HARVESTING AND PREPARATION FOR THE MARKET
The picking, gathering, and breaking of the cacao are the
easiest jobs on the plantation.
"_How José formed his Cocoa Estate._"
_Gathering and Heaping._
[Illustration]
In the last chapter I gave a brief account of the cultivation of cacao.
I did not deal with forking, spraying, cutlassing, weeding, and so
forth, as it would lead us too far into purely technical discussions. I
propose we assume that the planter has managed his estate well, and that
the plantation is before us looking very healthy and full of fruit
waiting to be picked. The question arises: How shall we gather it? Shall
we shake the tree? Cacao pods do not fall off the tree even when
over-ripe. Shall we knock off or pluck the pods? To do so would make a
scar on the trunk of the tree, and these wounds are dangerous in
tropical climates, as they are often attacked by canker. A sharp machete
or cutlass is used to cut off the pods which grow on the lower part of
the trunk. As the tree is not often strong enough to bear a man,
climbing is out of the question, and a knife on a pole is used for
cutting off the pods on the upper branches. Various shaped knives are
used by different planters, a common and efficient kind (see drawing),
resembles a hand of steel, with the thumb as a hook, so that the
pod-stalk can be cut either by a push or a pull. A good deal of
ingenuity has been expended in devising a "foolproof" picker which shall
render easy the cutting of the pod-stalk and yet not cut or damage the
bark of the tree. A good example is the Agostini picker, which was
approved by Hart.
[Illustration:
(1) COMMON TYPE OF CACAO PICKER.
(2) AGOSTINI CACAO PICKER.]
The gathering of the fruits of one's labour is a pleasant task, which
occurs generally only at rare intervals. Cacao is gathered the whole
year round. There is, however, in most districts one principal harvest
period, and a subsidiary harvest.
[Illustration: GATHERING CACAO PODS, TRINIDAD.]
With cacao in the tropics, as with corn in England, the gathering of the
harvest is a delight to lovers of the beautiful. It is a great charm of
the cacao plantation that the trees are so closely planted that nowhere
does the sunlight find between the foliage a space larger than a man's
hand. After the universal glare outside, it seems dark under the cacao,
although the ground is bright with dappled sunshine. You hear a noise of
talking, of rustling leaves, and falling pods. You come upon a band of
coolies or negroes. One near you carries a long bamboo--as long as a
fishing rod--with a knife at the end. With a lithe movement he inserts
it between the boughs, and, by giving it a sharp jerk, neatly cuts the
stalk of a pod, which falls from the tree to the ground. Only the ripe
pods must be picked. To do this, not only must the picker's aim be true,
but he must also have a good eye for colour. Whether the pods be red or
green, as soon as the colour begins to be tinted with yellow it is ripe
for picking. This change occurs first along the furrows in the pod.
Fewer unripe pods would be gathered if only one kind of pod were grown
on one plantation. The confusion of kinds and colours which is often
found makes sound judgment very difficult. That the men generally judge
correctly the ripeness of pods high in the trees is something to wonder
at. The pickers pass on, strewing the earth with ripe pods. They are
followed by the graceful, dark-skinned girls, who gather one by one the
fallen pods from the greenery, until their baskets are full. Sometimes a
basketful is too heavy and the girl cannot comfortably lift it on to her
head, but when one of the men has helped her to place it there, she
carries it lightly enough. She trips through the trees, her bracelets
jingling, and tumbles the pods on to the heap. Once one has seen a great
heap of cacao pods it glows in one's memory: anything more rich, more
daring in the way of colour one's eye is unlikely to light on. The
artist, seeking only an æsthetic effect would be content with this for
the consummation and would wish the pods to remain unbroken.
[Illustration: COLLECTING CACAO PODS INTO A HEAP PRIOR TO BREAKING.]
_Breaking and Extracting._
There are planters who believe that the product is improved by leaving
the gathered pods several days before breaking; and they would follow
the practice, but for the risk of losses by theft. Hence the pods are
generally broken on the same day as they are gathered. The primitive
methods of breaking with a club or by banging on a hard surface are
happily little used. Masson of New York made pod-breaking machines, and
Sir George Watt has recently invented an ingenious machine for squeezing
the beans out of the pod, but at present the extraction is done almost
universally by hand, either by men or women. A knife which would cut the
husk of the pod and was so constructed that it could not injure the
beans within, would be a useful invention. The human extractor has the
advantage that he or she can distinguish the diseased, unripe or
germinated beans and separate them from the good ones. Picture the men
sitting round the heap of pods and, farther out, in a larger circle,
twice as many girls with baskets. The man breaks the pod and the girls
extract the beans. The man takes the pod in his left hand and gives it a
sharp slash with a small cutlass, just cutting through the tough shell
of the pod, but not into the beans inside; and then gives the blade,
which he has embedded in the shell, a twisting jerk, so that the pod
breaks in two with a crisp crack. The girls take the broken pods and
scoop out the snow-like beans with a flat wooden spoon or a piece of
rib-bone, the beans being pulled off the stringy core (or placenta)
which holds them together. The beans are put preferably into baskets or,
failing these, on to broad banana leaves, which are used as trays.
