CACAO

also called cocoa tropical tree, whose scientific name means food of the gods in Latin. Originating in the lowland rainforests of the Amazon and Orinoco river basins, cacao is grown commercially in the New World tropics as well as western Africa and tropical Asia for its seeds called cocoa beans, which are processed into cocoa powder, cocoa butter, and chocolate. This article treats the cultivation of the cacao plant. For information on the processing of cocoa and the history of its use, see the article cocoa. L. Russell Cook The Editors of the Encyclopdia Britannica (Theobroma cacao), tropical American tree of the family Sterculiaceae (or Byttneriaceae), the seeds of which, after fermentation and roasting, yield cocoa and chocolate (qq.v.). The usefulness of the cocoa bean was well known to the Pre-Columbian inhabitants of tropical Meso-Americaparticularly the Mayas and Aztecs, who used the bean not only to produce a beverage but also as a medium of exchange. During the 16th century cocoa beans were carried to Europe, where refinements in processing led to the development of cocoa and chocolate and to the extraction of cocoa butter (q.v.), a natural vegetable fat. The cacao tree is grown throughout the wet lowland tropics, often in the shade of taller trees. Its thick trunk rises up to 12 metres (40 feet) and supports a canopy of leathery oblong leaves up to 30 centimetres (1 foot) long. The small, foul-smelling, pinkish flowers are borne directly on the branches and trunk. The flowers are followed by the fruit, or pods, which are ovoid, yellow-brown to purple, and divided on the surface by 10 ribs, or ridges. The pods may be up to 35 cm long and 12 cm in diameter. Each pod yields 2040 seeds, or cocoa beans. The beans, about 2.5 cm long, are embedded within the pod in a pink mucilaginous pulp. After the fourth year a tree may bear 60 to 70 fruits annually. After harvesting, the pod is split open and the seeds, or beans, are removed and allowed to ferment for several days. They are then subject to a series of processesincluding drying, cleaning, roasting, and grindingthat yields a paste called chocolate liquor. This liquor is then either pressed, to produce cocoa butter and cocoa powder, or combined with additional cocoa butter (and sometimes other ingredients), to yield one of many chocolate products. Additional reading L. Russell Cook, Chocolate Production and Use, 3rd ed., rev. by E.H. Meursing (1982), covers the cocoa and chocolate industry from the growing of cocoa beans to the finished cocoa and chocolate products. G.A.R. Wood and R.A. Lass, Cocoa, 4th ed. (1985), is also of interest. L. Russell Cook The Editors of the Encyclopdia Britannica