Growing Cocoa
All chocolate products start with the cocoa tree, which
originated in the upper Amazon basin. In the wild, it grows to 50
feet tall as an "understory" tree in the shade of towering 200-foot-tall
hardwoods and other trees. (Photo: ADM)
Cocoa Trees Aren't Easy To Grow
They're very picky about where they live. Cocoa trees require
constant warmth and rainfall to thrive. They need to be shaded
from the strong tropical sun and sheltered from the wind. Cocoa trees
grow only in tropical regions of Africa, Asia, South America and Central
America, within about 15 degrees of the equator.
In The Shade Of Other Trees...
Cocoa trees grow best in the shade of other trees. When
very young, they require deep shade. As they mature, they require
more filtered sunlight. Farmers plant a shade umbrella of taller trees
such as breadfruit, Para rubber, laurel and various legumes to shelter
their cocoa trees. Shade-grown cocoa trees can produce fruit for 75
to 100 years or more.
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