29:00 +0000

(Mouse-over photo and click left/right arrow to see more fotos.)

Fascinated by the eccentric organizer's name for the Philippine Chocolate Festival 2014 made me curiouser and curiouser, so I went last February 15, 2014, for the first time to find what's the wonder at SM Masinag. Indeed Chocco Locco GOC folks are for real crazy about chocolates, and so are the speakers and demonstrators.

Although devoid of those grand and fancy eye candy decors its sheer simplicity makes you more focused on the essence of what chocolate is. A centerpiece of chocolate display but it was a cornucopia of the festival's uniquenes with their emphasis on organic cacao products and highlighting local artisan chocolatiers.

There were fewer booths but am so glad to find my all time favorite ChocoATBP with their famed batirol, tablea drinks and their fantastic fudge that melts in your mouth. What is also unique about this festival is that hardly could you find those well known commercial chocolate brands, although some of their sponsors have booth like - DLA naturals, Puratos-Belcolade, Beryls, Selbourne, Sweetlink, Bensdorp, etc.

Philippine Chocolate Festival 2014, a set on Flickr.

At the event center several speakers were lined up to give their talk from, chocolate chefs, cacao farming, to making pralines, mixing chocolate drinks, making hot chocolate drink using batirol and pastry (eclair) using chocolate dips. I had a chance to listen to the presentation of my good friend - MJ Mercado of Tsokolate, Abe! (Chocolate, My Friend) demonstrating his famed mocha shot - coffee bean covered with chocolate. MJ is a classmate at Shangri-la's Chocolate Class under Chef Anthony Collar. And these days MJ is one of the artisan chocolatier to watch out. I got from him a mocha shot - coffee bean covered in chocolate and packaged in a real shot glass and his popular, best-selling and most ordered truffle bouquet.

Impressive was the effort that couple Alex and Jessica of Choco Locco Gourmet of Chocolate have put together to organize the Philippine Chocolate Festival. I am happy that there are individuals crazy enough to showcase the talents of budding artisan chocolatiers and cacao growers. And make the public understand the effort of farmers to produce cacao and the talent and love of artisan chocolatiers and chefs to produce nice chocolates and dishes and drinks with chocolate. Participants like students from Rizal and the public in general benefited a lot from those talks and presentations and the many chocolate trivia and facts that were shared.

Congratulations Alex and Jessica for a job well done and hope to be part again of the next Philippine Chocolate Festivals in the future!

(Mouse-over photo and click left/right arrow to see more fotos.)

Presentation by Dr. Romulo Cena on Philippine Cacao Clones and Hybrids

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 16 Feb 2014 15:12:00 +0000

DEVELOPMENT OF IMPROVED COCOA CLONES FOR FARMERS: THE CASE OF PHILIPPINE CLONES/HYBRIDS ROMULO L. CENA, Ph.D.
University of Southern Mindanao Kabacan, Cotabato, Philippines

I've been wanting to read proceedings and update from this event. Thanks to one our blog readers who is now an email pal re cacao - Mr. Ansel Fabros - cacao grower from Aurora for this link. Will be posting more of the presentations. The power point presentations were uploaded at slide share by Cacao Industry Development Association of Mindanao, Inc.

Kk day 2 am 2nd speaker DR ROMY CENA from Cacao Industry Development Association of Mindanao, Inc

Source - http://www.slideshare.net/kakaokonek/kk-day-2-am-2nd-speaker-dr-romy-cena-15646122

CHOCOLATE GLOSSARY

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 23 Jan 2014 20:00:00 +0000

(Tablea Original/Rum Fudge by ChocoATBP)

Below are commonly used terms in the chocolate industry.

CHOCOLATE GLOSSARY

Artisan chocolate - This term refers to chocolate produced by small chocolate makers--artisans--who understand their craft intimately. Artisan chocolate must be made under the care and supervision of a knowledgeable chocolate maker who could be defined as an artisan. If there is no artisan at a company, then the chocolate cannot accurately be called artisanal.

Cacao - Refers to Theobroma cacao tree, and the fruits it produces, as well as their seeds. The fermented and dried cacao seeds are also often referred to as "cocoa" beans.

Chocolate Maker - This term usually refers to those companies that produce chocolate in small batches from fermented and dried cocoa beans.

Chocolate Manufacturers - This term usually refers to those large companies that produce a broad range of mass market and/or specialty chocolate from dried cocoa beans.

Chocolate liquor - Ground up cocoa nibs, whether in molten liquid or solid block form. The term chocolate liquor has nothing to do with alcohol in any way but refers to the nibs being in the liquid state when they are ground.

Chocolate or Cocoa percentage - The percentage of chocolate liquor + cocoa butter + cocoa powder in a chocolate. A higher cocoa percentage has little bearing on the quality. For example, a 70% chocolate may range from excellent to terrible. The only specific thing that we can say about a 70% chocolate bar, with any certainty, prior to tasting it, is that it has about 30% sugar in the formulation.

Chocolatier - This term usually refers to a person that uses fine chocolate produced by chocolate manufacturers/makers to create unique chocolate products and confectionery.

Coating chocolate or chocolate-flavored coating - Some or all of the cocoa butter is removed from the chocolate liquor and is replaced with less expensive vegetable fat of some kind to produce an inexpensive product to replace real chocolate.

Cocoa butter - Cocoa butter is rare among vegetable fats because it is mostly solid at room temperature, though it starts to very noticeably soften and melt at just a few degrees beneath body temperature, leading to its unique melting mouthfeel. These interesting qualities are due to the fact that cocoa butter is polymorphic, with about six, somewhat overlapping, crystallization and melting ranges. Cocoa butter is also rare in that it resists rancidity, and can be stored for much longer periods of time than most vegetable fats without spoilage. Additional uses include pharmaceutical and cosmetic purposes.

Cocoa butter percentage - Mass market chocolates and cocoa powders often have much lower cocoa butter percentages than fine chocolate and high-quality cocoa powders because cocoa butter is an expensive ingredient. The higher percentages of cocoa butter in fine chocolate and fine cocoa powders have a positive impact on mouthfeel and flavor.

Cocoa nibs - The broken pieces of the fermented, dried, and usually roasted, cocoa bean, after the shell--actually the thin seed coat of the cocoa bean--has been removed via a process called winnowing. Cocoa nibs may be eaten out of hand, or ground into chocolate liquor, which itself may be used for chocolate making or pressing to extract the fat of the cocoa bean, called cocoa butter.

Cocoa powder - Once the cocoa butter has been hydraulically pressed from chocolate liquor, the remaining material is a compressed "cocoa cake." This cocoa cake is then reground and sifted until it is a fine cocoa powder. Cocoa powder, though lower in cocoa butter than the initial chocolate liquor from which it is made, will still have from 10-22% cocoa butter content as defined by the FDA in Title 21 section 163.113. As mentioned under the term "cocoa butter percentage," in the FCIA Glossary, more flavorful fine cocoa powder will generally have a higher cocoa butter percentage.

Conching - Conching is a texture and flavor improvement process carried out by any of a variety of different machines called conches or refiner-conches. The process, which generally follows refining, takes place over the course of several hours to three days or more depending upon the machine, the chocolate maker's vision regarding chocolate flavor and texture, and the particular cacao from which the chocolate is made. It is still not well-understood what causes the significant flavor changes that occur within conched chocolate, though various food scientists throughout the 20th century have suggested that volatilization of certain flavor compounds, oxidation of others, and even the process of coating cocoa particles with cocoa butter, may play roles.

Couverture - Fine couverture is made with care from fine cacao beans that are fermented and dried properly then roasted, refined and conched with concern for the overall flavor and texture of the chocolate. Couverture is generally used by chocolatiers to coat ganache or in molded chocolate bonbons, though it may also be molded into bar form, or used in cooking and baking as well.

Dark chocolate - Though not all of the following ingredients are necessary in a fine dark chocolate formulation, the chocolate should not contain any ingredients beyond: cacao liquor, sugar, cacao (cocoa) butter, lecithin, and vanilla.

Lecithin - Lecithin, when added, is generally added during the end of the conching process. Lecithin is an emulsifier, and decreases the viscosity of chocolate. It is generally used within mass-market chocolate to allow a reduction in the amount of necessary cocoa butter for a given formulation. Some fine chocolate makers use lecithin while others do not - that is the personal choice of the chocolate maker.

Milk chocolate - Fine milk chocolate should only contain: cacao liquor, sugar, cacao (cocoa) butter, milk solids, milk fat, lecithin, vanilla.

Pistoles - Originally this French word referred to gold coins in use in European countries until the late 19th century. Now, in the world of chocolate, pistole refers to the coin shaped pieces of couverture.

Roasting - Cocoa beans are roasted to develop the characteristic aroma and taste of chocolate. The length of the roasting process and its temperatures vary, though for those familiar with coffee roasting, cocoa roasting times and temperatures can generally be said to be significantly longer and lower. Fine chocolate manufacturers generally do not roast every origin of cocoa beans in the same way, but try to find the combination of time and temperature that best enhances a particular origin's flavor.

Tempering - Tempering is a process in which the temperature of the chocolate is manipulated to allow for a controlled crystallization of the cocoa butter to occur, thus allowing the cooled chocolate to have a good "snap," glossy sheen, and proper mouthfeel. In addition to book knowledge, fine chocolatiers must develop a highly refined understanding of the tempering process through experience, because only this experience ensures that each chocolate product is perfectly tempered, even when automatic or semi-automatic tempering equipment is used.

Terroir - The French term terroir has been used in the wine industry for ages and is also relevant when speaking of cacao. It refers to the various ways a particular place can have an impact on a given population of cacao, such as the effect of general and micro-climates in the area, soil composition, and even the unique microbiology of the growing area and fermentary.

White chocolate - Fine white chocolate should only contain: sugar, cacao (cocoa) butter, milk solids, milk fat, lecithin, vanilla.

Source - http://finechocolateindustry.org/chocolate-glossary.php

Intercropping Coconut and Cacao

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 15 Jan 2014 07:28:00 +0000

Growing of intercrops in coconut lands produces more food and agricultural

products, ensuring food security of the people in rural and urban areas. At the same

time, the practice generates jobs and livelihood, enhancing farm incomes and the

purchasing power of people, thus alleviating poverty in farming communities (Magat

2004). Moreover, successful farmers serve as inspiration and enterprise leaders in their

communities, eventually treating coconut farming in an agribusiness way to create

wealth and more capital resources.

Cacao (Theobroma cacao L.) is a tree crop that is highly suitable or compatible

under different production systems (intercropping or multistory farming, agroforestry,

etc). In cacao producing countries, it is grown mainly for its beans, processed into cacao

powder, cake and cocoa butter. These products are largely used in the manufacture of

chocolates, soaps, cosmetics, shampoo and other pharmaceutical products (PCARRD

2000).

Cacao is also a high value crop wherein the potential is not yet explored in our

country with an extensive area suitable for cacao growing as a monocrop or intercrop of

coconut. In fact, over 1M ha highly suitable or wet zone of coconut areas (except in

coastal areas excessively high in Na or saline soils) are suitable for coconut-cacao

intercropping. Its cultivation could promote an agro-industrial development aimed: at

value-adding export products, as well as reduction of importation of cacao beans rom

countries like Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, and Malaysia (PCARRD 2000). PCARRD

mentioned that to date, more than three-fourths of the cacao beans requirement of the

country is imported from major producing countries.

Cacao, a popular, stable and marketable long-term beverage crop is widely

planted under and between stands of coconut trees. To be a compatible and productive

intercrop, cacao tree is best planted not closer than 2 meters from the base of coconut

trees, at 3 m between hills and 3 m between rows. Furthermore, where there is limited

land for cacao monocropping, the inter-spaces of coconut lands (with 8-15 meters of

spacing of coconut palms) are amenable for several rows of cacao crop. Also important,

the bio-physical environmental conditions, soil-wise, sunlight-wise and micro-climate

variation within the 70-80% space between coconut trees in a farm has been known to

be highly suitable for a coconut-cacao ecosystem.

Original Source - http://www.pca.da.gov.ph/pdf/techno/cococacao.pdf

Alternative link - https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B1K31tSbc4mBWmY0aFZPQ05BZVE/edit?usp=sharing

The Natural History Of CHOCOLATE by D. de Quelus

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 09 Jan 2014 14:08:00 +0000

The text below was taken from Project Gutenberg -
http://www.gutenberg.org/files/24588/24588-h/24588-h.htm

The Natural History

Of
CHOCOLATE:

BEING

A Distinct and Particular Account of the Cocoa-tree, its Growth and Culture, and the Preparation, Excellent Properties, and Medicinal Vertues of its Fruit.

Wherein the Errors of those who have wrote upon this Subject are discover’d; the Best Way of Making Chocolate is explain’d; and several Uncommon Medicines drawn from it, are communicated.

Translated from the last Edition of the French,
By R. BROOKES, M. D.

The Second Edition.

LONDON:

Printed for J. Roberts, near the Oxford-Arms in Warwick-Lane.
M dcc.xxx.

PREFACE

If the Merit of a Natural History depends upon the Truth of the Facts which are brought to support it, then an unprejudiced Eye-Witness is more proper to write it, than any other Person; and I dare even flatter myself, that this will not be disagreeable to the Publick notwithstanding its Resemblance to the particular Treatises of Colmenero (1),Dufour (2), and several others who have wrote upon the same Subject. Upon examination, so great a Difference will appear, that no one can justly accuse me of having borrow’d any thing from these Writers.

This small Treatise is nothing but the Substance and Result of the Observations that I made in the American Islands, during the fifteen Years which I was obliged to stay there, upon the account of his Majesty’s Service. The great Trade they drive there in Chocolate, excited my Curiosity to examine more strictly than ordinary into its Origin, Culture, Properties, and Uses. I was not a little surprized when I every day discover’d, as to the Nature of the Plant, and the Customs of the Country, a great Number of Facts contrary to the Ideas, and Prejudices, for which the Writers on this Subject have given room.

For this reason, I resolved to examine every thing myself, and to represent nothing but as it really was in Nature, to advance nothing but what I had experienced, and even to doubt of the Experiments themselves, till I had repeated them with the utmost Exactness. Without these Precautions, there can be no great Dependance on the greatest Part of the Facts, which are produced by those who write upon any Historical Matter from Memorandums; which, from the Nature of the Subject, they cannot fully comprehend.

As for my Reasonings upon the Nature, Vertues, and Uses of Chocolate, perhaps they may be suspected by some People, because they relate to an Art which I do not profess; but let that be as it will, the Facts upon which they are founded are certain, and every one is at liberty to make what other Inferences they like best.

As there are several Names of Plants, and Terms of Art used in those Countries, which I have been obliged to make use of, and which it was necessary to explain somewhat at large, that they might be rightly understood; rather than make frequent Digressions, and interrupt the Discourse, I have thought fit to number these Terms, and to explain them at the End of this Treatise: the Reader must therefore look forward for those Remarks under their particular Numbers.

(1) De Chocolatâ Indâ.

(2) Du Thé, du Caffe, & du Chocolat.

THE TABLE.

The First Part.

Chap. I. The Description of the Cocao-Tree.	Pag. 2
Chap. II. Of the Choice and Disposition of the Place to plant a Nursery.	10
Chap. III. Of the Method of Planting a Nursery, and of its Cultivation, till the Fruit comes to Maturity.	16
Chap. IV. Of the gathering the Cocao-Nuts, and of the Manner of making the Kernels sweat; and also of drying them that they may be transported into Europe.	24

The Second Part.

Of the Properties of Chocolate.	38
Chap. I. Of the old Prejudices against Chocolate.	39
Chap. II. Of the real Properties of Chocolate.	44
Sect. I. Chocolate is very Temperate.	45
Sect. II. Chocolate is very nourishing, and of easy Digestion.	47
Sect. III. Chocolate speedily repairs the dissipated Spirits and decayed Strength.	51
Sect. IV. Chocolate is very proper to preserve Health, and to prolong the Life of old Men.	56

The Third Part.