Practice renders these processes cheerful and easy work, often performed
to an accompaniment of laughing and chattering.
[Illustration: MEN BREAKING PODS, GIRLS SCOOPING OUT BEANS, AND MULES
WAITING WITH BASKETS TO CONVEY THE CACAO TO THE FERMENTARY.]
_Fermenting._
I allow myself the pleasure of thinking that I am causing some of my
readers a little surprise when I tell them that cacao is fermented, and
that the fermentation produces alcohol. As I mentioned above, the cacao
bean is covered with a fruity pulp. The bean as it comes from the pod is
moist, whilst the pulp is full of juice. It would be impossible to
convey it to Europe in this condition; it would decompose, and, when it
reached its destination, would be worthless. In order that a product can
be handled commercially it is desirable to have it in such a condition
that it does not change, and thus with cacao it becomes necessary to get
rid of the pulp, and, whilst this may be done by washing or simply by
drying, experience has shown that the finest and driest product is
obtained when the drying is preceded by fermentation. Just as broken
grapes will ferment, so will the fruity pulp of the cacao bean. Present
day fermentaries are simply convenient places for storing the cacao
whilst the process goes on. In the process of fermentation, Dr.
Chittenden says the beans are "stewed in their own juice." This may be
expressed less picturesquely but more accurately by saying the beans are
warmed by the heat of their own fermenting pulp, from which they absorb
liquid.
In Trinidad the cacao which the girls have scooped out into the baskets
is emptied into larger baskets, two of which are "crooked" on a mule's
back, and carried thus to the fermentary. In Surinam it is conveyed by
boat, and in San Thomé by trucks, which run on Decauville railways.
The period of fermentation and the receptacle to hold the cacao vary
from country to country. With cacao of the criollo type only one or two
days fermentation is required, and as a result, in Ecuador and Ceylon,
the cacao is simply put in heaps on a suitable floor. In Trinidad and
the majority of other cacao-producing areas, where the forastero
variety predominates, from five to nine days are required. The cacao is
put into the "sweat" boxes and covered with banana or plantain leaves to
keep in the heat. The boxes may measure four feet each way and be made
of sweet-smelling cedar wood. As is usual with fermentation, the
temperature begins to rise, and if you thrust your hands into the
fermenting beans you find they are as hot and mucilaginous as a
poultice.
[Illustration: "SWEATING" BOXES, TRINIDAD.
The man is holding the wooden spade used for turning the beans.]
_Time._ _Temperature._
When put in 25° C. or 77° F.
After 1 day 30° C. or 89° F.
After 2 days 37° C. or 98° F.
After 3 days 47° C. or 115° F.
(After the third day the heat is maintained, but the temperature rises
very little.)
The temperature is the simplest guide to the amount of fermentation
taking place, and the uniformity of the temperature in all parts of the
mass is desirable, as showing that all parts are fermenting evenly. The
cacao is usually shovelled from one box to another every one or two
days. The chief object of this operation is to mix the cacao and prevent
merely local fermentation. To make mixing easy one ingenious planter
uses a cylindrical vessel which can be turned about on its axis.
[Illustration: FERMENTING BOXES, JAVA.
From the last box the beans are shovelled into the washing basin.
(Reproduced from van Hall's _Cocoa_, by permission of Messrs. Macmillan
& Co.)]
In other places, for example in Java, the boxes are arranged as a series
of steps, so that the cacao is transferred with little labour from the
higher to the lower. In San Thomé the cacao is placed on the plantation
direct into trucks, which are covered with plaintain leaves, and run on
rails through the plantation right into the fermentary. Some day some
enterprising firm will build a fermentary in portable sections easily
erected, and with some simple mechanical mixer to replace the present
laborious method of turning the beans by manual labour.
The general conditions[1] for a good fermentation are:
(1) The mass of beans must be kept warm.
(2) The mass of beans must be moist, but not sodden.
(3) In the later stages there must be sufficient air.
(4) The boxes must be kept clean.
[1] For full details see the pamphlet by the author on _The
Practice of Fermentation in Trinidad_.
_Changes during Fermentation._
No entirely satisfactory theory of the changes in cacao due to
fermentation has yet been established. It is known that the sugary pulp
outside the beans ferments in a similar way to other fruit pulp, save
that for a yeast fermentation the temperature rises unusually high (in
three days to 47 degrees C.), and also that there are parallel and more
important changes in the interior of the bean. The difficulty of
establishing a complete theory of fermentation of cacao has not daunted
the scientists, for they know that the roses of philosophy are gathered
by just those who can grasp the thorniest problems. Success, however, is
so far only partial, as can be seen by consulting the best introduction
on the subject, the admirable collection of essays on _The Fermentation
of Cacao_, edited by H. Hamel Smith. Here the reader will find the
valuable contributions of Fickendey, Loew, Nicholls, Preyer, Schulte im
Hofe, and Sack.
