Meet the Grower
Rio Toncantins
Location: Rio Toncantins, Brazil
Varietal: Coming soon.
Flavour notes: Refreshing, orange peel, spring earth, lemon, cocoa nibs, crisp.
Description
To produce their Rio Tocantins bar, maker Luisa Abram sources wild cacao growing on the banks of the Tocantins River around Mocajuca, a city which has participated in cacao commercialisation since the 17th century. Luisa was able to shift production from so-called bulk cacao, which is not fermented and sold to large industries with no concern with the quality of the cacao flavours or aromas, to increased cacao quality through fermentation, a mission they achieved by providing training to their now-partners, Mario and Marcio in 2017. Now paying farmers BRL 30-36 per kilo, in contrast to the BRL 10-12 paid by large companies for bulk cacao, Luisa has increased the salaries of up to 20 families.
Harvest times: Coming soon.
Harvest volume: Coming soon.
Number of farmers: 20 families
Hectares farmed: Coming soon.
Farming notes: The wild cocoa in these islands has been known since colonial times. The Portuguese Crown even created a company to harvest the fruits and send their dried beans to Lisbon. Nowadays, the locals are the ones living from the cocoa, among other crops.
Fermentation and drying notes: Coming soon.
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