130 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



May 4, 191 S. 



would l>e i^lad to know exactly " what tuialities in cacao 

 are considered desirable by manufacturers of cocoa ami 

 choeolatt". Unt'oitunately, it is by no means possible 

 to make a <lerinite statement which is generally 

 applicable, because the \ arions manufacturers look for 

 different qualities, and cacaos from certain districts 

 an- prized tor special purposes. There is, further, 

 some danger in describing a desirable appearance, for 

 it is not the appearance that is wanted, but the uualities 

 that are associated with it. In general, it is indicated 

 that if the planter only allows ripe pods to be gathered, 

 ferments for a reasonable period, cures with care, and 

 kei'ps the beans dry, they will have the right appearance 

 to satisfy the manufacturers, and he will be producing 

 the best that the type of tree on his plantation is 

 capable of. It is to be rrgretted that in many cases the 

 individual who does better work than his fellow- 

 planter does not directly rea^ his reward in higher 

 prices. Indeed, it has been said by planters that it 

 does not pay to take more than a certain amount 

 of trouble in fermenting and curing their cacao, as 

 they obtain the same price any way: but if all planters 

 worke<l down to the minimum ijuality, the price 

 obtained for beans from that district would fall, and 

 all would suffer. At present the planter who produces 

 above the average is a benefactor to his fellow-planters, 

 and he who produces below the average quality lowers 

 the price of the whole production of his district. 



Any district which could establish and successfully 

 maintain a standard which prohibited the presence 

 of unfermented, iliseased, germinated, or grubby beans, 

 and which fixed a maximum percentage for rub- 

 bish and shrivelled beans, and could at the same 

 time put on the market large consignments suit- 

 ably liiarked, would be sure of fstablishing a lepu- 

 tation ii) thf London market, and as a result obtain 

 high prices. 



Probably the most highly appreciated charactir is 

 constancy or reliability of quality. Cacao which \aries 

 from bag to bag, or from tiuie to time, will get little 

 appreciation. Under ideal conditions, standard ijuali- 

 ties woidd be put >>n the market — Criollo, I'^orastero, 

 and r'aiabacillo would be fermented separately, and the 

 beans graded accordnig to size. Such a procedure 

 would only be practicable whi re the cacao from several 

 plantations was taken to a central fermentary. At the 

 present time we are far from this: indeed, instead of 

 a careful grading of good qualities thire is in practice 

 a mixing of good anil bad. There is good nason to 

 believe that .som'- merchants buy cacao which they 

 know to be diseased, or unfermented, or mouldy, and 



deliberately mix it with good cacao. Such an action 

 may not seriously affect the price of that particular lot, 

 but it affects detrimentally the reputation of the cacao 

 from that district, and the manufacturer comes to 

 regard it as less desirable. 



A matter of great importance, within the con- 

 trol of the careful planter, lies in the picking of the 

 pods at the right stage, neither under nor ovt-r-ripe. It 

 is in this connexion that thrips, by concealing the 

 signs of ripeness, .probably do more real and wide- 

 spread harm than in their effects upon yield. 



It is sometimes stated that cacao is valued largely 

 according to its geographical origin, but it may be 

 pointed out that this value is the resultant of the value 

 of the type of bean grown in that district. It is also 

 sonii'times contended that the value of cacao depends 

 almost entirely on its botanical variety. It is the old 

 problem of heredity and environment. < Viollo obtains 

 a higher price than Forastero and t'alabacillo. because 

 it is the rarest. But the planters problem in most 

 parts of the world is how to produce the best cacao 

 from the mixed breed which his plantation contains. 

 This is done by providing a suitable environment, i.e. 

 keeping the trees under healthy conditions, and by cur 

 ing the cacao with the greatest care. In Ceylon, since 

 rubber became of such great importance, less care has 

 been taken in the cultivation of cacao, and a deteriora- 

 tion has r'Sidted. 



It should be pointed out that the nianufacturer 

 does not make a Hnal judgment of the bean in its raw 

 state. It is only when it is roasted that he is able 

 to lietermine its exact value i'oi- liis purpose. 



The question of co-operation between planters and 

 mamifacturers is of great importance in the production 

 of almost every crop, (/ontinuous efforts have been 

 made in connexion with the cotton industry in the 

 West Indies to discover exactly what (juality of cotton 

 is most valued by the spimiers in Manchester. These 

 efforts have resulted in mutual benefit to planters and 

 manutacturers, enajjling the latter to obtain the more 

 uniform product for which they are willing to pay 

 .1 higher price. i 



With cacao, as with cotton, it would appear that 

 uniformity is the Hrst essential, a point which is easy 

 to understand \\ hen the standaidi/ed nature of modern 

 manulactnred products is considered. 



-As has just bflen pointed out, nmch can be done 

 in this direction by careful preparation of the raw 

 material, by picking at just the right time, and by the 