The obvious changes which occur in the breaking down of the fruity
exterior of the bean should be carefully distinguished from the subtle
changes in the bean itself. Let us consider them separately:--
(_a_) _Changes in the Pulp._--Just as grape-pulp ferments and changes to
wine, and just as weak wine if left exposed becomes sour; so the fruity
sugary pulp outside the cacao bean on exposure gives off bubbles of
carbon dioxide, becomes alcoholic, and later becomes acid. The acid
produced is generally the pleasant vinegar acid (acetic acid), but under
some circumstances it may be lactic acid, or the rancid-smelling butyric
acid. Kismet! The planter trusts to nature to provide the right kind of
fermentation. This fermentation is set up and carried on by the minute
organisms (yeasts, bacteria, etc.), which chance to fall on the beans
from the air or come from the sides of the receptacle. One yeast-cell
does not make a fermentation, and as no yeast is added a day is wasted
whilst any yeasts which happen to be present are multiplying to an army
large enough to produce a visible effect on the pulp. _Any_ organism
which happens to be on the pod, in the air, or on the inside of the
fermentary will multiply in the pulp, if the pulp contains suitable
nourishment. Each kind of organism produces its own characteristic
changes. It would thus appear a miracle if the same substances were
always produced. Yet, just as grape-juice left exposed to every
micro-organism of the air, generally changes in the direction of wine
more or less good, so the pulp of cacao tends, broadly speaking, to
ferment in one way. It would, however, be a serious error to assume that
exactly the same kind of fermentation takes place in any two
fermentaries in the world, and the maximum variation must be
considerable. As the pulp ferments, it is destroyed; it gradually
changes from white to brown, and a liquid ("sweatings") flows away from
it. The "_sweatings_" taste like sweet cider. At present this is allowed
to run away through holes in the bottom of the box, and no care is taken
to preserve what may yet become a valuable by-product. I found by
experiment that in the preparation of one cwt. of dry beans about 1-1/2
gallons of this unstable liquid are produced. In other words, some seven
or eight million gallons of "sweatings" run to waste every year. In most
cases only small quantities are produced in one place at one time. This,
and the lack of knowledge of scientifically controlled fermentation,
and the difficulty of bottling, prevent the starting of an industry
producing either a new drink or a vinegar. The cacao juice or
"sweatings" contains about fifteen per cent. of solids, about half of
which consists of sugars. If the fermentation of the cacao were
centralised in the various districts, and conducted on a large scale
under a chemist's control, the sugars could be obtained, or an alcoholic
liquid or a vinegar could easily be prepared.
[Illustration: CHARGING THE CACAO ON TO TRUCKS IN THE PLANTATION, SAN
THOMÉ.]
[Illustration: CACAO IN THE FERMENTING TRUCKS, SAN THOMÉ.
The covering of banana leaves keeps the beans warm.]
The planter decides when the beans are fermented by simply looking at
them; he judges their condition by the colour of the pulp. When they are
ready to be removed from the fermentary they are plump, and brown
without, and juicy within.
(_b_) _Changes in the Interior of the Bean._--What is the relation
between the comparatively simple fermentation of the pulp and the
changes in the interior of the bean? This important question has not yet
been answered, although a number of attempts have been made.
As far as is known, the living ferments (micro-organisms) do not
penetrate the skin of the bean, so that any fermentation which takes
place must be promoted by unorganised ferments (or enzymes). Mr. H.C.
Brill[2] found raffinase, invertase, casease and protease in the pulp;
oxidase, raffinase, casease and emulsinlike enzymes in the fresh bean;
and all these six, together with diastase, in the fermented bean. Dr.
Fickendey says: "The object of fermentation is, in the main, to kill the
germ of the bean in such a manner that the efficiency of the unorganised
ferment is in no way impaired."
[2] _Philippine Journal of Science_, 1917.
From my own observations I believe that forastero beans are killed at 47
degrees C. (which is commonly reached when they have been fermenting 60
hours), for a remarkable change takes place at this temperature and
time. Whilst the micro-organisms remain outside, the juice of the pulp
appears to penetrate not only the skin, but the flesh of the bean, and
the brilliant violet in the isolated pigment cells becomes diffused more
or less evenly throughout the entire bean, including the "germ." It is
certain that the bean absorbs liquid from the outside, for it becomes so
plump that its skin is stretched to the utmost. The following changes
occur:
(1) _Taste._ An astringent colourless substance (a tannin or
a body possessing many properties of a tannin) changes to a
tasteless brown substance. The bean begins to taste less
astringent as the "tannin" is destroyed. With white (criollo)
beans this change is sufficiently advanced in two days, but
with purple (forastero) beans it may take seven days.
(2) _Colour._ The change in the tannin results in the white
(criollo) beans becoming brown and the purple (forastero)
beans becoming tinged with brown. The action resembles the
browning of a freshly-cut apple, and has been shown to be due
to oxygen (activated by an oxidase, a ferment encouraging
combination with oxygen) acting on the astringent
colourless substance, which, like the photographic developer,
pyrogallic acid, becomes brown on oxidation.
