Yes I do agree, nurture often beats nature the majority of the times. Also breaking the habits of frames can in most cases proved very difficult. Would you say that the varieties that I have if done right I will achieve fine finish product?
I have few farmers that are already producing a few of the Varieties. So far they have been selling the bean to a few European buyers as flavoring beans. Seeing that this is my first attempt at growing and processing, I want to focus mostly on developing the highest quality favor beans possible. I was told base on the genetic variety I begin with, this would heavily affect the quality of the final product.
Where can I get a full description of each of these Varieties and identify the finest ones.
I have these options for planning and want to make sure I plant the finest of them..
The varieties identified are as follows:
GS 29 (Grenada Selected) This variety originated in Grenada.
POD-Seven (7) pods will produce one pound of cocoa beans. The pod has high rough ridges. The pod is purple when young, long with deep ridges. As the pod matures it turns pink then yellow. The pod is normally full with beans but the beans are not very thick.
GROWTH HABIT- The tree grows very tall and branches a lot. This variety should not be planted alone because it is incompatible. It should be planted with DS1,DS 2, ICS 1, ICS 84 and ICS 95.
ICS 1- This variety originated from Trinidad.
PODS-The beans are smaller than the G S29, purplish when young, yellow when ripe. The skin is smooth, ridges are wider and flatter. It is juicier and sweeter than the GS29 .the pod is round when young and becomes longer when older.
POD-the pods are very rough. Fewer pods are required to produce a pound of cocoa. The pods are yellow when ripe. The pod has a small neck, large body and tapering end. The pod appears creamish when young. When the pod is ripe it has a chalkish/whitish look outside. The older the pods the rougher the skin. The size varies according to the condition o the trees.
GROWTH HABIT- The tree is very vigorous and tall.
PODS- The pods are light purple when young, then they turn light yellow. The ridges are closer and the pod is smoother than ICS 1.
Similar to ICS 39 has similar habits. Ridges are raised and the end is fuller and round.
PODS- same habit with ICS 39.The pod is the biggest in size. The pod is green at the top and bottom and this pod has the most beans.
Nib, Liquor, (as refined as possible), I wanted to do butter but have not been able to find a small press that cost effective. I must archive as much degree of processing of the beans so can to archive my business model.
So in your opinion about how much could I produce per year for that initial investment?
The infrastructure is not a problem unlike here in the states our power on my island is much more stable. I will be doing most wiring and install my-self. I need to know sickly from an equipment standpoint what my cost will look like. One of the things am considering is cutting my processing down some, and reserve the surplus for export as a raw product.
Do you have some information?
Looking for small scale equipment to set up processing plan.
Capacity of about 104 tons per year .
(Roaster, grinder, and Dehulling/winnowing. Was thinking about pressing butter but so far all the machines I have looked at are very costly) Looking for some feedback.