Of the Uses of Chocolate.	60
Chap. I. Of Chocolate in Confections.	61
Chap. II. Of Chocolate properly so called.	62
Sect. I. Of the Origin of Chocolate, and the different Methods of preparing it.	63
The Method of preparing Chocolate used in the French Islands of America.	67
Sect. II. Of the Uses that may be made of Chocolate, with relation to Medicine.	70
Chap. III. Of the Oil or Butter of Chocolate.	74
Remarks upon some Places of this Treatise.	80
Medicines in whose Composition Oil, or Butter of Chocolate, is made use of.	91
The wonderful Plaister for the curing of all Kinds of Ulcers.	ibid.
An excellent Pomatum for the Cure of Tettars, Ringworms, Pimples, and other Deformities of the Skin.	94

The Approbation of Monsieur Andry, Counsellor, Lecturer, and Regal Professor, Doctor, Regent of the Faculty of Medicine at Paris, and Censor Royal of Books.

IHave read, by order of the Lord Keeper of the Seals, this Natural History of Chocolate, and I judge that the Impression will be very necessary and useful for the Publick. Given at Paris this 5th of April, 1719.

THE
Natural HISTORY
OF
CHOCOLATE.

Of the Division of this Treatise.

I Shall divide this Treatise on Chocolate into three Parts: In the First, after I have given a Description of the Cocao Tree, I shall explain how it is cultivated, and give an Account how its Fruit is prepared: In the Second, I shall speak of the Properties of Chocolate; and in the Third, of its Uses.

PART I.

CHAP. I.
The Description of the Cocao-Tree.

The Cocao-Tree is moderately tall and thick, and either thrives, or not, according to the Quality of the Soil wherein it grows: Upon the Coast of Caraqua, for instance, it grows considerably larger than in the Islands belonging to the French.

Its Wood is porous, and very light; the Bark is pretty firm, and of the Colour of Cinnamon, more or less dark, according to the Age of the Tree. The Leaves are about nine Inches long, and four in breadth, where they are broadest; for they grow less towards the two Extremities, where they terminate in a point: their Colour is a little darkish, but more bright above than underneath; they are joined to Stalks three Inches long, and the tenth part of an Inch broad. This Stalk, as it enters the Leaf, makes a strait Rib, a little raised along the Middle, which grows proportionably less the nearer it comes to the End. From each side of this Rib proceed thirteen or fourteen crooked Threads alternately.

As these Leaves only fall off successively, and in proportion as others grow again, this Tree never appears naked: It is always flourishing, but more especially so towards the two Solstices, than in the other Seasons.

The Blossoms, which are regular and like a Rose, but very small, and without smell, proceed from the Places from which the old Leaves fall, as it were in Bunches. A large Quantity of these fall off, for hardly Ten of a Thousand come to good, insomuch that the Earth underneath seems cover’d over with them.

Every Blossom is joined to the Tree by a slender Stalk half an Inch or a little more in length; when it is yet in the Bud, it is one Fifth of an Inch broad, and about one fourth or a little more in length: when it was least, in proportion to the Tree and the Fruit, the more strange it appeared to me, and more worthy of Attention (a).

When the Buds begin to blow, one may consider the Calix, the Foliage, and the Heart of the Blossom. The Calix is formed of the Cover of the Bud, divided into five Parts, or Leaves, of a very pale flesh-colour. These are succeeded by the five true Leaves of the same Colour, which fill up the empty Spaces or Partitions of the Calix. These Leaves have two Parts, the undermost of which is like an oblong Cup, striped with Purple; on the inside, it bends towards the Center by the help of aStamen, which serves to fasten it; from this proceeds outwardly, the other Part of the Leaf, which seems to be separate from it, and is formed like the End of a Pike.

The Heart is composed of five Threads and five Stamina, with the Pistilla in the middle. The Threads are strait, and of a purple Colour, and placed over-against the Intervals of the Leaves. The Stamina are white, and bend outwardly with a kind of a Button on the top, which insinuates itself into the middle of each Leaf to sustain itself.

When one looks at these small Objects through a Microscope, one is ready to say, That the Point of the Threads is like Silver, and that the Stamina are Chrystal; as well as the Pistilla, which Nature seems to have placed in the Center, either to be thePrimitiæ of the young Fruit, or to serve to defend it, if it be true that this Embryo unfolds itself, and is produced in no other place but the Base.

For want of observing these small Parts, as well as the Bulk of the Blossom, F. Plumier had no distinct Knowledge of them, nor has he exactly design’d them, any more than Mons. Tournefort, who has done them after his Draught (b).

The Cocao-Tree almost all the Year bears Fruit of all Ages, which ripen successively, but never grow on the end of little Branches, as our Fruits in Europe do, but along the Trunk and the chief Boughs, which is not rare in these Countries, where several Trees do the like; such as the (1) Cocoeiers, the (2) Apricots of St. Domingo, the (3) Calebashes, the (4) Papaws, &c.

Such an unusual Appearance would seem strange in the Eyes of Europeans, who had never seen any thing of that kind; but if one examines the Matter a little, the philosophical Reason of this Disposition is very obvious. One may easily apprehend, that if Nature had placed such bulky Fruit at the Ends of the Branches, their great Weight must necessarily break them, and the Fruit would fall before it came to Maturity.

The Fruit of the Cocao-Tree is contained in a Husk or Shell, which from an exceeding small Beginning, attains, in the space of four Months, to the Bigness and Shape of a Cucumber; the lower End is sharp and furrow’d length-ways like a Melon (c).

This Shell in the first Months is either red or white, or a Mixture of red and yellow: This Variety of Colours makes three sorts of Cocao-Trees, which have nothing else to distinguish them but this, which I do not think sufficient to make in reality three different kinds of Cocao-Nuts (d).

The First is of a dark vinous Red, chiefly on the sides, which becomes more bright and pale as the Fruit ripens.

The Second, which is the White, or rather is at first of so pale a Green, that it may be mistaken for White; by little and little it assumes a Citron Colour, which still growing deeper and deeper, at length becomes entirely yellow.

The Third, which is Red and Yellow mix’d together, unites the Properties of the other two; for as they grow ripe, the Red becomes pale, and the Yellow grows more deep.

I have observed that the white Shells are thicker and shorter than the other, especially on the side towards the Tree, and that these sorts of Trees commonly bear most.

If one cleaves one of these Shells length-ways, it will appear almost half an Inch thick, and its Capacity full of Chocolate Kernels; the Intervals of which, before they are ripe, are fill’d with a hard white Substance, which at length turns into a Mucilage of a very grateful Acidity: For this reason, it is common for People to take some of the Kernels with their Covers, and hold them in their Mouths, which is mighty refreshing, and proper to quench Thirst. But they take heed of biting them, because the Films of the Kernels are extreamly bitter.

When one nicely examines the inward Structure of these Shells, and anatomizes, as it were, all their Parts; one shall find that the Fibres of the Stalk of the Fruit passing through the Shell, are divided into five Branches; that each of these Branches is subdivided into several Filaments, every one of which terminates at the larger End of these Kernels, and all together resemble a Bunch of Grapes, containing from twenty to thirty-five single ones, or more, ranged and placed in an admirable Order.

I cannot help observing here, what Inconsistency there is in the Accounts concerning the Number of Kernels in each Shell.(e) Dampier, for instance, says there is commonly near a Hundred; other Moderns (f) 60, 70 or 80, ranged like the Seeds of a Pomgranate. (g) Thomas Gage, 30 or 40; Colmenero (h) 10 or 12; and Oexmelin (i) 10 or 12, to 14.

I can affirm, after a thousand Tryals, that I never found more nor less than twenty-five. Perhaps if one was to seek out the largest Shells in the most fruitful Soil, and growing on the most flourishing Trees, one might find forty Kernels; but as it is not likely one should ever meet with more, so, on the other hand, it is not probable one should ever find less than fifteen, except they are abortive, or the Fruit of a Tree worn out with Age in a barren Soil, or without Culture.

When one takes off the Film that covers one of the Kernels, the Substance of it appears; which is tender, smooth, and inclining to a violet Colour, and is seemingly divided into several Lobes, tho’ in reality they are but two; but very irregular, and difficult to be disengaged from each other, which we shall explain more clearly in speaking of its Vegetation. (k) Oexmelin and several others have imagined, that a Cocao-Kernel was composed of five or six Parts sticking fast together; Father Plumier himself fell into this Error, and has led others into it (l). If the Kernel be cut in two length-ways, one finds at the Extremity of the great end, a kind of a longish (m) Grain, one fifth of an Inch long, and one fourth Part as broad, which is the Germ, or first Rudiments of the Plant; but in European Kernels this Part is placed at the other end.

One may even see in France this Irregularity of the Lobes, and also the Germ in the Kernels that are roasted and cleaned to make Chocolate.

(a) Piso says (Montiss. Aromat. cap. 18.) that the Blossom is great and of a bright Yellow, Flos est magnus & flavescens instar Croci. A modern Author has transcribed this. Error of Piso; Floribus, says he, magnis pentapetalis & flavis. Dale Pharmacologia, Pag. 441.

(b) Appen. Rei Herbariæ. pag. 660. tab. 444.

(1) (2) (3) (4) See the Remarks at the End of this Treatise.

(c) Benzo says they grow ripe in a Year, as well as others after him, Annuo Spatio maturescit, Benzo memorante. Carol. Cluzio, l. c. Annuo justam attingens Maturitatem Spatio. Franc. Hernandes, apud Anton. Rech. In Hist. Ind. Occidental, lib. 5. c. 1.

(d) It seems likely that the Spanish Authors who say there are four Kinds of this at Mexico, have no better Foundation for the difference than this; and Mons. Tournefort had reason to say after Father Plumier, that he only knew one Kind of this Tree. Cacao Speciem Unicam novi. Append. Rei Herb. pag. 660.

(e) A new Voyage round the World. Tom. 1. Ch. 3. p. 69.

(f) Pomet’s General History of Drugs, Book vii. Ch. xiv. pag. 205. Chomel’s Abridgment of usual Plants. Valentin. Hist. Simplicium reform. lib. 2.

(g) New Relation of the East Indies. Tom. 1. Part 2. Ch. 19.

(h) A curious Discourse upon Chocolate, by Ant. Colmenero de Cedesma, Physician and Chirurgeon at Paris1643.

(i) The History of Adventures. Tom. 1. Pag. 423.

(k) Ibid.

(l) In multas veluti Amygdalas fissiles. Tournefort in Append. Rei Herb. Pag. 660. & Tab. 444.

(m) I can’t imagine upon what Foundation Oexmelin could assert, that the Spaniards in the making of their Chocolate, used nothing but this longish Grain, which he calls Pignon. Au Milieu desquelles Amandes de Cacao, est, says he, un petit Pignon, qui a la Germe fort tendre, & difficile à conserver; c’est de cette Semence que les Espaniols font la celebre Boisson de Chocolat. Oexmelin Histoire des Avanturers, Tom. 1. pag. 423. He confirms more plainly the same Fancy, Pag. 426.

CHAP. II.

Of the Choice and Disposition of the Place for Planting Cocao-Trees.

The Cocao-Tree grows naturally in several Countries in America under the Torrid Zone, but chiefly at Mexico, in the Provinces of Nicaragua and Guatimala, as also along the Banks of the River of the Amazons (n). Likewise upon the Coast of Caraqua, that is to say, from Comana to Cartagena (o) and the Golden Island. Some also have been found in the Woods of Martinico.

The Spaniards and Portuguese were the first to whom the Indians communicated the Use of Cocao-Nuts, which they kept a long time to themselves without acquainting other Nations with it; who in reality know so little of it at this day, that someDutch Corsairs, ignorant of the Value of some Prizes they had taken, out of contempt cast the Merchandize into the Sea, calling it in derision, in very indifferent Spanish, Cacura de Carnero (p), The Dung of Beasts.

In 1649 (q) in the Vert Islands, they had never seen but one Tree planted, which was in the Garden of an English-Man, an Inhabitant of the Island of St. Croix (r). In 1655, the Caribeans (s) shewed to M. du Parepet a Cocao-Tree in the Woods of the Island of Martinico, whereof he was Governour. This discovery was the Foundation of several others of the same kind, in the Woods of the Cape Sterre (t) of this Island. And it is probable that the Kernels which were taken out of them, were the Original of those Cocao-Trees that have been planted there since. A Jew named Benjamin planted the first about the Year 1660, but it was not till twenty or twenty-five Years after, that the Inhabitants of Martinico apply’d themselves to the Cultivation of Cocao-Trees, and to raise Nurseries of them.

When one would raise a Nursery, it is necessary, above all things, to chuse a proper Place, in respect of Situation, and a Soil agreeable to the Nature of it.

The Place should be level, moist, and not exposed to Winds; a fresh, and (if one may be allow’d the Expression) a Virgin Soil, indifferently fat, light, and deep. For this reason, Ground newly cleared, whose Soil is black and sandy, which is kept moist by a River, and its Borders so high as to shelter it from the Winds, especially towards the Sea Coast, is preferable to any other; and they never fail putting it to this Use, when they are so happy as to find any of this sort.

I have said, Ground newly cleared, that is to say, whose Wood is cut down purposely for it; for it is necessary to observe, that they at present plant their Nurseries in the middle of Woods, which have been so time out of mind, and this for two weighty Reasons: The First, because the Wood that is left standing round it, may serve as a Shelter; and the Second, because there is less Trouble in weeding or grubbing it. The Ground that has never produced any Weeds, will send forth but few, for want of Seed.

As for Nurseries planted in high Ground, the Earth is neither moist nor deep enough, and commonly the chief Root which grows directly downwards, cannot pierce the hard Earth which it soon meets with. Besides, the Winds are more boisterous, and cause the Blossoms to fall off as soon as blown, and when a little high, overturn the Tree, whose Roots are almost all superficial.

This is yet worse on the Hills, whose Descent is too steep; for besides the same Inconveniencies, the falling down of the Earth draws with it the good Soil, and insensibly lays the Roots bare.

One may therefore conclude that all these Nurseries are a long time before they bear, that they are never fruitful, and that they are destroy’d in a little time.

It is also proper that a Nursery, as much as may be, should be surrounded with standing Wood; but if it is open on any side, it should be remedy’d as soon as possible, by a Border of several Ranks of Trees called Bananes (5).

Besides this, the Nurseries should be moderate in respect of Magnitude, for the Small have not Air enough, and are, as it were, stifled; and the very Large are too liable to Dryness, and to the great Winds, which, in America, they callOuragans (u).

The Place of the Nursery being chosen, and the Bigness determined, they apply themselves to clear it of the Wood. They begin with plucking up the little Plants, and by cutting the Shrubs, and small kinds of Trees, and felling the Trunks and larger Branches of others; they then make Piles, and set them on fire in all Parts, and so burn down the largest Trees of all, to save themselves the trouble of cutting them.

When all is burnt, and there remains nothing upon the Earth, but the Trunks of the great Trees which they don’t trouble themselves to consume, and when the Space is well cleaned, they make Alleys by the help of a Line, strait and at equal Distances from each other, and thrust Sticks into the Ground of two or three Foot long, and 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 or 10 Feet distant, or at such a distance that they design to plant the Cocao-Trees, which they represent. Afterwards they plant Manioc in the empty Spaces, taking care not to come too near the Sticks.

One may observe, that the Nurseries planted at the great Distances of eight or ten Feet, are a great deal more troublesome to keep clean in the first Years, as we shall observe hereafter; but then they prosper a great deal better, bear more, and last longer.

The Inhabitants, who have a great deal to do, and have but few Slaves, plant the Trees nearer, because by this means they gain room, and they have less trouble to keep it clear; when afterwards the Trees come to hurt and annoy each other by their Proximity, and they have had some Crops to supply their present Necessities: or if otherwise, they are obliged to cut some to give Air to the rest.

On the Coast of Caraqua, they plant the Cocao-Trees at 12 or 15 Feet distance, and they make Trenches to water them from time to time in the dry Seasons. They happily experienced the Success of this Practice at Martinico some Years since.