(3) _Aroma._ A notable change is that substances are created
within the bean, which _on roasting_ produce the fine
aromatic odour characteristic of cocoa and chocolate, and
which Messrs. Bainbridge and Davies have shown is due to a
trace (0.001 per cent.) of an essential oil over half of
which consists of linalool.[3]
(4) _Stimulating Effect._ It is commonly stated that during
fermentation there is generated theobromine, the alkaloid
which gives cacao its stimulating properties, but the
estimation of theobromine in fermented and unfermented beans
does not support this.
(5) _Consistency._ Fermented beans become crisp on drying.
This development may be due to the "tannins" encountering, in
their dispersion through the bean, proteins, which are thus
converted into bodies which are brittle solids on drying
(compare tanning of hides). The "hide" of the bean may be
similarly "tanned"--the shell certainly becomes leathery
(unless washed)--but a far more probable explanation, in both
cases, is that the gummy bodies in bean and shell set hard on
drying.
[3] _Journal of the Chemical Society_, 1912.
We see, then, that although fermentation was probably originally
followed as the best method of getting rid of the pulp, it has other
effects which are entirely good. It enables the planter to produce a
drier bean, and one which has, when roasted, a finer flavour, colour,
and aroma, than the unfermented. Fermentation is generally considered to
produce so many desirable results that M. Perrot's suggestion[4] of
removing the pulp by treatment with alkali, and thus avoiding
fermentation, has not been enthusiastically received.
[4] _Comptes Rendus_, 1913.
Beans which have been dried direct and those which have been fermented
may be distinguished as follows:
CACAO BEANS
DRIED DIRECT. FERMENTED AND DRIED.
_Shape of bean_ Flat Plumper
_Shell_ Soft and close fitting Crisp and more or
less free.
_Interior: colour_ Slate-blue or mud-brown Bright browns and
purples
" _consistence_ Leather to cheese Crisp
" _appearance_ Solid Open-grained
" _taste_ More or less bitter Less astringent
or astringent
Whilst several effects of fermentation have not been satisfactorily
accounted for, I think all are agreed that to obtain one of the chief
effects of fermentation, namely the brown colour, oxidation is
necessary. All recognise that for this oxidation the presence of three
substances is essential:
(1) The tannin to be oxidised.
(2) Oxygen.
(3) An enzyme which encourages the oxidation.
All these occur in the cacao bean as it comes from the pod, but why
oxidation occurs so much better in a fermented bean than in a bean which
is simply dried is not very clear. If you cut an apple it goes brown
owing to the action of oxygen absorbed from the air, but as long as the
apple is uncut and unbruised it remains white. If you take a cacao bean
from the pod and cut it, the exposed surface goes brown, but if you
ferment the bean the whole of it gradually goes brown without being cut.
My observations lead me to believe that the bean does not become
oxidised until it is killed, that is, until it is no longer capable of
germination. It can be killed by raising the temperature, by
fermentation or otherwise, or as Dr. Fickendey has shown, by cooling to
almost freezing temperatures. It may be that killing the bean makes its
skin and cell walls more permeable to oxygen, but my theory is that when
the bean is killed disintegration or weakening of the cell walls, etc.,
occurs, and, as a result, the enzyme and tannin, _hitherto separate_,
become mixed, and hence able actively to absorb oxygen. The action of
oxygen on the tannin also accounts for the loss of astringency on
fermentation, and it may be well to point out that fermentation
increases the internal surface of the bean exposed to air and oxygen.
The bean, during fermentation, actually sucks in liquid from the
surrounding pulp and becomes plumper and fuller. On drying, however, the
skin, which has been expanded to its utmost, wrinkles up as the interior
contracts and no longer fits tightly to the bean, and the cotyledons
having been thrust apart by the liquid, no longer hold together so
closely. This accounts for the open appearance of a fermented bean. As
on drying large interspaces are produced, these allow the air to
circulate more freely and expose a greater surface of the bean to the
action of oxygen. Since the liquids in all living matter presumably
contain some dissolved oxygen, the problem is to account for the fact
that the tannin in the unfermented bean remains unoxidised, whilst that
in the fermented bean is easily oxidised. The above affords a partial
explanation, and seems fairly satisfactory when taken with my previous
suggestion, namely, that during fermentation the bean is rendered
pervious to water, which, on distributing itself throughout the bean,
dissolves the isolated masses of tannin and diffuses it evenly, so that
it encounters and becomes mixed with the enzymes. From this it will be
evident that the major part of the oxidation of the tannin occurs during
drying, and hence the importance of this, both from the point of view of
the keeping properties of the cacao, and its colour, taste and aroma.
