174 COMMERCIAL COCOA 



always be limited, and we should not recommend the 

 extending of this cultivation, although the market price 

 is higher. 



" One thing that should be watched very, carefully 

 by native cultivators is the ripeness of the cocoa. The 

 yellow pod (fruit) grown so largely in the Gold Coast is 

 ripe when pale yellow, and when golden (when it looks 

 fully ripe) is nearly always over-ripe and sprouting ; and 

 needless to say, cocoa that has already germinated has 

 lost some of its best flavour. 



" We consider a certain amount of fermentation 

 essential for good cocoas. 



" When cocoa is sufficiently mixed with other in- 

 gredients in low-class chocolates, or even in a higher 

 class of milk-type chocolate, where the proportion of cocoa 

 is small, it is possible to cover up some defects, and for 

 this reason the demand for the very cheapest undried 

 West African cocoa on the Hamburg market (and to a 

 less extent in England) will no doubt continue. It will, 

 however, be noted that when markets are lowest the 

 difference between the price of good and bad will be 

 greater than when markets are at their highest, and 

 so it should always pay in the long run to turn out good 

 cocoa at the additional expense of careful fermenting 

 and drying. 



" We consider the preparation for market of by far the 

 largest proportion of Bahia, Trinidad, Grenada, San 

 Thome, and Kamerun cocoa is perfectly satisfactory to 

 the consumer, and dislike any tampering with the bean 

 as by washing, claying, oiling, etc." 



II 



" We do prefer washed cocoa, because in this case 

 the shell is more likely to be clean and thinner and there- 

 fore there would be less loss of weight when the clean 

 nut (seed) is finally secured. 



" Large nuts are of course preferred, because there 

 naturally would be less shell than with the smaller beans 

 (seeds), and the difference in value might easily run to 

 Is. per cwt. 



" We buy both artificially and sun-dried cocoa, often 

 without knowing which process has taken place, but we 