The Manioc (6) is a woody Shrub, whose Roots being grated, and baked on the Fire, yield a Cassave, or Meal, which serves to make Bread for all the Natives of America. They plant it in the new Nurseries, not only because it is necessary to supply the Negroes with Food, but also it hinders the Growth of Weeds, and serves to shade the young Cocao-Trees, whose tender Shoots, and even the second Leaves, are not able to resist the scorching Beams of the Sun. For this reason they wait till the Manioc shades the Feet of the Sticks before they plant the Cocao-Trees, in the manner that we shall describe in the following Chapter.

(n) Relation of the River of the Amazons.

(o) I have added this Explication, because Pomet makes it come from Caraqua, of the Province of Nicaragua inNew Spain, which is distant from Caracas 5 or 600 Leagues. V. VII. Chap. xiv.

(p) Thomas Gage, Tom. 1. Part 2. Chap. 19. Pag. 150.

(q) Rochefort’s Natural History of the Antilloes. Book 1. Chap. 6. Artic. 16.

(r) Father Tertre’s Hist. of the Antilloes. Tom. 2. p. 184.

(s) These are the Savage Natives of the Antilloes.

(t) That Part is call’d so, which lies exposed to the Winds which come always from the North-East to the South-East. That Part under the Wind, is called Basse-Terre.

(5) See the fifth Remark at the End of the Treatise.

(u) These violent and outrageous Winds blow from all Points of the Compass in twenty-four Hours. And this is one material thing to distinguish them from the regular and common Winds of this Climate.

(6) See the Remark at the sixth Article.

CHAP. III.
Of the Method of Planting a Nursery, and to cultivate it till the Fruit comes to Maturity.

Cocao-Trees are planted from the Kernel or Seed, for the Nature of the Wood will not admit of Slips: They open a Cocao-Shell, and according as they have occasion, take out the Kernels, and plant them one by one, beginning, for example, at the first Stick: They pluck it up, and with a sort of a Setting-Stick made of Iron, and well sharpened, they make a Hole, and turning the Iron about, cut off the little Roots that may do hurt. They plant the Kernel three or four Inches deep, and thrust in the Stick they before had pluck’d up a little on one side, to serve as a Mark: and so they proceed from Stick to Stick, and from Rank to Rank, till they have gone through the whole Nursery.

It must be observed, 1. Not to plant in a dry Season. One may indeed plant in any Month of the Year, or any Moon, new or old, when the Season is cool, and the Place ready; but it is commonly believed, that planting from September to Christmas, the Trees bear more than in some Months.

2. Not to plant any but the largest Kernels, and such as are plump: For since in the finest Shells there are sometimes withered Kernels, it would be very imprudent to make use of them.

3. To plant the great Ends of the Kernels lowermost. This is that which is held by a little Thread to the Center of the Shell, when one takes the Kernel out. If the little End was placed downward, the Foot of the Tree would become crooked, neither would it prosper; and if it was placed sideways, the Foot would not succeed very well.

4. To put two or three Kernels at every Stick, that if by any Mischance the tender Shoots of one or two are broken by Insects, or otherwise, there may be one left to supply the Defect. If no bad Accident happen, you have the advantage of chusing the straitest and most likely Shoot. But it is not best to cut up the supernumerary ones till that which is chosen is grown up, and, according to all appearance, out of danger.

The Kernels come up in ten or twelve Days, more or less, according as the Season, more or less favourable, hastens or backens their Growth: The longish Grain of the Germ beginning to swell, sends forth the little Root downwards, which afterwards becomes the chief Stay of the Tree, and upwards it pushes out the Shoot, which is an Epitomy of the Trunk and the Branches. These Parts encreasing, and discovering themselves more and more, the two Lobes of the Kernel a little separated and bent back, appear first out of the Earth, and regain their natural Position, in proportion as the Shoot rises, and then separate themselves intirely, and become two Leaves of a different Shape, of an obscure Green, thick, unequal, and, as it were, shrivel’d up, and make what they call the Ears of the Plant. The Shoot appears at the same time, and is divided into two tender Leaves of bright Green: To these two first Leaves, opposite to each other, succeed two more, and to these a third Pair. The Stalk or Trunk rises in proportion, and thence forward during a Year, or thereabouts.

The whole Cultivation of the Cocao-Tree may then be reduced to the Practice of two Things.

First, To over-look them during the first fifteen Days; that is to say, to plant new Kernels in the room of those that do not come up, or whose Shoots have been destroy’d by Insects, which very often make dreadful Havock among these Plants, even when one would think they are out of danger. Some Inhabitants make Nurseries a-part, and transplant them to the Places where they are wanting: but as they do not all grow, especially when they are a little too big, or the Season not favourable, and because the greatest part of those that do grow languish a long time, it always seem’d to me more proper to set fresh Kernels; and I am persuaded, if the Consequences are duly weighed, it will be practised for the future.

Secondly, Not to let any Weeds grow in the Nursery, but to cleanse it carefully from one end to the other, and taking care, above all things, not to let any Herb or Weed grow up to Seed; for if it should happen so but once, it will be very difficult thenceforwards to root those troublesome Guests out, and to keep the Nursery clean, because the Cold in this Country never interrupts Vegetation.

This Weeding should be continued till the Trees are become large, and their Branches spreading, cast such a Shade as to hinder the Weeds from coming up; and afterwards, the Leaves falling from the Trees, and covering the Earth, will contribute to stifle them intirely. When this troublesome Business of Weeding is ended, it will be sufficient to overlook them once a Month, and pluck up here and there those few Weeds that remain, and to carry them far into the Woods for fear of Seeds.

When the Cocao-Trees are nine Months old, the Manioc should then begin to be pluck’d up; and it should be managed so, that in three Months time there should be none left. There may be a Row or two replanted in each Alley, and Cucumbers, Citruls, and (x) Giraumonts may be sow’d in the void Spaces, or Caribean Coleworts; because these Plants having great spreading Leaves, are very proper to keep the Earth cool and moist, and to stifle the noisome Weeds. When the Cocao-Trees come to shade the Ground entirely, then it will be necessary to pluck up every thing, for nothing then will grow beneath ’em.

The Cocao-Trees of one Year old have commonly a Trunk of four Feet high, and begin to spread, by sending out five Branches at the top, all at a time, which forms that which they call the Crown of a Cocao-Tree. It seldom happens that any of these five Branches are wanting, and if by any Accident, or contrary to the Order of Nature, it has but three or four, the Tree never comes to good, and it will be better to cut it off, and wait for a new Crown, which will not be long before it is form’d.

If at the end of the Year the Manioc is not plucked up, they will make the Trees be more slow in bearing; and their Trunks running up too high, will be weak, slender, and more exposed to the Winds. If they should be crowned, their Crowns will be too close; and the chief Branches not opening themselves enough, the Trees will never be sufficiently disengaged, and will not spread so much as they ought to do.

When all the Trunks are crowned, they chuse the finest Shoots, and cut up the supernumerary ones without mercy; for if this is not done out of hand, it will be difficult to persuade one’s self afterwards: tho it is not possible but that Trees placed so near each other, should be hurtful to each other in the end.

The Trees are no sooner crown’d, but they send forth, from time to time, an Inch or two above the Crown, new Shoots, which they call Suckers: If Nature was permitted to play her part, these Suckers would soon produce a second Crown, that again new Suckers, which will produce a third, &c. Thus the Cocao-Trees proceed, that are wild and uncultivated, which are found in the Woods of Cape-Sterre in Martinico. But seeing all these Crowns do but hinder the Growth of the first, and almost bring it to nothing, tho it is the principal; and that the Tree, if left to itself, runs up too high, and becomes too slender; they should take care every Month when they go to weed it, or gather the Fruit, to prune it; that is to say, to cut or lop off all the Suckers.

I don’t know whether they have yet thought it proper to prune, any more than to graft upon Cocao-Trees: There is however a sort of Pruning which, in my Opinion, would be very advantageous to it. These sort of Trees, for example, have always (some more than others) dead Branches upon them, chiefly upon the Extremities of the Boughs; and there is no room to doubt but it would be very proper to lop off these useless Branches, paring them off with the pruning Knife even to the Quick. But as the Advantage that will accrue from it will neither be so immediate, nor so apparent as the Time and Pains that is employ’d in it; it is very probable that this Care will be neglected, and that it will be esteem’d as Labour lost. But however, the Spaniards do not think so; for, on the contrary, they are very careful to cut off all the dead Sprigs: for which reason their Trees are more flourishing than ours, and yield much finer Fruit. I believe they have not the same care in grafting them, nor do I think any Person has hitherto attempted to do it: I am persuaded nevertheless, that the Cocao-Trees would be better for it. Is it not by the assistance of grafting our Fruit Trees in several manners, (which were originally wild, and found by chance in the Woods) that they have at length found the Art of making them bear such excellent Fruit?

In proportion as the Cocao-Trees grow, the Leaves upon the Trunks fall off by little and little, which ought to fall off on their own accord; for when they are entirely bare, they have not long to flourish: The first Blossoms commonly fall off, and the ripe Fruit is not to be expected in less time than three Years, and that if it be in a good Soil. The fourth Year the Crop is moderate, and the fifth it is as great as ever it will be; for then the Trees commonly bear all the Year about, and have Blossoms and Fruit of all Ages. Some Months indeed there is almost none, and others, they are loaded; and towards the Solstices, that is, in Juneand December, they bear most.

As in the Tempests called Ouragans the Wind blows from all Points of the Compass in twenty-four Hours, it will be well if it does not break in at the weakest Place of the Nursery, and do a great deal of Mischief, which it is necessary to remedy with all possible expedition. If the Wind has only overturn’d the Trees without breaking the chief Root, then the best Method that can be taken in good Soil, is to raise them up again, and put them in their Places, propping them up with a Fork, and putting in the Earth about it very carefully: By this means they will be re-establish’d in less than six Months, and they will bear again as if no harm had come to them. In bad Soil, it will be better to let them lie, putting the Earth about the Roots, and cultivate at their lower Parts, or Feet, the best grown Sucker, and that which is nearest the Roots, cutting off carefully all the rest: The Tree in this Condition will not give over blossoming and bearing Fruit; and when in two Years time the Sucker is become a new Tree, the old Tree must be cut off half a Foot distant from the Sucker.

(x) These are Citruls whose Pulp is very yellow.

CHAP IV.
Of the gathering of the Cocao-Nuts, and the Manner of making them sweat, and of drying them that they may be brought sound into Europe.

The Observations which we made in the first Chapter, concerning the Alterations of the Colour of the Nuts, give us information of the time that they become ripe. It will be proper to gather them when all the Shell has changed Colour, and when there is but a small Spot below which shall remain green. They go from Tree to Tree, and from Row to Row, and with forked Sticks or Poles, they cause the ripe Nuts to fall down, taking great care not to touch those that are not so, as well as the Blossoms: They employ the most handy Negroes in this Work, and others follow them with Baskets to gather them, and lay them in Heaps, where they remain four Days without being touch’d.

In the Months that they bear most, they gather them for a Fortnight together; in the less-fruitful Seasons, they only gather them from Month to Month. If the Kernels were left in Shells more than four Days, they would sprit, or begin to grow, and be quite spoiled (y): It is therefore necessary to shell them on the fifth Day in the Morning at farthest. To do this, they strike on the middle of the Shells with a Bit of Wood to cleave them, and then pull them open with their Fingers, and take out the Kernels, which they put in Baskets, casting the empty Shells upon the Ground, that they may with the Leaves, being putrified, serve to fatten the Earth, and supply the Place of Dung.

They afterwards carry all the Kernels into a House, and lay them on a heap upon a kind of loose Floor cover’d with Leaves ofBalize (7), which are about four Feet long, and twenty Inches broad; then they surround it with Planks cover’d with the same Leaves, making a kind of Granary, which may contain the whole Pile of Kernels, when spread abroad. They cover the whole with the like Leaves, and lay some Planks over all: the Kernels thus laid on a heap, and cover’d close on all sides, do not fail to grow warm, by the Fermentation of their insensible Particles; and this is what they call Sweating, in those Parts.

They uncover the Kernels Morning and Evening, and send the Negroes among them; who with their Feet and Hands, turn them topsy turvy, and then cover them up as before, with the same Leaves and the same Planks. They continue to do this for five Days, at the end of which they have commonly sweat enough, which is discover’d by their Colour, which grows a great deal deeper, and very ruddy.

The more the Kernels sweat, the more they lose their Weight and Bitterness: but if they have not sweat enough, they are more bitter, and smell sour, and sometimes sprit. To succeed well therefore, there should be a certain Medium observed, which is only to be learnt by use.

When the Kernels have sweat enough, they lay them out to air, and expose them to the Sun to dry them, in the manner following.

They prepare before-hand, several Benches about two Foot high, in an even Court appointed for that purpose; they lay upon these Benches several Mats made of pieces of Reeds split in two, together with Bands made of Mahot Bark (8). Upon these Mats they put the Kernels about two Inches in height and move and turn them very often with a proper Piece of Wood for the first two Days. At Night they wrap up the Kernels in the Mats, which they cover with Balize Leaves for fear of Rain, and they do the same in the day-time when it is likely to rain. Those who are afraid of having them stolen, lock them up.

There are some Inhabitants who keep Boxes about five Feet long, and two broad, and three or four Inches deep, on purpose to dry the Kernels: There is this Advantage in them, that in the greatest Rains and suddenest Showers, they may presently be piled one on the top of another, so that none but the top-most will want a Cover; which is soon done with the aforesaid Leaves, and an empty Box turn’d up-side down. But that which makes the Usage of Mats preferable, is, that the Air may pass through beneath, between the Partition of the Reeds, and so dry the Kernels better. Boxes whose Bottoms are made like a Sieve with strong Brass Wire, would be very excellent; but then they must be made in Europe, which would be a considerable Charge.

When the Kernels have sweat enough, they must be exposed upon the Mats as much as necessary: If Rain is foreseen that is likely to last, it will be best to let them sweat half a Day less. It is observable, that a few hours Rain at first, instead of doing any harm, makes them more beautiful, and better conditioned. In fair Weather, instead of this Rain, it will be proper to expose them to the Dew for the first Nights. The Rain of a whole Day or two will do no harm, if they are not covered before they have had the Benefit of the Sun, for a Day, or half a Day at least. For after a Day’s Sun-shine, they are to be wrap’d in the Mat, as before directed; but if it be half a Day’s Rain only, then they are only covered with Balize Leaves in the Night, kept on with little Stones laid at each End: But if the Rain be too long, it makes them split, and then they will not keep long; they therefore make Chocolate of it immediately.

If the Kernels have not sweat enough, or they wrap them too soon in the Mat, they are subject to sprit or germe, which makes them bitter, and good for nothing.

When the Kernels have been once wrapped in a Mat, and begun to dry, care must be taken that they do not grow moist again; they must therefore be well stirr’d from time to time, that they may be thorowly dry’d, which you may know by taking a Handful in your Hand, and shutting it: if it cracks, then it is time to put them into your Store-house, and to expose them to sale.

Those who would gain a Reputation in giving out a good Merchandize, before they pack it up in Vessels, pick it, and throw aside the little, wither’d, and thin Kernels, which are not only unsightly, but render the Chocolate something worse.

Afterwards the Kernels of the Cocao-Nut are dried in the Sun, before they are brought to Europe, and sold by the Druggists and Grocers, who distinguish it into great and small, and into that of Caraqua, and that of the French Islands, tho with no good Foundation, for in the Places themselves they make no mention of this Distinction: It therefore seems likely, that the Merchants find their account in sorting it, since Kernels proceeding from the same Tree, and from the same Nut, are not always of the same bigness. It is indeed true, that if one Parcel of Kernels be compared with another, the one may consist of bigger than the other, which may arise from the Age or Vigour of the Trees, or from the Nature of the Soil; but certainly there is no kind of Kernels which may be called Great, as a distinct Kind, nor consequently no other which can properly be said to be Small.

