Forum Activity for @Peter Kring

Working on a cocoa farm

Posted in: Travels & Adventures

Hi Juan Pablo, Sarah, I can definitely recommend Finca la Amistad. It is in a wonderful rural area of Costa Rica. The farm is well run and the cacao produced is first quality. Peter

Working on a cocoa farm

Posted in: Travels & Adventures

October is the main cacao harvest time in Costa Rica. It is NOT the wettest time in the cacao growing areas. It is wet in October in areas that have the longest dry seasons and thus not that great for growing cacao. The weather should be good all the way from Upala to Limon and Talamanca and into the Bocas del Toro area of Panama which is beautiful and pretty good for cacao. The best bean to bar is probably in the town of Puerto Viejo, Talamanca. Peter

Fermented cacao beans wanted

Posted in: Classifieds F/S or Wanted

Hi Dan

You might contact Juan Pablo Buchert in costa Rica juan@chocolate-nahua.com

There is also a cooperative that ships cacao from the Southern Caribbean of CR called APPTA

You can research commodity prices on-line. Prices in-country could fall in the $3.50 to $5 per kg range for pretty good cacao.

Peter

Fermented cacao beans-bar

Posted in: Tech Help, Tips, Tricks, & Techniques

There exists a raw food movement that believes that cooking food kills enzymes that are necessary to protect our digestive systems, etc.

Combine this outlook with the belief that the less processed our chocolate is the healthier it is for us.

So, there is a market niche that is being exploited to that end.

Peter

There is going to be a chocolate festival on Costa Rica's Caribbean coast that falls during the harvest season. The festival begins on October 26 and runs through the 28th. During this festival there will be plenty of opportunities to visit farms, see processing, workshops, etc. in the next few days I am going to post something here on this forum and there will be a schedule of events and more information on the Facebook page. Puerto Viejo chocolate festival. This information will be coming soon. Peter

Hi Steven,I only know the Zarcero area from passing through but I have worked in the Quepos area.While the Central Pacific of CR seems to be trending to heavier rainfall Limon could be trending to drier weather. We have been recording rainfall here for more than 15 years and this last year has been the driest at a mere 120", down from an average of 160" at our farm. Logically, this trend seems to be helping the cacao growers battle the dreaded monilia. So far, so good. 120" is still enough!Saludos,Peter

Within the area of Costa Rica where most cacao is grown (the province of Limon) the driest month of the year, statistically, is September. There are two "dry" seasons which are centered on September and March and the wetter seasons are in December and July. This better distribution of rainfall favors cacao growing, as opposed to the areas that get so much rainfall during the September/October months but have a six month dry season that is a bit dry for cacao production. While there are different peaks of harvest the principal harvest is in October/November and this also corresponds to the harvest season for a plethora of fruits in the zone of Limon. Cacao has been grown traditionally in Limon since pre-colombian times and was first planted by europeans in Matina, Limon around 1650. We proudly continue to grow the heirloom Matina cacao.

Hi Steven,

Actually there is much to harvest and dry September through early December: cacao, durian, mangosteen, rambutan, pulusan, columbian sapote, duku, langsat, santol, various garcinias, cupuasu and pataste among others! Oh yes, and that's when the vanilla is ready too. Where it's wet during these months is the Pacific coast and the Central Valley; neither of which are major cacao areas (too high in the Central Valley). September through early December is dry on the Caribbean coast and in the Northern Zone: where the bulk of the cacao is grown. I'm not sure where you are in Costa Rica, but perhaps you should pay us a visit in October and dry out