It will be realised from the above that there is still a vast amount of
work to be done before the chemist will be in a position to obtain the
more desirable aromas and flavours. Having found the necessary
conditions, scientifically trained overseers will be required to produce
them, and for this they will need to have under their direction
arrangements for fermentation designed on correct principles and
allowing some degree of control. Whilst improvements are always possible
in the approach to perfection, it must be admitted that, considering the
means at their disposal, the planters produce a remarkably fine product.
[Illustration: FOR DRYING SMALL QUANTITIES.
A simple tray-barrow, which can be run under the house when rain comes
on.]
_Loss on Fermenting and Drying._
The fermented cacao is conveyed from the fermentary to the drying trays
or floors. The planter often has some rough check-weighing system. Thus,
for example, he notes the number of standard baskets of wet cacao put
into the fermentary, and he measures the fermented cacao produced with
the help of a bottomless barrel. By this means he finds that on
fermentation the beans lose weight by the draining away of the
"sweatings," according to the amount and juiciness of the pulp round
them. The beans are still very wet, and on drying lose a high percentage
of their moisture by evaporation before the cacao bean of commerce is
obtained.
The average losses may be tabulated thus:
Weight of wet cacao from pod 100
Loss on fermentation 20 to 25
Loss on drying 40
--------
Cacao beans of commerce obtained 35 to 40
[Illustration: SPREADING THE CACAO BEANS ON MATS TO DRY IN THE SUN,
CEYLON.]
The drying of cacao is an art. On the one hand it is necessary to get
the beans quite dry (that is, in a condition in which they hold only
their normal amount of water--5 to 7 per cent.) or they will be liable
to go mouldy. On the other hand, the husk or shell of the bean must not
be allowed to become burned or brittle. Brittle shells produce waste in
packing and handling, and broken shells allow grubs and mould to enter
the beans when the cacao is stored. The method of drying varies in
different countries according to the climate. José says: "In the wet
season when 'Father Sol' chooses to lie low behind the clouds for days
and your cocoa house is full, your curing house full, your trees
loaded, then is the time to put on his mettle the energetic and
practical planter. In such tight corners, _amigo_, I have known a friend
to set a fire under his cocoa house to keep the cocoa on the top
somewhat warm. Another friend's plan (and he recommended it) was to
address his patron saint on such occasions. He never addressed that
saint at other times."
[Illustration: DRYING TRAYS, GRENADA.
The trays slide on rails. The corrugated iron roofs will slide over the
whole to protect from rain.]
In most producing areas sun-drying is preferred, but in countries where
much rain falls, artificial dryers are slowly but surely coming into
vogue. These vary in pattern from simple heated rooms, with shelves, to
vacuum stoves and revolving drums. The sellers of these machines will
agree with me when I say that every progressive planter ought to have
one of these artificial aids to use during those depressing periods when
the rain continually streams from the sky. On fine days it is difficult
to prevent mildew appearing on the cacao, but at such times it is
impossible. However, whenever available, the sun's heat is preferable,
for it encourages a slow and even drying, which lasts over a period of
about three days. As Dr. Paul Preuss says: "II faut éviter une
dessiccation trop rapide. Le cacao ne peut être séché en moins de trois
jours."[5] Further, most observers agree with Dr. Sack that the valuable
changes, which occur during fermentation, continue during drying,
especially those in which oxygen assists. The full advantage of these is
lost if the temperature used is high enough to kill the enzymes, or if
the drying is too rapid, both of which may occur with artificial drying.
[5] Dr. Paul Preuss, _Le cacao. Culture et Préparation_.
Sun-drying is done on cement or brick floors, on coir mats or trays, or
on wooden platforms. In order to dry the cacao uniformly it is raked
over and over in the sun. It must be tenderly treated, carefully
"watched and caressed," until the interior becomes quite crisp and in
colour a beautiful brown.
Sometimes the platforms are built on the top of the fermentaries, the
cacao being conveyed through a hole in the roof of the fermentary to the
drying platform.
[Illustration: "HAMEL-SMITH" ROTARY DRYER.
(Made by Messrs. David Bridge and Co., Manchester).
The receiving cylinders, six in number, are filled approximately
three-quarters full with the cacao to be dried. These are then placed in
position on the revolving framework, which is enclosed in the casing and
slowly revolved. The cylinders are fitted with baffle plates, which
gently turn over the cacao beans at each revolution so that even drying
throughout is the result. The casing is heated to the requisite
temperature by means of a special stove, the arrangement of which is
such as to allow the air drawn from the outside to circulate around the
stove and to pass into the interior of the casing containing the drying
cylinders. The fumes from the fuel do not in any way come in contact
with the material during drying.]
[Illustration: DRYING PLATFORMS, TRINIDAD, WITH SLIDING ROOFS.]
In Trinidad the platform always has a sliding roof, which can be pulled
over the cacao in the blaze of noon or when a rainstorm comes on. In
other places, sliding platforms are used which can be pushed under cover
in wet weather.
