Without the squirrels, George Matthew’s attempt to become a cocoa bean producer might have failed.
His agricultural career began in the 1970s when he inherited a rubber plantation in the southern Indian state of Kerala, which he managed alongside his career as a doctor.
It was a bad time to inherit a rubber plantation; money continued to be lost due to falling rubber prices. So ten years ago, Dr. Matthew decided to experiment with cocoa trees, hoping they would raise some money to support the rest of the farm.
He bought some saplings and planted them. It didn’t go well.
“It wasn’t that successful: most of the saplings died,” he says.
Squirrels seemed to make the situation worse by grabbing cocoa beans and eating them.
But those raids had an unexpected benefit: cocoa seeds were scattered throughout the farm.
“All the scattered seeds quickly grew into plants and they were much healthier and stronger than the saplings I had planted,” says Dr Matthew.
“The trick was sowing the seeds,” he realized.
Today, Mr Matthews has 6,000 cocoa trees on his 50 hectares of land.
“I think it was the best decision I made,” he says.
Despite having several regions with weather conditions suitable for cocoa trees, India accounts for only 1% of the world’s cocoa bean production.
Global production is currently dominated by West Africa, where Ivory Coast and Ghana together produce more than half of annual world production.
Indian growers can supply only a quarter of the beans needed by Indian chocolate and other confectionery manufacturers.
“The challenge is that cocoa is grown in very fragmented small holdings, so it doesn’t get the attention that cocoa should get,” says Renny Jacob, chairman of India Cocoa, a private company that has long grown and processed cocoa beans. than 30 years.
In particular, he says, Indian farmers are bad at handling beans after they are harvested. Once removed from the pods, the beans undergo a fermentation process on the farm, which can make a huge difference to their taste.
“Cocoa fermentation is a crucial process in chocolate production, converting raw cacao beans into a form suitable for chocolate making,” said Sarin Partrick, CEO of India Cocoa.
“This complex process involves several phases and the activity of different microorganisms, which help develop the taste, aroma and color of the beans,” he says.
To increase the quantity and quality of cocoa bean production, the government has taken various initiatives.
It invests in programs to develop hybrid cocoa plants, which are more productive than existing cocoa varieties.
In addition, there are programs to train farmers in the latest techniques for growing and processing beans.
“There are enormous opportunities for Indian farmers to grow cocoa and reap the benefits,” says Dr Femina, who works in the government department charged with developing cocoa production.
The business community is also investing in new cocoa tree varieties.
Dr. Minimol JS is head of cocoa research at Kerala Agriculture University and is working with Cadbury on the development of hybrid cocoa trees.
In the project’s orchard, existing, well-performing varieties are crossed with exotic species.
To date, the program has produced 15 new varieties.
“These are India’s first hybrid, disease-resistant seeds,” she says.
“The seeds are drought-tolerant varieties and have withstood temperatures of even 40 degrees Celsius, which is usually not possible,” she adds.
The hybrids are also much more productive than traditional varieties.
“The global average production is 0.25 kilograms per year per tree.
“In Kerala we get 2.5 kilograms per year per tree. In Andhra and Telangana we even get a yield of four to five kilograms per tree per year,” she says.
Indian cocoa bean production has increased significantly. This year the amount reached 110,000 tons, an increase of 40% compared to 2015. But it is still not enough to meet the demand of local chocolate and confectionery producers.
The Indian Cocoa Board estimates that industry demand is increasing by 15% per year.
Founded in 2019, Kocoatrait belongs to a new generation of Indian chocolate makers.
The company is based in the city of Chennai on the east coast and uses exclusively Indian cocoa beans.
One reason for this is that locally produced beans have a much smaller carbon footprint than beans shipped from another continent.
Moreover, says Kocoatrait founder Nitin Chordia, Indian beans are cheaper than imported beans and have a distinctive taste.
Mr. Chordia also runs an agricultural school, where farmers are exposed to the latest innovations in fermenting and drying beans.
“We are continuously focusing on improving post-harvest practices for cocoa farmers in India,” he says.
He adds that Indian farmers need to produce higher quality beans.
“We cannot compete with international players in the bulk cocoa bean segment,” he says.
Although there has been improvement, Indian manufacturers still have a long way to go.
“Over the past decade, India has been gaining prominence in the fine flavor cocoa bean segment… but it will take several more years for all Indian fine flavor cocoa beans to reach a stage of large-scale international recognition.”
Back in Kerala, Dr. Matthew reflects on his decade as a cocoa farmer.
“It’s a tricky plant,” he says. “Last year I had no yield. So no farmer can depend solely on cocoa; you also have to plant other trees with it.”
Despite the challenges, he is optimistic. “The future looks bright, with huge demand.”
“I have been approached by a multinational to sell my production to them, so I am going to make a good profit.”
