Monday 25 July 2011

cocoborneo

Cocoa plants are small trees with few branches that grow in tropical environments. They produce the cocoa beans that sustain the multibillion dollar worldwide chocolate industry. Cocoa plants require high temperatures, over 68 degrees year-round, regular rainfall and constant care to consistently produce cocoa beans. The fruit of the cocoa plant is a called a pod and each pod contains 20 to 60 seeds, which are the prized cocoa beans.

  1. Criollo

    • Criollo cocoa plants produce an aromatic, complex flavored bean that is highly treasured. The Criollo plant is difficult to cultivate because it is plagued by several diseases and produces few usable beans on each plant. Because of the low production rate, many farmers have stopped growing this variety, increasing the value of each bean produced.

    Forastero

    • Forastero is a main cocoa plant used in mass production of chocolate bars. Chocolate producers rely on the disease resistance and ample bean production of these plants to achieve the large-scale cultivation the market requires. Easy to care for and fast growing, these plants require the least maintenance and provide a consistent chocolate flavor. However, the beans produced do not have the aromatic qualities and distinctive flavor of the more expensive beans. Forastero beans are known as bulk beans and are used as the main ingredient in chocolate bars with flavor beans added for substance.

    Trinitario

    • The Trinitario plant is a hybrid of the Forastero and Criollo plants. In an attempt to combine the hardiness of the Forastero plant with the flavor of the Criollo beans, farmers in Trinidad cross-bred the plants to produce a flavorful bean that is both disease resistant and prized as a flavor bean.

    Flavor

    • To create the distinctive flavor of the different varieties of chocolate, manufacturers and chocolate producers combine different sub-species of the Croillo, Forastero and Trinitaro beans. Inexpensive Forastero beans provide the base, with flavor beans added in moderation. The use of flavor beans sparingly reduces the cost and increases the production of chocolate.


Read more: Types of Cocoa Plants | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/info_8103038_types-cocoa-plants.html#ixzz1T7io5ukW