_The Washing of Cacao._
In Java, Ceylon and Madagascar before the cacao is dried, it is first
washed to remove all traces of pulp. This removal of pulp enables the
beans to be more rapidly dried, and is considered almost a necessity in
Ceylon, where sun-drying is difficult. The practice appears at first
sight wholly good and sanitary, but although beans so treated have a
very clean and bright appearance, looking not unlike almonds, the
practice cannot be recommended. There is a loss of from 2 to 10 per
cent. in weight, which is a disadvantage to the planter, whilst from the
manufacturer's point of view, washing is objectionable because,
according to Dr. Paul Preuss, the aroma suffers. Whilst this may be
questioned, there is no doubt that washing renders the shells more
brittle and friable, and less able to bear carriage and handling; and
when the shell is broken, the cacao is more liable to attack by grubs
and mould. Therein lies the chief danger of washing.
[Illustration: CACAO DRYING PLATFORMS, SAN THOMÉ. Three tiers of trays
on rails.
(Reproduced by permission from the Imperial Institute series of
Handbooks to the Commercial Resources of the Tropics).]
[Illustration: WASHING THE BEANS IN A VAT TO CLEAN OFF THE PULP,
CEYLON.]
_Claying, Colouring, and Polishing Cacao._
[Illustration: CLAYING CACAO BEANS IN TRINIDAD.]
Just as in Java and Ceylon, to assist drying, they wash off the pulp, so
in Venezuela and often in Trinidad, with the same object, they put earth
or clay on the beans. In Venezuela it is a heavy, rough coat, and in
Trinidad a film so thin that usually it is not visible. In Venezuela,
where fermentation is often only allowed to proceed for one day, the use
of fine red earth may possibly be of value. It certainly gives the beans
a very pretty appearance; they look as though they have been moistened
and rolled in cocoa powder. But in Trinidad, where the fermentation is a
lengthy one, the use of clay, though hallowed by custom, is quite
unnecessary. In the report of the Commission of Enquiry (Trinidad, 1915)
we read concerning claying that "It is said to prevent the bean from
becoming mouldy in wet weather, to improve its marketable value by
giving it a bright and uniform appearance, and to help to preserve its
aroma." In the appendix to this report the following recommendation
occurs: "The claying of cacao ought to be avoided as much as possible,
and when necessary only sufficient to give a uniform colour ought to be
used." In my opinion manufacturers would do well to discourage entirely
the claying of cacao either in Trinidad or Venezuela, for from their
point of view it has nothing to recommend it. One per cent. of clay is
sufficient to give a uniform colour, but occasionally considerably more
than this is used. If we are to believe reports, deliberate adulteration
is sometimes practised. Thus in _How José formed his Cocoa Estate_ we
read: "A cocoa dealer of our day to give a uniform colour to the
miscellaneous brands he has purchased from Pedro, Dick, or Sammy will
wash the beans in a heap, with a mixture of starch, sour oranges, gum
arabic and red ochre. This mixture is always boiled. I can recommend the
'Chinos' in this dodge, who are all adepts in all sorts of
'adulteration' schemes. They even add some grease to this mixture so as
to give the beans that brilliant gloss which you see sometimes." In
Trinidad the usual way of obtaining a gloss is by the curious operation
known as "dancing," which is performed on the moistened beans after the
clay has been sprinkled on them. It is a quaint sight to see a circle of
seven or eight coloured folk slowly treading a heap of beans. The
dancing may proceed for any period up to an hour, and as they tread they
sing some weird native chant. Somewhat impressed, I remarked to the
planter that it had all the appearance of an incantation. He replied
that the process cost 2d. per cwt. Dancing makes the beans look smooth,
shiny, and even, and it separates any beans that may be stuck together
in clusters. It may make the beans rounder, and it is said to improve
their keeping properties, but this remains to be proved. On the whole,
if it is considered desirable to produce a glossy appearance, it is
better to use a polishing machine.
_The Weight of the Cured Cacao Bean._
[Illustration: SORTING CACAO BEANS IN JAVA.
(Reproduced from van Hall's _Cocoa_, by permission of Messrs. Macmillan
& Co.).]
Planters and others may be interested to know the comparative sizes of
the beans from the various producing areas of the world. Some idea of
these can be gained by considering the relative weights of the beans
as purchased in England.
Average weight Number of Beans
Kind. of one Bean. to the lb.
Grenada 1.0 grammes 450
Parâ 1.0 " 450
Bahia 1.1 " 410
Accra 1.2 " 380
Trinidad 1.2 " 380
Cameroons 1.2 " 380
Ceylon 1.2 " 380
Caracas 1.3 " 350
Machala 1.4 " 330
Arriba 1.5 " 300
Carupano 1.6 " 280
_The Yield of the Cacao Tree._
The average yield of cacao has in the past generally been over-stated.
Whether this is because the planter is an optimist or because he wishes
others to think his efforts are crowned with exceptional success, or
because he takes a simple pride in his district, is hard to tell.
Probably the tendency has been to take the finer estates and put their
results down as the average.