The Kernels that come to us from the Coast of Caraqua, are more oily, and less bitter, than those that come from the FrenchIslands, and in France and Spain they prefer them to these latter: But in Germany, and in the North (Fides sit penes Autorem) they have a quite opposite Taste. Several People mix that of Caraqua with that of the Islands, half in half, and pretend by this Mixture to make the Chocolate better. I believe in the bottom, the difference of Chocolates is not considerable, since they are only obliged to encrease or diminish the Proportion of Sugar, according as the Bitterness of the Kernels require it. For it must be considered, as we have already said, that there is but one kind of Cocao-Tree, which grows as naturally in the Woods of Martinico, as in those of the Coast of Caraqua, that the Climates are almost the same, and consequently the Temperature of the Seasons equal, and therefore there cannot be any intrinsick Difference between these Fruits of any great moment.

As to the outward Difference that is observed, it can arise from nothing but the Richness of the Soil, or the contrary; from the different Culture, and from the Care or Negligence of the Labourers and those that prepare it, from the time of its gathering, to the time of its Delivery, and perhaps from all three together. It is to be observed at Martinico, that the Cocao-Trees prosper better in some Parts than others, merely from the Difference of the Soil, being more or less rich, or more or less moist.

I have had the Experience of one of my Friends, concerning what relates to the Cultivation and Preparation of this Tree and its Fruit, which demonstrates that they may add to its Value. This Gentleman, with a great deal of Application and Thought, found out the way to prepare the finest Merchandize of the Island, which was prefer’d by the Merchants to all the rest, and bore a greater Price than that of any of his Neighbours.

The Kernels of Caraqua are flattish, and for Bulk and Figure not unlike our large Beans. Those of St. Domingo, Jamaica, and Cuba, are generally larger than those of the Antilloes. The more bulky the Kernels are, and better they have been nourished, the less Waste there is after they have been roasted and cleansed, which some Years ago was an Advantage to those of Caraqua. But at present, by the Regulation from the Month of April, 1717, the Kernels of our Colonies pay but Two-pence Duty for Entry, whereas Foreigners pay always Fifteen: These thirteen Pence difference make such ample amends for the small Waste, that there is a great deal of reason to hope, that for the time to come, there will be none but the Curious, and People that do not value the Expence, that will make use of the Chocolate of Caraqua, by way of preference to that of the French Islands, and that the Cheapness of the latter will double the Consumption at least.

The best Cocao-Nuts have very brown firm Shells, and when the Kernel is taken out, it ought to be plump, well nourish’d, and sleek; of the Colour of a Hazle-Nut on the outside, but more inclining to a Red within; its Taste a little bitter and astringent, not at all sour or mouldy (z). In a word, without any Smell, and not worm-eaten.

The Fruit of the Cocao-Tree is the most oily that Nature has produced, and it has this admirable Prerogative, never to grow rank let it be ever so old, which all other Fruit do that are analogous to it in Qualities; such as Nuts, Almonds, Pine-Apple-Kernels, Pistachoe Nuts, Olives, &c.

There are also imported from America, Cocao-Kernel-Cakes of about a Pound weight each; and as this Preparation is the first and principal in the Composition of Chocolate, it will be proper to add here the Manner of making it.

The Indians, from whom we borrow it, are not very nice in doing it; they roast the Kernels in earthen Pots, then free them from their Skins, and afterwards crush and grind them between two Stones, and so form Cakes of it with their Hands.

The Spaniards, more industrious than the Savages, and at this day other Nations after their Example, chuse out the best Kernels (a), and the most fresh: Of these they put about two Pounds in a great Iron Shovel over a clear Fire, stirring them continually with a large Spatula, so long that they may be roasted enough to have their Skins come off easily, which should be done one by one (b), laying them a-part; and taking great heed that the rotten and mouldy Kernels be thrown away, and all that comes off the good ones; for these Skins being left among the Chocolate, will not dissolve in any Liquor, nor even in the Stomach, and fall to the bottom of Chocolate-Cups, as if the Kernels had not been cleansed.

If one was curious to weigh the Kernels at the Druggists, and then weigh them again after they are roasted and cleansed, one should find that there would be about a sixth Part wasted, more or less, according to the Nature and Qualities of the Kernels; that is to say, if you bought (for example) 30 Pounds, there would remain entirely cleansed, near twenty-five.

All the Kernels being thus roasted and cleansed at divers times, they put them once more to roast in the same Iron Shovel, but over a more gentle Fire, and stir them with the Spatula without ceasing till they are roasted all alike, and as much as they ought to be; which one may discover by their Taste, and their dark-brown Colour, without being black. The whole Art consists in avoiding the two Extremes, of not roasting them enough, and roasting them too much; that is to say, till they are burnt. If they are not roasted enough, they retain a disagreeable Harshness of Taste; and if they are roasted so much as to burn them, besides the Bitterness and ill Taste that they contract, they lose their Oilyness entirely, and the best part of their good Qualities.

In France, where they are very apt to run into Extremes, they are mighty fond of the burnt Taste, and the black Colour, as if they were proper Marks of good Chocolate, not considering that, Quantity for Quantity, they may as well put so much Charcoal as burnt Chocolate. This Opinion is not only agreeable to Reason and good Sense, but is also confirmed by the unanimous Consent of all that have written on this Subject; and I can affirm, that it is authorized by the universal Consent of allAmerica.

When the Kernels are duly roasted, and well cleansed, they put them into a large Mortar to reduce them into a gross Powder, which they afterwards grind upon a Stone till it is very fine, which requires a more particular Explication.

They make choice of a Stone which naturally resists the Fire, not so soft as to rub away easily, nor so hard as to endure polishing. They cut it from 16 to 18 Inches broad, and about 27 or 30 long, and 3 in thickness, and hollowed in the middle about an Inch and a half deep. This Stone should be fix’d upon a Frame of Wood or Iron, a little higher on one side than the other: Under, they place a Pan of Coals to heat the Stone, so that the Heat melting the oily Parts of the Kernels, and reducing it to the Consistence of Honey, makes it easy for the Iron Roller, which they make use of for the sake of its Strength, to make it so fine as to leave neither Lump, nor the least Hardness. This Roller is a Cylinder of polish’d Iron, two Inches in diameter, and about eighteen long, having at each End a wooden Handle of the same Thickness, and six Inches long, for the Workman to hold by.

When the Paste is ground as much as is thought necessary, they put it hot in Moulds made of Tin, where they leave it, and it becomes hard in a very little time. The Shape of these Moulds is arbitrary, and every one may have them made according to his Fancy; but the cylindrick ones, which will hold about 2 or 3 Pounds of Chocolate, seem to me to be most proper; because the thicker they are, the longer they keep good, and may be commodiously held when there is occasion to scrape them. These Rolls ought to be wrapped in Paper, and kept in a dry Place: it should also be observed, that they are very susceptible of good and ill Smells, and that it is good to keep them 5 or 6 Months before they are used.

Now the Kernels being sufficiently rubb’d and ground upon the Stone, as we have just directed, if you would compleat the Composition in the Mass, there is nothing more to be done, than to add to this Paste a Powder sifted thro a fine Searce, composed of Sugar, Cinnamon, and, if it be desired, of Vanilla (c), according to the Quantities and Proportions, which we shall teach in the Third Part of this Treatise; and mix it well upon the Stone, the better to blend it and incorporate it together, and then to fashion it in Moulds made of Tin in the form of Lozenges of about 4 Ounces each, or if desired, half a Pound.

(y) For this reason, when they would send Cocao-Nuts to the neighbouring Islands from Martinico, that they may have wherewithal to plant, they are very careful not to gather them till the Transport Vessel is ready to sail, and to make use of them as soon as they arrive. For this reason also it is not possible that the Spaniards, when they design to preserve Nuts for planting, should let them be wither’d and perfectly dry, and that afterwards they should take the Kernels of these same Nuts, and dry them very carefully in the Shade, and after all, raise a Nursery with them, as Oexmelin reports, History of Adventurers, Tom. 1. Pag. 424.

(7) See the seventh Note hereafter.

(8) The Mahot is a Shrub, whose Leaves are round and feel soft like those of Guimauve; its Bark easily comes off, which they divide into long Slangs, which serves for Packthread and Cords to the Inhabitants and Natives.

(z) It gets this Taste either by being laid in a moist Place, or by being wet by Sea-Water in the Passage.

(a) As the Kernels are never so clean, but there may be Stones, Earth, and bad ones among them; it will be necessary, before they are used, to sift them in a Sieve that will let these things pass through, while it retains the Kernels.

(b) The Artists, to make this Work more expeditious, and to gain time, put a thick Mat upon a Table, and spread the Kernels upon it as they come hot from the Shovel, and roll a Roller of Iron over them to crack and get off the Skins of the Kernels; afterward they winnow all in a splinter Sieve, till the Kernels become entirely cleansed.

THE
Natural HISTORY
OF
CHOCOLATE.

PART II.

Of the Properties of Chocolate.

We have hitherto treated of Chocolate, as it were, superficially, and as it presents itself to our Senses. We come next to examine its intrinsick Qualities, and to search into its Nature: As far as we can, we will discover what Reason, join’d to long Experience, has taught us concerning the salutary Properties of this Fruit.

CHAP. I.
Of the old Prejudices against Chocolate.

To proceed more methodically, and with greater Clearness in our Enquiries concerning Chocolate, it seems proper to set People right about the Prejudices which a false Philosophy has instilled into most Authors who have wrote upon this Subject; the Impressions whereof, are yet very deeply ingraven in the Minds of a great Number of People.

The Spaniards, who were first acquainted with Chocolate after the Conquest of the new World, have laid it down for an undoubted Truth, that Chocolate is cold and dry, participating of the Nature of Earth. They have supported this Determination neither with Reason nor Experience; nor do they know from whence they learnt it; perhaps they have taken it upon the Words, and from the Tradition of the Inhabitants of the Country. Let that be as it will, it is natural from false Principles to draw false Conclusions, of which the two principal are as follow.

The first is, That Chocolate being by Nature cold, it ought not to be used without being mixed with Spices, which are commonly hot, that so they might, both together, become temperate and wholesome. This was the Jargon and Practice of those Times. For the same Reason the ancient Physicians erroneously imagining that Opium was cold in the fourth Degree, never fail’d to correct this pretended Coldness in their narcotick Compositions, with Drugs extremely hot, as Euphorbium,Pellitory, Pepper, &c.

Their second Conclusion was, That Chocolate being dry and earthy, and from thence supposed to be of a styptick and astringent Quality; if it was not corrected, must necessarily breed Obstructions in the Viscera, and bring on a Cacochimy, and a great Number of other incurable Diseases.

These Prejudices have from the Spaniards pass’d into other Nations. To prove this, it will be unnecessary to cite a great Number of Authors, for whoever has read one, has read them all, the later having done nothing but copy the former; they have even sometimes improved their Dreams, and exaggerated this pretended Coldness of Chocolate, and at length push’d the Matter so far, as to make it a kind of cold Poison; and if it was taken to Excess, it would bring on a Consumption (1).

“Mexiaci friget nativa Cocai Temperies, tantoq; excedit Frigore ut inter noxia ne dubitem glandes censere Venena.”Thom. Strozzæ de Mentis potu seu de Cocolatis Opificio, lib. 3.

“Hinc siquis solo Cocolatis Fomite Vitam extrahat, atq; assueta neget Cibi Prandia, sensim contrahet exsueto marcentem Corpora Tabem.”

It is not very extraordinary that People who are more ready to believe than to examine, (such as the World is full of) should give into the unanimous Opinion of so many Authors; and it would be strange if they were not carry’d down by the Stream of a Prejudice so general. But I cannot sufficiently admire that Chocolate being so much decry’d, has not been entirely laid aside as unfit for Use; without doubt there was nothing but the daily Experience of its good Effects, which could support it, and hinder it from giving way to Calumny.

Now to overturn this old System, it is sufficient, in my Opinion, to observe with how little Skill and Penetration they then treated of the whole Natural History; one ought not to be amazed that they have affirmed Chocolate to be cold and dry, in an Age when, for Example, they could say Camphire was cold and moist, which is a kind of Resin, from whence one Drop of Water cannot be extracted, whose sharp Taste, and penetrating Smell, joined to the extreme Volatility and Inflammability of its Particles, even in Water itself, are such evident Signs of its Heat, that it is difficult to conceive upon what account they persuade themselves of the contrary.

The Qualities of Chocolate are not indeed so remarkable, nor so active, as those of Camphire; but, with the least Attention, one may easily discern, that the Quantity of Oil that it contains, and the Bitterness that is perceivable in Tasting, are not the Marks of Coldness, since all Bitters are esteem’d hot, and since Oil is a Matter very near a-kin to, and necessary for Fire. This is very near the Reasoning of a celebrated Physician at Rome (2) against the old Opinion: As for me, says he, I am of another Judgment; I believe that Chocolate is rather temperate than cold, and I refer my self to the Decision of every ingenious Person that will be at the pains to taste and examine it.

These Reflections will be farther confirmed in the first Section of the following Chapter, where we shall experimentally demonstrate that Chocolate is a Substance very temperate, yielding soft and wholesome Nourishment, incapable of doing any Harm. And if this intrinsick Coldness is no more to be feared, it must be own’d, that it will be henceforward ridiculous, if not pernicious, to join it with hot acrid Spices, more likely to alter and destroy its good and real Qualities, than to correct the bad ones which it has not: I nevertheless do not doubt but the Pleasantness of the Smell, and the favourite Taste of several agreeable Spices, being pretty much liked in this Mixture, will have their Partizans; who, more delighted with a present Gratification, than afraid of the insensible Prejudice that these Ingredients bring to their Health, will not resolve to leave them off. Tho these will be no longer the Correctors of Chocolate, yet they will serve to season it, with which they will please their Taste, without troubling themselves with the Consequences. But those Persons who will give themselves the trouble of thinking, and are more tractable and less sensual, will wisely abstain from such Extreams, and their Moderation will not be unattended with Benefit. Health is so valuable a Blessing, that the Care to gain and preserve it, ought to supersede any other Consideration.

As to the pretended Obstructions which Chocolate is said to occasion from its astrictive Quality, they are so far from being afraid of it in America, that they have found by Experience a Vertue directly contrary to it; for several young Women, subject to the Whites, have been cured of this Distemper, by eating a Dozen Cocao Kernels for Breakfast every Morning. It is well enough known that Obstructions are the Cause of this Disease, which instead of being encreas’d by Chocolate, were entirely taken away.

Then as to those strange Disorders which are said to arise from its immoderate Use, we shall bring in the Sequel so many Facts directly contrary to these Chimerical Fears, that all Persons of good Sense will be disabused, and convinced of the salutary and wonderful Properties of this Fruit; which shall be the Subject of the following Chapter.

(1) Ludov. Ramira, Relat. ad Hurtad. ad Append. cap.

(2) Paulus Zachias, de Malo Hypocondriaco, Lib. 2. Cap. 15.

CHAP. II.
Of the real Properties of Chocolate.

Without talking in the Dialect of the Peripateticks, about the Qualities of Heat and Coldness, now-a-days so much decry’d, it will not be difficult to prove that Chocolate is a Substance, 1. Very temperate. 2. Very nourishing, and of easy Digestion. 3. Very proper to repair the exhausted Spirits and decayed Strength. 4. Lastly, Very suitable to preserve the Health, and prolong the Lives of old Men. These four Articles shall be sufficiently demonstrated in the four following Sections.

Sect. I.
Chocolate is very Temperate.

Nothing is so great an Argument that Wheat, Rice, Millet, and Manioc, are salutary and temperate, as their being used by whole Nations together. If any of these Substances had any predominant evil Quality, it would soon appear to the Prejudice of the Health of Numbers; the People who subsist upon it, would soon leave it off as a very dangerous and hurtful Aliment.

