CACAO BOTANY
CACAO
BOTANY
CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION
It starts from a tree: reintroducing cacao.
That’s right, cacao—chocolate and all its derivatives— starts from a tree.
One that is truly unique, filled with intricacies and specific characteristics that make accessing cacao something of a small miracle. Yet, despite its importance, relatively little is known about it, even as production and consumption figures continue to soar year after year.
— In 2023, global cacao bean production reached five million tons, while chocolate consumption alone averaged 7 kilograms per person annually in the top 10 consuming countries.
Cacao is still largely treated as a commodity wherever it is consumed. Reconnecting consumers with the cacao tree and sharing knowledge about it are crucial steps toward raising awareness about its consumption and accessibility. This article is our contribution to make this information more accessible and digestible. It highlights cacao’s natural complexity and diversity, emphasizing why it should be valued as a meaningful resource.
We will explore the remarkable qualities of the cacao tree, including its botanical characteristics, unique floral patterns and its ideal growing conditions.
BOTANICAL CHARACTERISTICS
Belonging to the Malvaceae family, Theobroma Cacao L. is a mid-sized evergreen tree, usually reaching heights between 4 and 10 meters.
The tree’s most captivating aspect is its cauliflorous trait, meaning it bears fruits directly from the trunk and the basis of its biggest branches. This characteristic gives cacao trees a striking appearance, especially when pods of different colors—greens, yellows, reds, and purples—are present.
Native to the understory of tropical rainforests in Central and South America, cacao thrives in humid, warm environments with steady rainfall. Its roots spread shallowly, favoring loose, fertile soils that retain moisture, a necessity for growth in shaded, low-light conditions.
Leaves, Flowers & Pollination
The leaves of the cacao tree contribute significantly to its adaptability in dense forest environments. Broad, glossy, and dark green when mature, they start as pinkish, delicate structures that gradually deepen in color as they grow. They can reach up to 30 centimeters in length, aiding in efficient photosynthesis even in shaded areas, where it thrives.
Cacao flowers are tiny, star-shaped, and grow in clusters directly on the trunk and branches—a rare and fascinating example of cauliflory. These flowers are white to pale pink and emit, at best, a mild, musky fragrance. Besides their fingernail size and lack of color and scent, a hooded cap protects the pistil, making the pollination process a proper hassle.
The tree depends primarily on two species of tiny flies and midges, able to access the pistils, which thrive in the damp, forested environment. These species, in turn, depend on specific circumstances intricately tied to cacao’s original tropical environment—which provides adequate humidity and forest cover for them to live in and reproduce.
To make things worse, most cacao trees are self-incompatible, meaning they need pollen from other trees in order for pollination to happen.
In the end, only 10% of the flowers produced by a tree will actually bear fruits, and half of it will actually mature up to harvest point, lucky enough to avoid pests or diseases.
Fruit Development
Once a flower is pollinated, it begins its transformation into a cacao pod. This process takes approximately 5 to 6 months, during which the pod enlarges and develops into an oblong fruit, sometimes weighing over a pound.
Inside each pod are around 20 to 60 seeds, surrounded by a sweet, sticky pulp. These seeds, or cacao beans, are the raw material for cacao paste and chocolate production. The pulp, with its sugary content, attracts animals that help disperse the seeds, playing an essential role in the cacao tree’s reproductive cycle.
The pods’ colors, associated to their morphology, give hints about their variety and ripeness, with mature fruits shifting to vibrant shades that range from yellow and orange to deep red.
Harvests mostly happen twice a year, with a main harvest happening at the end of the rainy season (October-March), and a secondary, smaller harvest happening around May and August.
Growing Conditions
Cacao thrives in specific tropical conditions, typically growing in regions within 20 degrees north and south of the equator, with most production concentrated within 10 degrees of the equator. The tree requires a warm and humid climate, with optimal temperatures ranging from 18-32°C (64-90°F).
Cacao is naturally adapted to the forest understory and benefits from partial shade, especially when young. It grows best at altitudes between sea level and 300 meters, though it can be cultivated up to 1,000 meters above sea level.
The tree demands well-drained, humus-rich soils and consistent rainfall. High humidity, often exceeding 70%, is crucial for the tree’s vigor. Cacao is ideally cultivated in agroforestry systems or small farms, which helps supporting biodiversity and protecting against the rapid spread of diseases and pests that can devastate larger plantations.
It’s important to nuance that, despite being aware of these optimal growing conditions, the cacao industry mostly relies on large open-sun plantations which involves, among other things: biodiversity loss due to deforestation, soil degradation, pest and disease susceptibility, lower quality yield and a reduced tree longevity.
SOURCES
BACKGROUND MATERIAL
• Cameron L. McNeil, ed., Chocolate in Mesoamerica: A Cultural History of Cacao, Maya Studies. Gainesville: University Press of Florida, 2006. ISBN 9780813033822.
• Presilla, Maricel E. The New Taste of Chocolate: Revised: A Cultural and Natural History of Cacao with Recipes. Revised ed. New York: Ten Speed Press, 2009.
• Pohlan, Hermann A. J., and Valentin Díaz Pérez. 2010. “Growth and Production of Cacao.” In Soils, Plant Growth and Crop Production. Vol. III, Growth and Production of Cacao, edited by Willy H. Verheye. Oxford: Eolss Publishers.
• Jean-Marie, E., W. Jiang, D. Bereau, and J.-C. Robinson. 2022. “Theobroma cacao and Theobroma grandiflorum: Botany, Composition and Pharmacological Activities of Pods and Seeds.” Foods 11 (23): 3902. https://doi.org/10.3390/foods11233902
• www.britannica.com/plant/cacao
• www.worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/which-country-eats-the-most-chocolate