Of the thousands of flowers that bloom on one tree during the year, on
an average only about twenty develop into mature pods, and each pod
yields about 1-1/3 ounces of dry cured cacao. Taking the healthy trees
with the neglected, the average yield is from 1-1/2 to 2 pounds of
commercial cacao per tree. This seems very small, and those who hear it
for the first time often make a rapid mental calculation of the amazing
number of trees that must be needed to produce the world's supply, at
least 250 million trees. Or again, taking the average yield per acre as
400 lbs., we find that there must be well over a million acres under
cacao cultivation. At the Government station at Aburi (Gold Coast) three
plots of cacao gave in 1914 an average yield of over 8 pounds of cacao
per tree, and in 1918 some 468 trees (_Amelonado_) gave as an average
7.8 pounds per tree. This suggests what might be done by thorough
cultivation. It suggests a great opportunity for the planters--that,
without planting one more tree, they might quadruple the world's
production.
The work which has been started by the Agricultural Department in
Trinidad of recording the yield of individual trees has shown that great
differences occur. Further, it has generally been observed that the
heavy bearing trees of the first year have continued to be heavy
bearers, and the poor-yielding trees have remained poor during
subsequent years. The report rightly concludes that: "The question of
detecting the poor-bearing trees on an estate and having them replaced
by trees raised from selected stock, or budded or grafted trees, of
known prolific and other good qualities is deserving of the most serious
consideration by planters."
_The Kind of Cacao that Manufacturers Like._[6]
[6] For further information read _The Qualities in Cacao
Desired by Manufacturers_, by N.P. Booth and A.W.
Knapp, International Congress of Tropical Agriculture,
1914.
Planters have suggested to me that if the users and producers of cacao
could be brought together it would be to their mutual advantage. Permit
me to conceive a meeting and report an imaginary conversation:
PLANTER: You know we planters work a little in the dark. We
don't know quite what to strive after. Tell me exactly what
kind of cacao the manufacturers want?
MANUFACTURER: Every buyer and manufacturer has his tastes and
preferences and----.
PLANTER: Don't hedge!
MANUFACTURER: The cacao of each producing area has its
special characters, even as the wine from a country, and part
of the good manufacturer's art is the art of blending.
PLANTER: What--good with bad?
MANUFACTURER: No! Good of one type with good of another type.
PLANTER: What do you mean exactly by good?
MANUFACTURER: By good I mean large, ripe, well-cured beans.
By indifferent I mean unripe and unfermented. By abominable I
mean germinated, mouldy, and grubby beans. Happily, the last
class is quite a small one.
PLANTER: You don't mean to tell me that only the good cacao
sells?
MANUFACTURER: Unfortunately, no! There are users of inferior
beans. Practically all the cacao produced--good and
indifferent--is bought by someone. Most manufacturers prefer
the fine, healthy, well fermented kinds.
PLANTER: Well fermented! They have a strange way of showing
their preference. Why, they often pay more for Guayaquil than
they do for Grenada cacao. Yet Guayaquil is never properly
fermented, whilst that from the Grenada estates is perfectly
fermented.
MANUFACTURER: Agreed. Just as you would pay more for a
badly-trained thoroughbred than for a well-trained mongrel.
It's breed they pay for. The Guayaquil breed is peculiar;
there is nothing else like it in the world. You might think
the tree had been grafted on to a spice tree. It has a fine
characteristic aroma, which is so powerful that it masks the
presence of a high percentage of unfermented beans. However,
if Guayaquil cacao was well-fermented it would (subject to
the iron laws of Supply and Demand) fetch a still higher
price, and there would not be the loss there is in a wet
season when the Guayaquil cacao, being unfermented, goes
mouldy. I think in Grenada they plant for high yield, and not
for quality, for the bean is small and approaches the
inferior Calabacillo breed. Its value is maintained by an
amazing evenness and an uniform excellence in curing. The way
in which it is prepared for the market does great credit to
the planters.
PLANTER: They don't clay there, do they?
MANUFACTURER: No! and yet it is practically impossible to
find a mouldy bean in Grenada estates cacao. Evidently
claying is not a necessity--in Grenada.
PLANTER: Ha! ha! By that I suppose you insinuate that it is
not a necessity in Trinidad, where the curing is also
excellent. Or in Venezuela? What's the buyer's objection to
claying?
MANUFACTURER: Simply that claying is camouflage. Actually the
buyer doesn't mind so long as the clay is not too generously
used. He objects to paying for beans and getting clay.
However, it's really too bad to colour up with clay the black
cacao from diseased pods; it might deceive even experienced
brokers.
PLANTER: Ha! ha! Then it's a very sinful practice. I don't
think that ever gets beyond the local tropical market. I know
the merchants judge largely by "the skin," but I thought the
London broker----.
MANUFACTURER: You see it's like this. Just as you associate a
certain label with a particularly good brand of cigar so the
planter's mark on the bag and the external appearance of the
beans influence the broker by long association. But just as
you cannot truly judge a cigar by the picture on the box, so
the broker has to consider what is under the shell of the
bean. One or two manufacturers go further, but don't trust
merely to "tasting with their eyes"--they only come to a
conclusion when they have roasted a sample.