One may reason much after the same manner with respect to Chocolate. The Natives of New-Spain, and of a great part of the Torrid Zone of America, have always used it as a Delicacy; and at this day all the European Colonies which are establish’d in those Countries, make a Consumption of vast Quantities of it: These People use it at all Times, and in all Seasons, as constant daily Food, without regard to Age, Sex, Temperament, or Condition, without Complaint of having received the least Prejudice from it; they find on the contrary that it quenches Thirst, is very refreshing and feeding; that it procures easy quiet Sleep, and produces several other good Effects, to say nothing of those we are going to treat of in the following Sections. I could produce several Instances in favour of this excellent Nourishment, but I shall content myself with two only, equally certain and decisive in the Proof of its Goodness. The first is an Experiment of Chocolate’s being taken for the only Nourishment, made by a Surgeon’s Wife of Martinico: She had lost by a very deplorable Accident her lower Jaw, which reduced her to such a Condition, that she did not know how to subsist; she was not capable of taking any thing solid, and not rich enough to live upon Jellies and nourishing Broths. In this Strait she determined to take three Dishes of Chocolate, prepared after the manner of the Country, one in the Morning, one at Noon, and one at Night. (There, Chocolate is nothing else but Cocao Kernels dissolved in hot Water, with Sugar, and season’d with a Bit of Cinnamon.) This new way of Life succeeded so well, that she has lived a long while since, more lively and robust than before this Accident.

I had the second Relation from a Gentleman of Martinico, and one of my Friends, not capable of a Falsity. He assured me, that in his Neighbourhood, an Infant of four Months old unfortunately lost his Nurse, and its Parents not being able to put it to another, resolved through Necessity to feed it with Chocolate; the Success was very happy, for the Infant came on to a Miracle, and was neither less healthy nor less vigorous than those who are brought up by the best Nurses.

The Inferences that may be drawn from these two Histories are evident, and demonstratively prove that Chocolate has neither any intemperate nor hurtful Quality; I shall therefore say no more upon them, leaving every one to make his own proper Reflections.

Sect. II.
Chocolate is very nourishing and of easy Digestion.

This Proposition is a necessary Consequence of the foregoing, established by Facts which I have just related; and we have Experiments as convincing of its easy Digestion, and the Goodness of the Chyle that it makes; but it needs no other Proof than the good Condition it puts those in, who ordinarily make use of it.

A learned Englishman has carried his Commendations so high concerning this particular Property of Chocolate, that he has not scrupled to affirm in a Dissertation that he has publish’d upon this Subject, That one Ounce of Chocolate contains as much Nourishment as a Pound of Beef. As much out of the way as this Assertion seems to be, one may easily conceive, that any Aliment is capable of yielding more plentiful Nourishment, if compar’d with any other, not only in respect to the Quantity, but also with relation to the Time that the Stomach takes to digest it.

Physicians are not agreed about the Causes of Digestion, but are divided into two Opinions, each of which is supported by the Writings of very eminent Authors; convinced of my own Inability to decide the Controversy, which also requires a large Field to expatiate in, I shall not undertake to defend either Fermentation or Trituration: But it will be sufficient to say, in two Words, that these Opinions are not absolutely incompatible (1): it perhaps will not be difficult to make a sort of an Alliance or Agreement between them, by uniting whatever is plain and evident in the two Systems, and rejecting what is otherwise; and from hence form a third, which will be nothing but the Union of the uncontested Parts of the other two.

These two Causes undoubtedly concur in the Alteration that the Aliment undergoes in the Mouth; for the Saliva that mixes with it in Mastication, and dilutes it, cannot be deny’d to be an admirable Ferment (2); and the Tongue which moves it, and the Teeth which grind it, and break it, must be own’d to be the first Instruments of Trituration.

Now since Nature is commonly uniform in her Operations, and since there is a great deal of reason to suppose that Nature compleats Digestion by the same means that she has begun it, let us suppose it is really so for a Moment, and apply it to the present Subject, and then we shall see by what Evidence Chocolate ought to be of an easy Digestion.

In the first place, bitter and alkaline Substances, such as these Kernels, are stomachick and analogous to the Saliva and the Ferment which dissolves the Aliment in the Stomach; how then can it be of hard Digestion with these Qualities?

In the second place, if one considers attentively the Kernels as they are roasted, broke, and ground extremely fine upon a Stone, afterwards melted and dissolved in boiling Liquor, which serves as a Vehicle for it; it then seems very likely that the Stomach will not have much Labour left to do. In short, by it Digestion is more than half finished.

Experience confirms these Reasonings very much, for the Digestion of Chocolate is soon brought about without Trouble, without Difficulty, and without any sensible rising of the Pulse; the Stomach very far from making use of its Strength, acquires new Force. And I can farther say, upon my own Knowledge, that I have seen several Persons who had but weak Digestion, if not quite spoiled, who have been entirely recovered by the frequent Use of Chocolate.

Sect. III.
Chocolate speedily repairs the dissipated Spirits and decay’d Strength.

If Chocolate did not produce this Effect, but only as it is very nourishing, it would but have this Property in common with the most juicy Aliments, and such as are most proper to furnish a good Quantity of Blood and Plenty of Spirits: but its Effects are far more speedy; for if a Person, for Example, fatigued with long and hard Labour, or with a violent Agitation of Mind, takes a good Dish of Chocolate, he shall perceive almost instantly, that his Faintness shall cease, and his Strength shall be recovered, when Digestion is hardly begun. This Truth is confirmed by Experience, tho’ not so easily explained by Reasoning, because Chocolate sensibly appears to be soft, heavy, and very little disposed by any active Quality to put the Spirits in motion; however, being resolved to neglect nothing that is likely to unfold the Cause of an Effect so wonderful, I undertook one day the Chymical Analysis of Chocolate, and altho’ prejudiced that I should discover nothing this way but a superficial Knowledge, yet I was willing to flatter myself that my Enquiry would not be wholly fruitless.

I cleansed sixteen Ounces of Kernels without burning them, I ground them in a Marble Mortar, and afterwards put them in a Glass Retort well luted; I placed it in a Reverberatory Furnace, and fixed to it a large Receiver; and after having luted the Joints well, I gave it the first Degree of Fire.

The first that ascended was pure Phlegm, which dropt for about two Hours; a little white unctuous Matter swam on the top of it.

The Fire being augmented, the Drops became red, and congealed as they fell into the Receiver; this lasted about two Hours.

The Fire being again augmented, the Receiver was filled with white Clouds, which I saw resolve into a kind of Dew, white and unctuous, which was partly Spirit, and partly a white Oil; the red Drops however continued to the End, which was about two Hours and a half.

This Operation let me know that Chocolate contains two kinds of Oil; the one Red and Fixed, which congealed it self on the side of the Vessel; and the other White and Volatile, which proceeded from the white Clouds, and resolved itself on the other side of the Receiver.

On the Morrow after, having unluted the Receiver, and having placed it in Balneo Mariæ, to melt the congealed Matter, I was agreeably surpriz’d to see the Vessel immediately fill’d with white Clouds: I very much admired the Volatility of this Unctuosity, and I was fully convinced, that Chocolate contained that volatile Oil so highly esteemed in Medicine, and that one need not go farther to seek the Cause of the speedy Reparation of the fainting Spirits; which is confirmed by the daily Experience of those that use Chocolate.

Having separated the Spirit by filtring through brown Paper, I divided the butirous Matter into two Parts: I put one, without any Addition, into a little Glass Cucurbit, which I placed in a Sand-Heat to rectify it, and by this Operation I got an Oil of an Amber Colour, swimming upon a little Phlegm, or Spirit (3).

I melted the remaining Part, and having incorporated it with quick Lime, I put it into a little Glass Retort luted, and put Fire to it by degrees. There first came over a clear Oil, the white Clouds succeeded, and at length the reddish Butter. Having unluted the Recipient, and put all in a little Cucurbit in a Sand-Heat, the white Clouds yielded an Oil of an Amber Colour; and having augmented the Fire, there came over a little red Oil, but no Spirit.

The Amber-coloured Oil is nothing else but the white volatile Oil, coloured a little by the Violence of the Fire: As for the red Oil, it seems to be the Remainder of the red Butter, fit to be exalted. These two Oils will not mix together; for the red, more fixed than the other, always gets to the bottom. Mr. Boyle (54) said he extracted from Human Blood, two Oils very like those above mentioned; and this Conformity of Substances, very much convinces me of the great Analogy I always supposed to be between Chocolate and Human Blood.

As for the Spirit, it has nothing very disagreeable either in Taste or Smell, it does not sensibly ferment with Alkalies, nor alters the Colour of blue Paper; after some time, it grows a little acid, and tastes a little tartish.

Having calcined the Caput Mortuum, which is of a violet Colour and filtred and evaporated the Lixivium, as is usual; I got nothing from it but a kind of Cynder, a little saltish, and in so small a quantity, that I did not give myself the trouble to reiterate the Calcination, Dissolution, Filtration, and Evaporation; for I should hardly have got five or six Grains of fixed purified Salt.

I curiously observed, that neither in the Heads, nor in the Receivers, there did appear any signs of a volatile Salt: However, M. Lemery assures us (55), that it contains a good deal; but it is plain he took his Opinion upon trust, for had he made the Experiment, he is too ingenious to be mistaken.

One may then conclude from these two Observations, That Chocolate is a mix’d Body, that has the least Quantity of Salt enters its Composition.

Sect. IV.
Chocolate is very proper to preserve Health, and to prolong the Life of Old Men.

Before Chocolate was known in Europe, good old Wine was called the Milk of old Men; but this Title is now apply’d with greater reason to Chocolate, since its Use has become so common, that it has been perceived that Chocolate is, with respect to them, what Milk is to Infants. In reality, if one examines the Nature of Chocolate, a little with respect to the Constitution of aged Persons, it seems as though the one was made on purpose to remedy the Defects of the other, and that it is truly thePanacea of old Age.

Our Life, as a famous Physician (56) observes, is, as it were, a continual growing dry; but yet this kind of natural Consumption is imperceptible to an advanced Age: when the radical Moisture is consumed more sensibly, then the more balmy and volatile Parts of the Blood are dissipated by little and little, the Salts disengaging from the Sulphurs, manifest themselves, the Acid appears, which is the fruitful Source of Chronick Diseases. The Ligaments, the Tendons, and the Cartilages have scarce any of the Unctuosity left, which render’d them so supple and so pliant in Youth. The Skin grows wrinkled as well within as without; in a word, all the solid Parts grow dry or bony.

One may say that Nature has formed Chocolate with every Vertue proper to remedy these Inconveniences. The volatile Sulphur with which it abounds, is proper to supply the Place of that which the Blood loses every day through Age, it blunts and sheaths the Points of the Salts, and restores the usual Softness to the Blood, like as Spirit of Wine united with Spirit of Salt, makes a soft Liquor of a violent Corrosive. This same sulphurous Unctuosity at the same time spreads itself in the solid Parts, and gives them, in some sense, their natural Suppleness; it bestows on the Membranes, the Tendons, the Ligaments, and the Cartilages, a kind of Oil which renders them smooth and flexible. Thus the Equilibrium between the Fluids and the Solids is in some measure re-establish’d, the Wheels and Springs of our Machine mended, Health is preserved, and Life prolonged. These are not the Consequences of Philosophical Reflections, but of a thousand Experiments which mutually confirm each other; among a great Number of which the following alone shall suffice.

There lately died at Martinico a Counsellor about a hundred Years old, who, for thirty Years past, lived on nothing but Chocolate and Biscuit. He sometimes indeed had a little Soop at Dinner, but never any Fish, Flesh, or other Victuals: He was, nevertheless, so vigorous and nimble, that at fourscore and five, he could get on horseback without Stirrups.

Chocolate is not only proper to prolong the Life of aged People, but also of those whose Constitution is lean and dry, or weak and cacochimical, or who use violent Exercises, or whose Employments oblige them to an intense Application of Mind, which makes them very faintish: to all these it agrees perfectly well, and becomes to them an altering Diet.

On the contrary, I would not counsel the daily Use of it to such who are very fat, or who are wont to drink a good deal of Wine, and live upon a juicy Diet, or who sleep much, and use no Exercise at all: In a word, who lead a delicate, sedentary, and indolent Life, such as a great many People of Condition at Paris are used to. Such Bodies as these, full of Blood and Juice, have no need of additional Nourishment, and the Diet will fit them better which is mentioned in Ecclesiast. Plentiful Feeding brings Diseases, and Excess hath killed Numbers; but the temperate Man prolongs his Days (59).

(1) The Translator of this Treatise, who is a Physician, thinks it proper to observe, that the Opinions about Digestion, are deficiently related by our Author; for they are chiefly four, Trituration, Fermentation, Heat, and by aMenstruum, which are so far from being incompatible, that three of them necessarily concur to promote Digestion; to wit, Heat, and a Menstruum or Liquor, and Trituration, or the Motion or rubbing of the Coats of the Stomach: For it is plain, if the two former are absent, there can be no Digestion, and without doubt the last does assist, but which is the principal, I shall not take upon me to determine.

(2) Our Author seems here either to mistake Ferment for Menstruum, or to make them synonymous Terms: With this Allowance, his Reasoning is undoubtedly just; but as for a Ferment, in the usual Sense of that Word, it may justly be questioned whether there be any such in a Human Body.

(3) Our Author seems to make Phlegm and Spirit synonymous Terms in Chymistry.

(54) Pluribus abhinc Annis cum Sanguinem conveniente admodum digestione, præparassem, & solicitè distillatos Liquores supereffluentes flammâ lampadis rectificassem: Inter alia duo obtinui olea diversi omnino Coloris, quorum alterum Flavedinem, aut pallorem Succini, alterum vero intensissimam Rubedinem imitabatur; illud autem ingeniosis etiam, lynceisq; Spectatoribus, miraculi instar erat, quod licet ambo hæc Olea ab eodem sanguine emanassent, forentq; pura satis & limpida, non tantum distinctis in Massis sibi invicem supra innatarent, sed si agitatione commiscerentur, paulatim sese mutuo iterum extricarent, ut Oleum & Aqua. Historia Sanguinis Humani.

(55) Traité de Drogues, Pag. 127.

(56) Baglivius in Edit. Lugd. 1709. Pag. 414. Vivere enim nostrum siccessere est.

(59) Chap. xxxvii. V. 33 & 34. In multis Escis erit Infirmitas, propter crapulam multi obierunt: Qui autem abstinens est, adjiecit Vitam.

THE
Natural HISTORY
OF
CHOCOLATE.

PART III.

Of the Uses of Chocolate.

The common Uses of Chocolate may be reduced to three: It is put in Confections; it is used in Chocolate, properly so call’d; and there is an Oil drawn from it, to which they give the Name of Butter. I shall treat of them distinctly, in the three following Chapters.

CHAP. I
Of Chocolate in Confections.

They chuse Cocao-Nuts that are half ripe, and take out the Kernels one by one, for fear of spoiling them; they then lay them to soak for some Days in Spring Water, which they take care to change Morning and Evening: afterwards, having taken them out and wiped them, they lard them with little Bits of Citron-Bark and Cinnamon, almost as they make the Nuts of Roüen.

In the mean time, they prepare a Syrup of the finest Sugar, but very clear; that is to say, wherein there is but little Sugar: and after it has been clarified and purified, they take it boiling-hot off the Fire, and put in the Cocao-Kernels, and let them lie 24 Hours. They repeat this Operation six or seven times, encreasing every time the Quantity of Sugar, without putting it on the Fire, or doing any thing else to it: last of all, they boil another Syrup to the Consistence of Sugar, and pour it on the Kernels well wiped and put in a clean earthen Pot; and when the Syrup is almost cold, they mix with it some Drops of the Essence of Amber.

When they would have these in a dry Form, they take them out of the Syrup; and after it is well drained from them, they put them into a Bason full of a very strong clarify’d Syrup, then they immediately put it in a Stove, or Hot-House, where they candy it.

This Confection, which nearly resembles the Nuts of Roüen, is excellent to strengthen the Stomach without heating it too much; for this reason, they may safely be given to those who are ill of a Fever.

CHAP. II.
Of Chocolate, properly so called.

In treating of this Liquor, we have two things to examine: The First is, the Original of Chocolate, and the different Manner of preparing it: The Second, the Medicinal Uses that it is proper for; which shall be the Subject of the two following Sections.

Sect. I
Of the Original of Chocolate, and the different Manners of preparing it.

Chocolate is originally an American Drink, which the Spaniards found very much in use at Mexico, when they conquer’d it, about the Year 1520.

