204 COCOA 



In this way the pulp which surrounds the seeds 

 is gradually decomposed and dissolved, and when the 

 beans are removed from the last (generally the sixth) 

 fermenting box, a few fibres and a little mucilage 

 round the seeds is all that remains of the pulp. In the 

 meantime the colour and the consistency of the seeds 

 have changed. The colour, which in the Surinam 

 variety is originally dark- violet, changes to a reddish- 

 brown ; while the seeds, which were leathery and more 

 or less tough, become brittle after fermentation and 

 drying, so that they are easily crushed between the 

 fingers. The seed-coat, which adheres firmly to the 

 fresh seed, surrounds the fermented and dried seeds 

 like a loose and brittle skin. 



As has already been said, the main chemical changes 

 have resulted in the development of the peculiar 

 chocolate aroma, the liberation of the tonic and 

 stimulant principles, and the lessening of the bitter 

 principles. The planter, however, takes little notice of 

 these chemical changes. He looks only at the colour. 

 He knows, for instance, that as soon as some seeds 

 begin to show brownish spots, he must stop the fer- 

 mentation ; such spots appear principally on the beans 

 which come into free contact with the air e.g. on 

 the beans in the bottom layer of the fermenting box, 

 which are situated above the openings in the planks. 



In its main lines the process of fermentation is the 

 same in all cocoa-growing countries, except that in 

 many of them it does not take so long. 



The question now comes : What is the cause of 

 this fermentation, which results in those changes in 

 chemical composition, in flavour, in colour, in con- 

 sistency ? l The decomposition and dissolution of the 

 sugar - containing pulp into a vinegar -smelling liquid 

 leads at once to the presumption that during the 

 fermentation the sugar of the pulp is converted into 

 acetic acid (the main constituent of vinegar) and that 



1 This question is very clearly treated in a little article by Dr. Sack, 

 published as Bulletin No. 10 of the Department of Agriculture, Surinam. 