PLANTER: But a buyer can get a shrewd idea without roasting,
surely? You agree. Well, what exactly does he look for?
MANUFACTURER: Depends what nationality the bean is--I mean
whether it was grown in Venezuela, Brazil, Trinidad, or the
Gold Coast. In general he likes beans with a good "break,"
that is beans which, under the firm pressure of thumb and
forefinger, break into small crisp nibs. Closeness or
cheesiness are danger signals, warnings of lack of
fermentation,--so is a slate-coloured interior. He prefers a
pale, even-coloured interior,--cinnamon, chocolate, or
café-au-lait colour and----.
PLANTER: One moment! I've heard before of planters being told
to ferment and cure until the bean is cinnamon colour. Why,
man, you couldn't get a pale brown interior with beans of the
Forastero or Calabacillo type if you fermented them to
rottenness.
MANUFACTURER: True! Well, if the breed on your plantation is
purple Forastero, and more than half of the cacao in the
world is, you must develop as much brown in the beans as
possible. They should have the characteristic refreshing
odour of raw cacao, together with a faint vinegary odour. The
buyers much dislike any foreign smell, any mouldy, hammy, or
cheesy odour.
PLANTER: And where do the foreign odours come from?
MANUFACTURER: That's debatable. Some come from bad
fermentations, due to dirty fermentaries, abnormal
temperatures, or unripe cacao.[7] Some come from smoky or
imperfect artificial drying. Some come from mould.
Unfermented cacao is liable to go mouldy, so is germinated or
over-ripe cacao with broken shells. Some cacao unfortunately
gets wet with sea water. There always seems to me something
pathetic in the thought of finely-cured cacao being drowned
in sea water as it goes out in open boats to the steamer.
PLANTER: You see, we haven't piers and jetties everywhere,
and often it's a long journey to them. Well, you've told me
the buyers note break, colour and aroma. Anything else?
MANUFACTURER: They like large beans, partly because largeness
suggests fineness, and partly because with large beans the
percentage of shell is less. Small flat beans are very
wasteful and unsatisfactory; they are nearly all shell and
very difficult to separate from the shell.
PLANTER: When there's a drought we can't help ourselves; we
produce quantities of small flat beans.
MANUFACTURER: It must be trying to be at the mercy of the
weather. However, the weather doesn't prevent the dirt being
picked out of the beans. Buyers don't like more than half a
per cent. of rubbish; I mean stones, dried twig-like pieces
of pulp, dust, etc., left in the cacao, neither do they like
to see "cobs," that is, two or more beans stuck together,
nor----.
PLANTER: How about gloss?
MANUFACTURER: The beauty of a polished bean attracts,
although they know the beauty is less than skin deep.
PLANTER: And washing?
MANUFACTURER: In my opinion washing is bad, leaves the shell
too fragile. I believe in Hamburg they used to pay more for
washed beans; although very little, I suppose less than five
per cent., of the world's cacao is washed, but in London many
buyers prefer "the great unwashed." However, brokers are
conservative, and would probably look on unwashed Ceylon with
suspicion.
PLANTER: Well, I have been very interested in everything that
you have said, and I think every planter should strive to
produce the very best he can, but he does not get much
encouragement.
MANUFACTURER: How is that?
PLANTER: There is insufficient difference between the price
of the best and the common.
MANUFACTURER: Unfortunately that is beyond any individual
manufacturer's control. The price is controlled by the
European and New York markets. I am afraid that as long as
there is so large a demand by the public for cheap cocoas so
long will there be keen competition amongst buyers for the
commoner kinds of beans.
PLANTER: The manufacturer should keep some of his own men on
the spot to do his buying. They would discriminate carefully,
and the differences in price offered would soon educate the
planters!
MANUFACTURER: True, but as each manufacturer requires cacao
from many countries and districts, this would be a very
costly enterprise. Several manufacturers have had their own
buyers in certain places in the Tropics for some years, and
it is generally agreed that this has acted as an incentive to
the growers to improve the quality.[8] But in the main we
have to look to the various Government Agricultural
Departments to instruct and encourage the planters in the use
of the best methods.
[7] Cameroon cacao sometimes has an objectionable odour and
flavour, which may be due to its being fermented in an
unripe condition, for, as Dr. Fickendey says: "Cameroon
cacao has to be harvested unripe to save the pods from
brown rot."
[8] The Director of Agriculture, in a paper on _The Gold
Coast Cocoa Industry_, says: "We are indebted to Messrs.
Cadbury Bros., of Bournville, for a lead in this
direction. They have several agents in the colony who
purchase on their behalf only the best qualities at an
enhanced price, and reject all that falls below the
standard of their requirements."
[Illustration: THE WORLD'S CACAO PRODUCTION.
(Mean of 5 years, 1914-1918. Average world production 295,600 tons per
annum.) Diagram showing relative amounts produced by various countries.
The shaded parts show production of British Possessions.]