The Indians, who have used this Drink time out of mind, prepared it without any great Art; they roasted their Kernels in earthen Pots, then ground them between two Stones, diluted them with hot Water, and season’d them with Pimento (1): those who were more curious, added Achiota (2) to give it a Colour, and (3) Attolla to augment its Substance. All these things joined together, gave to the Composition so strange a Look, and so odd a Taste, that a Spanish Soldier said, it was more fit to be thrown to Hogs (4), than presented to Men; and that he could never have accustomed himself to it, if the want of Wine had not forced him to it, that he might not always be obliged to drink nothing but Water.

The Spaniards (5) taught by the Mexicans, and convinced by their own Experience, that this Drink, as rustick as it appeared to them, nevertheless yielded very wholesome Nourishment; try’d to make it more agreeable by the Addition of Sugar, some Oriental Spices, and Things that grew there, which it will be needless to mention, because the Names of them are not so much as known here, and because of so many Ingredients, there is none continued down to us but Vanilla; in like manner, that Cinnamon (6) is the only Spice which has had general Approbation, and remains in the Composition of Chocolate.

Vanilla is a Cod of a brown Colour and delicate Smell; it is flatter and longer than our [French] Beans, it contains a luscious Substance, full of little black shining Grains. They must be chosen fresh, full, and well grown, and care must be taken that they are not smeared with Balsam, nor put in a moist Place.

The agreeable Smell, and exquisite Taste that they communicate to Chocolate, have prodigiusly recommended it; but long Experience having taught that it heats very much, its Use is become less frequent, and those who prefer their Health more than pleasing their Senses, abstain from it entirely. In Spain and Italy, Chocolate prepared without Vanilla, is called at presentChocolate of Health; and in the French Islands of America, where Vanilla is neither scarce nor dear, as in Europe, they do not use it at all, though they consume as much Chocolate there as in any other Place in the World.

However, a great many People are prejudiced in favour of Vanilla, and that I may pay a due Deference to their Judgments, I shall employ Vanilla in the Composition of Chocolate, in the best Method and Quantity, as it appears to me; I say, as it appears to me, because there are an infinite Variety of Tastes, and every one expects that we should have regard to his, and one Person is for adding what the other rejects. Besides, when it is agreed upon what things to put in, it is not possible to hit upon Proportions that will be universally approved; it will therefore be sufficient for me to make choice of such Things as the Majority are agreed upon, and consequently which are agreeable to the Tastes of most.

When the Chocolate Paste is made pretty fine upon a Stone, as I have already explain’d, they add Sugar powdered and passed through a fine Searce; the true Proportion is the same Weight of Sugar as of Kernels, but it is common to put a quarter part less of the former, that it may not dry the Paste too much, nor make it too susceptible of Impressions from the Air, and more subject to be eaten by Worms. But this fourth Part is again supply’d, when it is made into a Liquor to drink.

The Sugar being well mix’d with the Paste, they add a very fine Powder made of Vanilla and Cinnamon powdred and searced together. They mix all over again upon the Stone very well, and then put it in Tin Moulds, of what Form you please, where it grows as hard as before. Those that love Perfumes, pour a little Essence of Amber on it before they put it in the Moulds.

When the Chocolate is made without Vanilla, the Proportion of Cinnamon is two Drams to a Pound of Paste; but whenVanilla is used, it should be less by one half. As for the Vanilla, the Proportion is arbitrary; one, two, or three Cods, and sometimes more, to a Pound, according to every one’s Fancy.

Those that make Chocolate for Sale, that they may be thought to have put in a good deal of Vanilla, put in Pepper, Ginger,&c. There are even some People so accustomed to these Tastes, that they will not have it otherwise; but these Spices serving only to inflame the Blood, and heat the Body, prudent People take care to avoid this Excess, and will not use any Chocolate whose Composition they are ignorant of.

Chocolate made after this manner, has this Advantage, that when a Person is obliged to go from Home, and cannot stay to have it made into Drink, he may eat an Ounce of it, and drinking after it, leave the Stomach to dissolve it.

In the Antilloes they make Cakes of the Kernels only, without any Addition, as I have taught at the End of the first Part of this Treatise; and when they would make Chocolate of them, they proceed in the following Manner.

(1) (2) (3) See the Remarks 8, 9, and 10.

(4) Porcorum ea verius Colluvies quam hominum Potio. Benzo apud Clusium Exoticorum Lib. Cap. 28.

(5) Hæc olim Cocolatis erant Exordia & Artis prima Rudimenta. P. Thomæ Strozzæ de Mentis potio.

(6) See the 11th Remark.

The Method of making Chocolate after the Manner of the French Islands in America.

They scrape off with a Knife from these Cakes aforesaid (1), what Quantity they please, (for Instance, four large Spoonfuls, which weigh about an Ounce) and mix with it two or three Pinches of powder’d Cinnamon finely searced, and about two large Spoonfuls of Sugar in Powder (2).

They put this Mixture into a Chocolate-Pot with a new-laid Egg (3), both White and Yolk; then mix all well together with the Mill, and bring it to the Consistence of Liquid Honey, upon which they afterwards pour boiling Liquor (4), (Milk or Water, as is liked best) at the same time using the Mill that they may be well incorporated together.

Afterwards they put the Chocolate-Pot on the Fire, or in a Kettle of boiling Water; and when the Chocolate rises, they take it off, and having well mill’d it, they pour it into the Dishes. To make the Taste more exquisite, one may, before it is poured out, add a Spoonful of Orange-Flower Water, wherein a Drop or two of Essence of Amber has been put.

This Manner of making Chocolate has several Advantages above any other, and which render it preferable to them all.

In the first place, one may assert, that being well managed, it has a very agreeable Smell, and a peculiar Delicacy in the Taste; besides, it passes very easily off the Stomach, nor leaves any Settling either in the Chocolate-Pot, or in the Dishes.

In the second place, one has the Satisfaction to prepare it one’s self to one’s own Taste, to encrease or diminish at pleasure the Quantities of Sugar or Cinnamon, and to add or leave out the Orange-Flower Water, or Essence of Amber; and, in a word, to make any other Alteration that shall be most agreeable.

In the third place, they make no Additions that destroy the good Qualities of the Kernels; it is so temperate, that it may be taken at all Times, and by all Ages, in Summer as well as in Winter, without fearing the least Inconveniency: WhereasChocolate season’d with Vanilla, and other hot and biting Ingredients, cannot but be very pernicious, especially in Summer, to young People, and to dry Constitutions. The Glass of cold Water that they have introduced to drink before it, or after it, only serves to palliate the Effects for a Time; for the Heat that attends it, will manifest itself in the Blood and Viscera, when the Water is drain’d off and gone, by the ordinary ways.

In the fourth place, a Dish is so cheap, as not to come to above a Penny. If Tradesmen and Artizans were once aware of it, there are few who would not take the Advantage of so easy a Method of Breakfasting so agreeably, at so small a Charge, and to be well supported till Dinner-time, without taking any other Sustenance, Solid or Liquid.

(1) Or rather grate it with a flat Grater, when the Cakes are so dry that they will not be so easily scraped with a Knife.

(2) Because if it was in a Lump, it would weigh more than double the Quantity of scraped Chocolate.

(3) The oily Parts of the Chocolate would not readily unite with the aqueous or watry Parts of the Liquor, without the Intervention of the Egg, which serves as a common Bond, without which this Drink would not have a good Head.

(4) The Proportion of Liquor should be about eight Ounces, or half a Pint, to one Ounce of Chocolate.

Sect. II.
Of the Uses that may be made of Chocolate with relation to Medicine.

I have always imagined it would be a very great Advantage to Physick, if Medicines could be administred to sick People under an agreeable Form, and a familiar Taste; and the Artifice itself of giving any thing under the appearance and name of something that is delicate, is not without its Benefit: People afflicted with Distempers, have enough to do to support their Pains, without the Inconveniency of distastful Remedies; however, it would be no small matter to spare them the Aversion they have to every thing that is called a Medicine; and when there is a Necessity for such, Chocolate may serve for very proper Diet, and an excellent Vehicle, wherein to take a Medicine at the same time.

These have been my Thoughts for some Time, and I can affirm that a happy Success has often confirm’d my Opinion. I could wish that this Essay, imperfect as it is, might serve to waken the Attention of some ingenious Physician, who would give himself the trouble to handle this Matter with greater Accuracy than my small Penetration will permit me to do.

1. How many People neglect to purge themselves, and are so obstinate as to refuse to do it, when they have the greatest need of it, and this because of the great Distaste they have for ordinary Medicines? Will it not be of the greatest Service to teach them to purge themselves after a delightful Method, and even, if it was necessary, to purge them without their knowledge? To do this, you need only mix 20 or 26 Grains of Jalap in Powder, (more or less, according to the Age and Strength of the Person) with so much Powder of Cinnamon as is common for a Dish of Chocolate, and to give this Dish as if it were ordinary Chocolate. I have had great Experience of this, it is a good Purge without Griping; several have mistaken the Effect for the Benefit of Nature only, being entirely ignorant of the officious Deceit which I made use of for their sakes. What Advantages may not there be drawn from this Method of Purging apply’d to Children, who are so backward to take any thing that has the least ill Taste?

2. The Preparations of the Cortex, both Galenical and Chymical, have not succeeded. Its Infusion in Wine, heretofore so much cry’d up, contains but a part of the Vertue; for the Fæces, or the Bark that remains at the bottom of the Bottle, has Strength enough to cure the intermitting Fever. Thus after a thousand fruitless Trials, it is now given again in Substance, reduced to a very fine Powder, which is either made into Bolus’s, or taken in Water. This Practice however is attended with several Inconveniences; for a great many People, especially Children, cannot swallow it in Bolus’s. The same Inconveniences follow the other Way of taking it in Water, and is neither less troublesome, nor less nauseous.

To avoid all this, a Dram of the Cortex reduced to a fine (1) Powder, and finely searced, and afterwards ground dry on a Porphyry, with the Cinnamon designed for a Dish of Chocolate, and mixed in the Chocolate with more Sugar than ordinary, may be taken without the least Reluctancy, and, if necessary, without being perceived: The Person will be nourished at the same time much better than with Broth, which is easily corrupted by a feverish Stomach; neither will the Particles of theCortex offend the Stomach, being wrapped up by the Unctuosity of the Chocolate. I have cured Intermittent Fevers after this manner, nor did it ever fail of good Success.

3. The most elaborate Preparations of Steel, are not one jot the better upon that account; the simple Filings have more Vertue than was ever extorted from this Metal by any Preparation: there is nevertheless an Inconveniency in the Use of them, because all the Particles of the Steel uniting together, by their Weight, at the bottom of the Stomach, form a kind of a Cake, which fatigues it, and makes it very uneasy.

To remedy this, after the Filings have been ground into a very fine Powder upon a Porphyry; you must mix it with the Cinnamon, when you make your Chocolate, and it is certain that the Particles of the Steel will be so divided and separated by the Agitation of the Mill, and so entangled in the Chocolate, that there will be no danger of a future Separation. Besides, the aromatick Particles of the Cinnamon, and the alkaline ones of the Chocolate, will not a little add to the Strength and Operation of this Remedy.

4. After this manner may you mix with the Chocolate the Powders of Millepedes, Vipers, Earthworms, the Livers and Galls of Eels, to take away the distasteful Ideas that the Sick entertain against these Remedies.

5. The Use of Milk is a specifick Remedy for the Cure of several Distempers, but by Misfortune there are but few Stomachs that can bear it, and several Methods have been try’d to find out Help for this Inconvenience. Without troubling myself to mention or examine them, will it not be an easy and natural Method, to hinder the Milk from curdling on the Stomach, to pour a hot Dish of Chocolate upon a Pint or Quart of Milk? The butirous Parts of the Milk and Chocolate, are in reality analogous to each other, and very proper to be united for the same Purpose; and what is bitter and alkaline in the Chocolate, ought necessarily to hinder the curdling of the Milk in the Stomach. It is easy to confirm by Experience the Reasoning upon this sort of Chocolated Milk.

(1) This, if true, overturns what has been said about the Mechanical Cure of an Ague, by Quincy, who pretends that the Vertue of the Cortex lies in its Texture, which this Preparation destroys.

CHAP. III.
Of the Oil or Butter of Chocolate.

Chocolate Kernels are a Fruit very oleaginous, but the Oil is very closely united with the other Principles, that it requires a great deal of Labour to separate it, and to make it pure. The three common Ways to extract Oils, are by Distillation, Expression, and Decoction; we reject the first as being very imperfect, because the Violence of the Fire alters the Nature of all Oils that are extracted that way. The Success will answer no better by Expression, because that which is got will be very impure and in very small Quantity. There then remains no way but by Decoction, to draw out this essential Oil that we are in quest of, which is the true and the only way, for it gives it in its utmost Purity without any Alteration.

They take Chocolate that is roasted, cleaned, and ground upon the Stone, they throw the Paste into a Pan of boiling Water over a clear Fire; they let it boil till almost all the Water is consumed, then they pour more Water upon it till the Pan is full; the Oil ascends to the Top in proportion as the Water cools, and grows to the Consistence of Butter. If this Oil is not very white, it needs only be melted in a Pan full of hot Water, where it will be disengaged and purified from the red and terrestrial Particles that remain.

At Martinico this Oil is of the Consistence of Butter, but brought into France, it becomes almost as hard as Fromage, or French Cheese, which melts nevertheless, and becomes liquid with a moderate Heat: it has no very sensible Smell, and has the good fortune never to grow rank; I have some of it now by me, that has been made this fifteen Years. One Year, when Oil of Olives failed us, we used that of Chocolate during the Time of Lent. It is very well tasted, and very far from being hurtful; it contains the most essential and most healthful Parts of the Chocolate.

I had the Curiosity to examine it by a Chymical Analysis; I put three Ounces into a little Glass Cucurbit placed in the Heat of Ashes, there drop’d from it an oily Liquor, which congealed as it fell down, and which did not differ from the Butter that I have described, but by a light Impression made upon it by the Fire. I only observed, that there was at the bottom of the Receiver, two or three Drops of a clear Liquor, which tasted a little acid, but very agreeable.

As this Oil is very anodyne, or an Easer of Pain, it is excellent, taken inwardly, to cure Hoarseness, and to blunt the Sharpness of the Salts that irritate the Lungs. In using, it must be melted and mix’d with a sufficient Quantity of Sugar-Candy, and made into Lozenges, which must be held in the Mouth as long as may be, before they melt quite away, swallowing it down gently.

Oil of Chocolate also taken seasonably, may be a wonderful Antidote against corrosive Poisons.

Its Vertues are no ways inferior, if used outwardly.

1. It is the best and most natural Pomatum for Ladies to clear and plump the Skin when it is dry, rough, or shrivel’d, without making it appear either fat or shining. The Spanish Women at Mexico, use it very much, and it is highly esteem’d by them. If it is thought too hard, it may be softened with Oil of Ben, or Oil of Sweet Almonds, cold drawn.

2. I am persuaded if the antient Custom of the Greeks and Romans, of anointing their Bodies with Oil, was revived, there is nothing would answer their Expectations better, in augmenting the Strength and Suppleness of their Muscles, and preserving them from Rheumatisms and other torturing Pains. The leaving off this Practice, can be attributed to nothing else but to the ill Smell and other Properties that attended it; but if Oil of Chocolate was used instead of Oil of Olives, those Inconveniences would be avoided, because it has no Smell, and dries entirely into the Skin: nothing certainly would be more advantageous, especially for aged Persons, than to renew this Custom, which has been authorized by the Experience of Antiquity.

3. Apothecaries ought to make use of this preferably to all others, as the Basis of their Apoplectick Balsams; because all other Oils grow rancid, and the Oil of Nutmegs, though whiten’d with Spirit of Wine, always retains somewhat of its natural Smell, whereas Oil of Chocolate is not subject to any of these Accidents.

4. There is nothing so proper as this to keep Arms from rusting, because it contains less Water than any other Oil made use of for that purpose.

