"The little country of Guatemala does not make many people’s lists of fine-cacao paradises, but it’s been on HCP’s radar for years. Here in the heartland of the Maya, chocolate appreciation stretches back to oldest antiquity. Long before cacao was a cash crop, people here were growing a few trees in their yard for personal use, and many still do. Sometimes it feels like everywhere we turn, there’s another strange and fascinating heirloom tree."
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"What do we mean when we say something is “wild”? To most of us, something is wild if it’s untamed, uncivilized, still living in an area with minimal human influence, and thus a good representative of how things used to be before people remade the world to their own tastes.
... One of HCP’s primary goals on its Guatemala journey, a goal that gains urgency as the last forests in Central America get cleared, both legally and illegally, and the cacao goes with them. Sometimes it can feel like a hopeless battle, but we can now say that our hopes are much higher than they were a few weeks ago. This is one of those rare cases where results easily exceeded our expectations." |
Missed the latest episodes of the HCP's discovery expedition through Mexico? Click below to get up to speed, watch the episodes, and read about the journey.
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Alyssa D'Adamo
Communications Coordinator, The Heirloom Cacao Preservation Fund Professional Videographer |
Rowan Jacobsen
Jacobsen is an esteemed author of eight books, and is currently working on his ninth, diving into the world of cacao. |
Erick Ac
Agribusiness Advisor at Guatemala Cacao Company, S.A.; Guatemala |