5. In the American Islands they make use of this Oil to cure the Piles; some use it without Mixture, others melt two or three Pounds of Lead, and gathering the Dross, reduce it into fine Powder, and after it is finely searced, incorporate it with this Oil, and make a Liniment of it very efficacious for this Disease. Others for the same Intention mix with this Oil the Powder ofMillepedes, Sugar of Lead, Pompholix, and a little Laudanum.

Others use this Oil to ease Gout Pains, applying it hot to the Part, with a Compress dip’d in it, which they cover with a hot Napkin. It may be used after the same manner for the Rheumatism.

6. Lastly, This Oil enters the Composition of the wonderful Plaister, and the Pomatum against Tetters. You will find their Description and Properties among the Remarks at the End of this Treatise.

REMARKS
Upon some Places of the
Treatise upon Chocolate.

Remark I.

The Coco-tree is the same as the Palm-Tree so famous in the East-Indies; its Fruit is call’d Coco, and care should be taken that it be not confounded with Cocao. I make this Remark, because I find that William Dampier very improperly calls (a) Coco’s Cocao-Nuts, and the Tree that bears them a Cocao.

Remark II.

They have transported these great Trees from St. Domingo to the Vent Islands; their Leaves being almost round, are firm and so smooth, that one would think they had been varnished. Their Fruit are sometimes as large as one’s Head, and their Skins very thick: When that is taken off, the Pulp is very near the Colour, Smell, and Taste of our Apricocks; in the Middle there are four Stones as big as Pullets Eggs, which are difficult to separate from the Fruit. They are eaten with Wine and Sugar; they make also very good Marmalade.

Remark III.

The Calebash-Tree is nigh as large as the Apple-Tree; it supplies the Natives and Negroes with Buckets, Pots, Bottles, Dishes, Plates, and several other Houshold Utensils. One cannot describe the Shape nor Bigness of Calebashes, since there are some of the Size of a Pear, and others as large as the greatest Citrons; and besides, there are long, round, oval, and of all Fashions. The Fruit, which is green and smooth upon the Tree, becomes grey as it dries; within, it is full of a white Pulp, of no use at all, which they take out through a Hole; the Shells they put to several Services. The Bark is about one Fifth of an Inch thick, but very hard, and difficult to break.

Remark IV.

The Papaw-Tree is pretty uncommon as to its Make; its Trunk is strait, but hollow, and of so tender a Wood, that it is easily cut down with a Hedging-Bill; it is about four Yards high, without any Branches; its Leaves much like those of our Fig-Trees, but twice as big, and are joined to the top by Stalks of a Foot and a half long, and hollow like a Reed. They being about thirty in number, grow at the top of the Trunk all round about it; the lowest are ripest and largest, they are green, and of the bigness of one’s Fist. The Pulp, which is but half an Inch thick, is like that of a Melon, but of a sweet faintish Taste; but it makes a pretty good Confection, of a fine green Colour.

There is another kind of Papaw-Tree, whose Fruit is as large as a Melon, and better tasted than the former.

Remark V.

The Banane is a sort of Plant, whose Root is a great round Bulb, from whence proceeds a Trunk, green and smooth, six Feet high, as thick as one’s Thigh, and without any Leaf. On the top of it grow about twenty Leaves, about a Foot and a half broad, and about five Feet long; but so tender, that the Wind tears them from the Middle to the Sides, into Slangs like Ribbons: From the Center of these Leaves grows a second Trunk, more firm than the rest of the Plant: upon this grows a Cluster of about forty or fifty Bananes, sometimes more, sometimes less. A Banane is a Fruit as thick as one’s Arm, about a Foot long, and a little crooked. They gather this Cluster green, and hang it up in the Ceiling; and as the Bananes grow yellow, or mellow, they gather them. When this Cluster is taken away, the Plant withers, or they cut it down at the Root; but for one Trunk lost, the Root sends forth five or six more.

Besides these Bananes, there is a Fruit call’d Banane-Figs; but the Plants that produce them are very little different: The Figs are much less than the Bananes, being but four or five Inches long. The Fig is more delicious, but the Banane is thought to be more wholesome, and the Pulp more solid. They roast them upon a Grid-Iron, or bake them in an Oven, they eat them with Sugar and the Juice of an Orange. The Banane done in a Stew-Pan in its own Juice, with Sugar and a little Cinnamon, is excellent.

Remark VI.

Manioc is a Shrub very crooked, and full of Knots, its Wood is tender and brittle, and the Branches are easily broke off into Slips: There are several and different Colours, some more forward and fruitful than others. Commonly they are pluck’d up in a Year or thereabouts; and there is found at every one, several plump Roots, without any sensible Fibres, more or less thick, according to the Kind and the Goodness of the Soil. These Roots are wash’d in a good deal of Water, to free them from the Earth; and after they are scraped with a Knife like wild Turnips, they grate them; that is to say, they rub them hard with great Copper Graters, which the French call Grages, just as they do Quinces to get out the Juice. This grated Manioc is put in the Press in Sacks made of coarse Hemp, or Rushes, to get out the superfluous Moisture, which is not only unwholesome, but poisonous. This, thus press’d, they take from the Sacks, and pass it through a coarse Sieve called Hibichet; they afterwards bake it two several ways, to make what they call Cassave, or Meal of Manioc.

In the first place, when they would make the Cassave, they spread the sifted Manioc upon a Plate of Iron over a clear Fire, which they tapping down with the Ball of their Hands, make a broad Cake about half an Inch thick, and two Feet in diameter; and when it is baked on one side, they turn it on the other: and if they would keep it any time, they dry it in the Sun.

In the second place, when they would make what they call the Meal, they put the Manioc, grated, pressed, and sifted, as before, upon a great Copper Plate four Feet in diameter, with a Brim five or six Inches high, and placed upon a Brick Furnace: They stir it continually with a wooden Spatula, that it may not stick and be baked all alike. This Meal resembles Bread grosly crumbled, and may be kept a long while in a dry Place. The Natives do not trouble themselves to make the Meal; they only eat Cassave, which they bake every day, because, when it is hot, it is more agreeable and palatable.

If they leave the expressed Juice of Manioc to settle, it lets fall a Fæcula to the bottom, called Moussache, which they afterwards dry in the Sun: it is as white as Snow, of which they make very good Cakes, called in those Parts, Craquelins.

The Laundresses use this Fæcula instead of Starch, to starch their Linnen. Some Inhabitants mix one Third of this with two Thirds of French Meal, and make Bread that is very white, and well tasted.

Remark VII.

At first sight, one would take a Balize-Tree for a Banane, they are so like each other: there is, however, this difference between them, That the Leaves of the Balize-Tree are not so tender, and apt to be tore; for this reason, they serve the Natives for Table-Cloths and Napkins, as well as the Negroes, and some of the Planters that live in the Woods. Sometimes they serve as Umbrella’s to shade them from the Sun, or Showers of Rain, that surprize them.

The Hunters have great assistance from this Plant; for sometimes finding themselves pressed with Thirst, in Places at some distance from Rivers or Fountains, they give the Trunk of a Balize a Slash with a Knife, and immediately hold their Hat, or a Cup, which catches a clear, good, and cool Water, even in the greatest Heat.

Remark VIII.

Pimento, called also Jamaica-Pepper, has been brought into France, where it grows, as in America, in pyramidal Cods of three or four Inches long: they are at first green, then yellow, afterwards red, and last of all, black. They pickle them in Vinegar, as they do Capers and little Cucumbers. There are in America several other Kinds of Pimentoes, and especially one that is round, and as red as a Cherry. This is the hottest of all, it sets the Mouth all on fire; for which reason it is called the madPimento. The Natives eat nothing without Pimento, it is their universal Seasoning, it serves them instead of Salt, and all Oriental Spices.

Remark IX.

Achote is best known in France, under the Name of Roucou, and is a sort of Red which the Dyers and Painters make use of. It is the favourite Colour of the Savages, which they are very careful of planting in their Gardens, that they may paint their Bodies every Morning, which they call Roucouing.

Roucou is planted of a Kernel much after the same manner as the Cocao-Tree. The Shrub that is most like it in Europe, is theLilach, or the Arabian Bean. Its Leaves, of the Shape of a Heart, are longish, pointed, and placed alternately; its Blossoms grow in Bunches at the end of the Boughs, they are white, mix’d with Carnation, like the Flowers of the wild Rose-Tree. In the middle, there is a Tuft of yellow Stamina with red Points; when these Blossoms fall off, there appears tawny Buds, beset with fine Prickles: These Buds grow to be Shells, which, when ripe, open on the upper side, and discover within, two Rows of Pippins, almost like little Peas, cover’d with Vermilion, which sticks to the Fingers, when touch’d, and leaves the Pippins quite, when wash’d with warm Water. The Water being settled, they pour it off gently by degrees, they dry the Colour in the Shade that fell to the bottom of the Vessel; and this is the true Roucou, without any Mixture. The Physicians in these Parts prescribe it to cut and attenuate thick and tough Humours, which cause difficulty of Breathing, Retension of Urine, and all sorts of Obstructions (89).

Remark X.

Atolla is a kind of Gruel which they make with Meal of Maise, (which is the same as our Indian Corn, or Turkey Millet.) TheMexicans season it with Pimento; but the Nuns and Spanish Ladies, instead of Pimento, use Sugar, Cinnamon, perfumed Waters of Amber, Musk, &c. In these Parts, they make the same Use of Atolla, as of the best Rice in the Levant.

Remark XI.

One ought to chuse the smallest Cinnamon, the highest coloured, and of the most biting Taste, as well as sweet and spicy, because a great Part is full of Pieces, from whence they have drawn the Essence, and has neither any Colour nor Taste, but that of the Wood. To help and amend both, there needs only a Clove to be ground in the Mortar, with an Ounce of Cinnamon. This Spice is best that comes from the East-Indies, it has nothing of Acrid in it, and contains an oleous Volatile, which agrees very well with that of Chocolate. Cinnamon also has always kept its Place in all the Compositions of Chocolate.

(a) New Voyage round the World, Tom. 1. Chap. 10.

(89) Thomas Gage, Tom. 1. Part 2. Pag. 142.

MEDICINES
In whose Composition
Oil or Butter
OF
CHOCOLATE
Is made use of.

The Wonderful Plaister for the Curing of all sorts of Ulcers.

Take Oil-Olive a Pound, Venetian Ceruss, in Powder, half a Pound.

Put them in a Copper Pan, or a glazed Earthen one, upon a clear moderate Fire, stirring them continually with a woodenSpatula till the Mixture is become black, and almost of the Consistence of a Plaister, (which you may know by letting fall two or three Drops upon a Pewter Plate; for if they grow cold immediately, and do not stick to the Fingers, when touch’d, it is done enough.) Then must be added,

Of Bees-Wax cut in little Bits, an Ounce and a half.

Oil or Butter of Chocolate, an Ounce.

Balsam Capivi, an Ounce and a half.

When they are all melted and mixed together, the Pan must be taken off the Fire; and stirring constantly with the Spatula, you must add the following Ingredients, reduced into a fine Powder separately, and then well mixed together.

Lapis Calaminaris, heated in the Fire, and then quenched in Lime-Water, and ground upon a Porphyry, one Ounce.

Myrrh in Drops,
Aloes Succotrine,
Round Birthwort,
Florentine Orris,

of each two
Drams.

Camphire, a Dram.

When they are all well incorporated together, they must cool a little, and then be poured upon a Marble to be made into Rolls, after the ordinary Manner.

I have seen such surprizing Effects from this Emplaister, that I am almost backward to mention them, lest they should seem incredible. It cures the most stubborn and inveterate Ulcers, provided the Bone is not carious: for in this Case, lest you should lose your Labour, you must begin with the Bone, and then apply the Plaister. The Place must be dress’d Morning and Evening after it is clean’d with Lime Water, and wiped well with a Linnen Cloth.

The same Plaister may serve several Times, provided it be washed with Lime Water, wiped with a Rag, and held to the Fire a Moment before it is apply’d.

I exhort charitable People to make this Plaister and give it to the Poor, especially those that live in the Country; they will draw down a Thousand Blessings in this Life, and the Lord will recompence them hereafter.

An excellent Pomatum for Ringworms, Tettars, Pimples, and other Deformities of the Skin.

Take Flowers of Brimstone (a), Salt Petre purified, of each Half an Ounce; good White Precipitate (b), two Drams;Benzoin or Benjamin, a Dram.

Beat the Benjamin and Salt-Petre a good while in a Brass Mortar, till they are reduced into a very fine Powder, then mix the Flower of Brimstone and White Precipitate with them and keep this Powder for Use.

At Martinico when I had occasion to make use of it, I incorporated it with Butter of Chocolate; but in France, I substitute the best-scented Jessamin Pomatum: This Smell, joined with that of Benjamin, corrects the Smell of the Brimstone, which some Persons abhor.

I cannot sufficiently recommend this Pomatum, which always succeeds well, and I have often found it beneficial when every thing else fail’d.

You must not wonder if on the first, and sometimes the second Day, the Tettar seems more lively, or the Complection more dull; it is a sign that the Malignity is drawn out, and that the Seeds of it are destroy’d: you must therefore take heed of desisting, for the Skin in a little Time will be render’d as even and smooth as you can desire.

(a) To wit, those that are made in Holland, if they can be got.

(b) To know if the Precipitate be good, you may do thus; Put a little upon a live Coal, if it flies away, it is good; if it stays behind, it is nothing but powder’d Ceruss, or some such thing.

FINIS.

The Project Gutenberg eBook, The Natural History of Chocolate, by D. de Quelus, Translated by R. Brookes

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Title: The Natural History of Chocolate

Being a Distinct and Particular Account of the Cocoa-Tree, its Growth and Culture, and the Preparation, Excellent Properties, and Medicinal Vertues of its Fruit

Author: D. de Quelus

Release Date: February 12, 2008 [eBook #24588]

Language: English

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My own Bean-to-Bar chocolate making experience

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 24 Nov 2013 06:56:00 +0000

Finally my own bean-to-bar chocolate experience was such a fulfilling experience. I am so thankful to Ms. Mely for the cacao from Aurora Province.

I have posted here my very first time of tasting raw cacao last August.
http://pinoychocophile.blogspot.com/2013/08/taste-of-raw-cacao-from-aurora_17.html#.UpGKytJkPsY

Then my experiment of fermenting with the post below:
http://pinoychocophile.blogspot.com/2013/08/fermenting-cacao-at-home.html#.UpGKxNJkPsY

As well as growing cacao seedling from the beans being fermented:
http://pinoychocophile.blogspot.com/2013/09/growing-cacao-seedling.html#.UpGMxNJkPsY

Some of the seedlings were brought to Ilocos already, hoping some of them survive, grow and bear fruits, after two - three years.

Well, the fermented and dried beans would be categorized slaty or moldy since it was my first time to experiment fermenting at home. Fotos shown below of cacao beans exposed for drying after a week of fermenting.

But I am happy with the turn out. The aroma when it was baked and roasted was wonderful, my nieces and nephew thought it was coffee, indeed there was a resemblance of a coffee smell.

Blend/grind brown sugar until it became powdery and then mixed with the roasted cacao nibs until the cocoa butter started to appear. Well the blender was not up to making it more fluid. So with the still granulated mixture we made our chocolate drink. With boiled water, evaporated milk and some more sugar - a chocolate drink that everyone enjoyed!

baked to remove the skin and then toasted

first grinding

2nd-3rd grinding of cacao

with sugar mix, notice cacao butter in the mix

final output

hot choco from the pan, cocoa butter on top

nephew enjoying a cup of his choco drink

nieces enjoying a sip of hot choco drink

Home made chocolate bar

Chocolate Event at the Dept of Foreign Affairs

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 17 Nov 2013 12:47:00 +0000

The Coming of Age of Philippine Chocolate

13 November 2013 - The Department of Foreign Affairs, through the Office of the Undersecretary for International Economic Relations, will be holding an event to launch Philippine artisan chocolates on November 14. Chocolates have always been part of Philippine cuisine. The Philippines also produces cacao, a vital ingredient in the production of chocolate.

According to “Historia de Filipinas,” by P. Fr. Gaspar de S. Augustin, cacao plants were first brought here in the year 1670 by a pilot named Pedro Brabo, of Laguna Province, who gave them to a priest of the Camarines named Bartolome Brabo. Since then, chocolate has been part of the Philippine culinary tradition.

The Philippines currently produces 10,000 metric tons (MT) of cacao beans per year. Seventy-five (75%) percent of these come from Southern Mindanao, which has over 13,000 hectares planted with cacao. The country exports $6 million-worth of raw cacao beans, but it imports $100 million-worth of fermented beans from other cocoa producers. Fermented cacao beans give the real chocolate taste and texture needed to produce chocolate.

The national government is endorsing a target set by key stakeholders to increase the cacao crop to 100,000 MT per year by 2020 and has included the cacao as part of its National Greening Program, an initiative to reforest the country. According to Euromonitor International, the Philippines chocolate market is forecast to grow 13% by 2017 to $306.3m.

In holding this event, OUIER aims to reintroduce the artistry behind the production of handmade Philippine gourmet chocolates, wherein a huge industry will be positively affected, from the agricultural industry (sugar, mango, peanuts, cashews, and coconut) and the handicraft industries (weaving, buri making) for the packaging. Our partner in the event, Ralfe Artisan Chocolates is headed by Ms. Raquel Choa, a Tablea Connoisseur. She brings with her a long tradition of preparing tablea, from planting, picking, roasting, to grinding. While the Philippines was once only an exporter of cacao beans, we are breaking new ground by exporting Philippine gourmet chocolates to foreign markets. Ralfe has already exported 1 ton of its gourmet chocolates to China. It has also been providing Tablea to Vancouver’s gourmet stores and are in talks with Singapore and Germany. The future looks bright.

Tsokolate has always been a part of Philippine life, from tsokolate eh, tsokolate ah and champorado. In elevating the Philippine chocolate, we know that we can compete with the finest gourmet chocolates and that the connoisseurs will take notice that the Philippine chocolate has come of age. END

Source -https://www.dfa.gov.ph/index.php/2013-06-27-21-50-36/dfa-releases/1254-the-coming-of-age-of-philippine-chocolate

Intercropping coconut with cacao

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 13 Nov 2013 20:24:00 +0000

From the The 2013 State of the Nation Address (SONA) Technical Report
http://www.gov.ph/downloads/2013/07jul/20130722-SONA-Technical-Report.pdf

The reliance of the coconut industry on copra for livelihood (170) is one of the reasons cited for the poverty among coconut farmers as gross income from this is only P20,000 per year. To help raise the income and productivity of coconut farmers, the government, through the Philippine Coconut Authority, is currently implementing coconut intercropping as a livelihood intervention under the Kasaganaan sa Niyugan ay Kaunlaran ng Bayan (KAANIB) Program’s Enterprise Development Project (EDP).(171) Coconut intercropping involves the planting of high-value crops in available spaces under coconut trees. (172)

In 2012, 90 KAANIB EDP sites have been established, benefiting 10,000 farmers. Around 5,500 ha of coconut farms were intercropped with cacao,(173) coffee, (174) banana,(175) pineapple, rambutan, durian, and citrus fruits. For 2013, an additional 434 sites benefiting more than 30,000 coconut farmers will be developed, of which 300 sites (15,000 ha) will be intercropped with coffee.

170 About 70 percent (2.45 million ha) of the coconut farms are monocropped. This means that most of the coconut farms have not yet been maximized to augment the income of the farmers.
171 KAANIB Program is a set of interventions (e.g., replanting, introduction of crops and livestock diversification) which aims to increase productivity in small coconut farms.
172 Priority intercrops under the project include coffee, cacao, banana, pineapple and corn. Aside from intercrops, livestock raising (e.g., goat and cattle) under the coconut trees is also considered an option to raise the productivity of the farm.
173 Intercropping coconut with cacao is estimated to yield gross income of P89,000/ha/year.
174 Intercropping coconut with coffee is estimated to yield gross income of P172,400/ha/year.
175 Intercropping coconut with banana is estimated to yield gross income of P102,325/ha/year.

Links -

http://www.pca.da.gov.ph/tprograms.php
http://www.pca.da.gov.ph/pr012713.php

Ecuador chocolate-focused tour

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 26 Oct 2013 09:10:00 +0000

Below is my dream tour to Ecuador definitely chocolate plantation would be one of the places I would like to visit. This one is a high priority in my bucket list. Dreaming of Latin American tour but with cocoa/chocolate twist hmmmm....

Original source for the post below - http://www.ecuadorchocolatetours.com/

Join Jeffrey Stern on an exciting chocolate-focused tour. April and May are prime harvest months for cacao in Ecuador. While there can be some rain, it´s always warm and harvest activities are at their peak during these months.

Get to know Ecuador’s chocolate and cocoa industry firsthand, while also learning about Ecuador and the splendid colonial part of Quito. Jeff Stern is the owner of Gianduja Chocolates in Quito, Ecuador and will be our tour leader. He has lived and worked in Ecuador in the chocolate and cocoa business for the past 7 years and knows the ins and outs of the cocoa industry on the ground in Ecuador. He is a graduate of L’Academie de Cuisine culinary school in Gaithersburg, MD and has worked in the culinary industry for over ten years. He also holds BA from New York University in Latin American Studies and an M.Sc. from UT Austin. He is fluent in Spanish.

Read on or call us on 858 222 0332 for more information and to speak directly with Jeff Stern.

Itinerary

Saturday, April12-Saturday, April 19, 2014

Registration Deadline Closes February 7, 2014

This tour includes the itinerary described below. However, Ruth Kennison will not accompany us on this tour.

Saturday, May 10-Saturday May 17, 2013

Registration Deadline Closes March 15, 2014

This program is delivered in English.

Day 1 (includes breakfast, lunch and dinner)

Pick up from airport prior evening. Transfer to hotel located in the Old Colonial Downtown in Quito. After checking in and a quick rest we will head towards the Middle of the World Monument, and on our way we will have lunch at a restaurant located inside an extinct volcano.

After lunch we will enter the Monument and visit the famous ethnographic museum which will introduce you to the different indigenous tribes and cultures of Ecuador. We also have the opportunity to stand on the Equatorial line and take a picture with one foot in the Southern hemisphere and the other one in the Northern hemisphere. Walk through the town they have created here to get some souvenirs or have some coffee or a snack. Finally we will visit the Intiñam Museum, where you will be fascinated by the experiments they run (with our help) to prove that you are located at 0 latitude. Drive back to Quito for dinner and rest of the evening to rest.

An early dinner will be the great opportunity to have an introduction/overview of the tour, by our tour leader.

Day 2 (includes breakfast, lunch and dinner)

After breakfast we will travel to the Amazon region in Ecuador (4 hours drive). We will cross the Andes and admire the beautiful change in vegetation between the 2 regions (7 different climates). Arrive to Huasquila Amazon Lodge at lunch time. Before we take you to your bungalow, let us invite you an Amazon cocktail and give you a short briefing on Huasquila and its surroundings. You will be delighted by our bamboo’s dining hall with open views and typical decoration. When you are ready we will take you to your bungalow, built by local people in kichwa style and in harmony with nature. The bungalows are equipped with all facilities and you can rest a little or just enjoy the view of the Amazon from your hammock. After lunch you can enjoy a quick visit to an animal rescue center and/or stay at the lodge´s pool and enjoy the afternoon.

Day 3 (includes breakfast, lunch and dinner)

After breakfast we will travel to a local indigenous community, where local farmers that belong to KALLARI Association will host us and show us their cocoa plants, how they work in their farm, try some of their specialities such as chicha, and interact with them. To reach these communities we will have to take a boat through some of the Amazon rivers, and we will always have KALLARI staff joining us at all times, to explain how they coordinate and work with its members. At the end of the day we will drive back to Huasquila for dinner and a well deserved rest.

Day 4 (includes breakfast, lunch and dinner)

After breakfast we will visit the city of Tena, from where we will travel to the Collection of Cocoa Center operated by KALLARI. Here we will learn the process of how the Center operates, meet their staff and learn the most interesting facts about KALLARI. We will also spend part of the afternoon visiting with this fascinating organization. Rest of the afternoon will be spend at Huasquila Lodge.

Day 5 (includes breakfast, lunch and dinner)

Today we will discover the Amazon region rafting down its rivers. It is an amazing experience with full safety precautions. We will be in the river for approximately 4 hours, surrounded by flora and fauna. We will have lunch rest stop on the river and then continue our raft down to the Napo river (biggest affluence of the Amazonas river). At the end of the rafting, we will visit the city of Tena, to have time to experience the atmosphere of this town, interact with the locals and see get to know a bit more of the culture. Dinner at Huasquila, and rest of the evening to relax.

Day 6 (includes breakfast, lunch and dinner)

After breakfast we will start our journey back to Quito. Arrive to Quito for lunch. We will check in the hotel and have some time to relax. We will also have an afternoon chocolate tasting at the Gianduja Chocolate workshop, with the owner Jeff Stern who is also one of our tour leaders.

Day 7 (includes breakfast, lunch and dinner)

Today we will visit the Ecuatoriana de Chocolates factory, to see first hand large-scale chocolate production and discuss their operations and the social and economic aspects of the chocolate industry. After lunch we visit colonial downtown where we will walk through the biggest and most well-preserved colonial center in South America (declared World Heritage by UNESCO). We will go visit centuries old colonial downtown and its famous churches, and learn the most interesting facts about each location we will visit. We will finish the tour by visiting the Panecillo Hill, where we will have an overview of the whole colonial downtown. Guest can leave on day 9, or there is the opportunity to do an extension to the Galapagos Islands.

Day 8 (includes breakfast)

Departure day for some clients OR beginning of Galapagos extension. Please contact us directly if you are interested in a Galapagos or other extension, and you can work directly with our tour operator in Ecuador for any necessary arrangements.

Please note, appropriate age for this tour is 16 yrs. and up.

Cost

NET PRICE PER PERSON:

PER PERSON US$ 1,950 (regular program 8 days)

Single supplement $200 additional

The price includes:

All tours and activities specified in program
Accommodations specified in program
All entrance fees during tours and activities specified in program
All meals specified in program
Private transportation

The price does not include:

International airfares and airport taxes
Any expenses not specified in program (personal expenses, alcoholic beverages, souvenirs, laundry, etc)
Equipment rental or supply (if necessary)
Personal insurance
Any medical expenses

Pinoy Chocophile

Cacao Farming Business Seminar

Below are photos, videos and notes of my nephew Eman when he attended Sir Grover Rosit's Agri-Cacao Farming Business Seminar at Sunchamp Agri-Tourism Park, Rosario, Batangas last 9 November 2018.

Invited to the Bloggys 2015 Gala Night

By invitation only: Chef Lawrence Cheong Jun Bo Chocolate Demo

Call to Action to Save Heirloom Cacao

July 7 is Chocolate Day - Chocolate Infographics

Infographic: What science says about chocolate

To celebrate Chocolate Day July 7, here are six things that may surprise you about chocolate

By members of the Elsevier community | Posted on 1 July 2014

Fabros Farm: More than just a cacao farm, but a cacao forest

Guide to Chocolate by MyChocolate

Cacao Sense: The story of Dingayan Cacao Farm

Strangled Cacao: Debunking Coconut-Cacao Inter-cropping?

Chocolates in the Philippines by Joy Kristel L. Orzales

The Sweet World of Chocolates in the Philippines1

April 2011

Performance

Trade

Various company websites.

Global Approaches to Cacao Germplasm Utilization and Conservation by Eskes and Efron

World Cocoa Conference 2014

Sustainable Cocoa and Certification

CNN on Cocoa-nomics

Online Course on Cacao Production

SOAP Holds Free Seminar on Cacao Production

Philippine Chocolate Festival 2014

Presentation by Dr. Romulo Cena on Philippine Cacao Clones and Hybrids

CHOCOLATE GLOSSARY

Below are commonly used terms in the chocolate industry.

CHOCOLATE GLOSSARY

Intercropping Coconut and Cacao

The Natural History Of CHOCOLATE by D. de Quelus

The text below was taken from Project Gutenberg -http://www.gutenberg.org/files/24588/24588-h/24588-h.htm The Natural History Of CHOCOLATE:

PREFACE

THE TABLE.

THENatural HISTORYOFCHOCOLATE.

Of the Division of this Treatise.

PART I.

CHAP. I.The Description of the Cocao-Tree.

CHAP. II.

Of the Choice and Disposition of the Place for Planting Cocao-Trees.

CHAP. III.Of the Method of Planting a Nursery, and to cultivate it till the Fruit comes to Maturity.

CHAP IV.Of the gathering of the Cocao-Nuts, and the Manner of making them sweat, and of drying them that they may be brought sound into Europe.

THENatural HISTORYOFCHOCOLATE.

PART II.

Of the Properties of Chocolate.

CHAP. I.Of the old Prejudices against Chocolate.

CHAP. II.Of the real Properties of Chocolate.

Sect. I.Chocolate is very Temperate.

Sect. II.Chocolate is very nourishing and of easy Digestion.

Sect. III.Chocolate speedily repairs the dissipated Spirits and decay’d Strength.

Sect. IV.Chocolate is very proper to preserve Health, and to prolong the Life of Old Men.

THENatural HISTORYOFCHOCOLATE.

PART III.

Of the Uses of Chocolate.

CHAP. IOf Chocolate in Confections.

CHAP. II.Of Chocolate, properly so called.

Sect. IOf the Original of Chocolate, and the different Manners of preparing it.

The Method of making Chocolate after the Manner of the French Islands in America.

Sect. II.Of the Uses that may be made of Chocolate with relation to Medicine.

CHAP. III.Of the Oil or Butter of Chocolate.

REMARKSUpon some Places of theTreatise upon Chocolate.

Remark I.

Remark II.

Remark III.

Remark IV.

Remark V.

Remark VI.

Remark VII.

Remark VIII.

Remark IX.

Remark X.

Remark XI.

MEDICINESIn whose CompositionOil or ButterOFCHOCOLATEIs made use of.

The Wonderful Plaister for the Curing of all sorts of Ulcers.

An excellent Pomatum for Ringworms, Tettars, Pimples, and other Deformities of the Skin.

The Project Gutenberg eBook, The Natural History of Chocolate, by D. de Quelus, Translated by R. Brookes

E-text prepared by Robert Cicconetti, Louise Pryor,and theProject Gutenberg Online Distributed Proofreading Team(http://www.pgdp.net)

Transcriber's note

The text below was taken from Project Gutenberg -
http://www.gutenberg.org/files/24588/24588-h/24588-h.htm

The Natural History

Of
CHOCOLATE:

THE
Natural HISTORY
OF
CHOCOLATE.

CHAP. I.
The Description of the Cocao-Tree.

CHAP. III.
Of the Method of Planting a Nursery, and to cultivate it till the Fruit comes to Maturity.

CHAP IV.
Of the gathering of the Cocao-Nuts, and the Manner of making them sweat, and of drying them that they may be brought sound into Europe.

THE
Natural HISTORY
OF
CHOCOLATE.

CHAP. I.
Of the old Prejudices against Chocolate.

CHAP. II.
Of the real Properties of Chocolate.

Sect. I.
Chocolate is very Temperate.

Sect. II.
Chocolate is very nourishing and of easy Digestion.

Sect. III.
Chocolate speedily repairs the dissipated Spirits and decay’d Strength.

Sect. IV.
Chocolate is very proper to preserve Health, and to prolong the Life of Old Men.

THE
Natural HISTORY
OF
CHOCOLATE.

CHAP. I
Of Chocolate in Confections.

CHAP. II.
Of Chocolate, properly so called.

Sect. I
Of the Original of Chocolate, and the different Manners of preparing it.

Sect. II.
Of the Uses that may be made of Chocolate with relation to Medicine.

CHAP. III.
Of the Oil or Butter of Chocolate.

REMARKS
Upon some Places of the
Treatise upon Chocolate.

MEDICINES
In whose Composition
Oil or Butter
OF
CHOCOLATE
Is made use of.

E-text prepared by Robert Cicconetti, Louise Pryor,
and the
Project Gutenberg Online Distributed Proofreading Team
(http://www.pgdp.net)