Environmental Benefits
Cacao thrives in diverse agroforestry systems, benefiting both farmers and the environment.
Connecting chocolate professionals
with the world’s most exceptional cacao
The Heirloom Cacao Preservation Fund (HCP) helps chocolate professionals source traceable, high-flavor cacao varieties while supporting the farmers who protect biodiversity and heritage.
Why Heirloom
Cacao Matters
Heirloom cacao brings ecological, economic, and social value to communities worldwide.
Cacao is primarily grown by small-scale farmers in tropical regions — where it can represent up to one-third of a family’s annual income.
Farmer Education
For farmers and training on the ground creates a consistent and healthy value chain from gene to bar.
Farmer Empowerment
To protect their cultural heritage and forests while adopting best practices in cacao farming to reach a higher earning potential.
Consumer Education
On the taste of real, delicious chocolate made from Heirloom cacao through our broad network of craft chocolate makers, chocolatiers and retailers worldwide.
Encouraging Participation
Of the local population in the preservation of their cacao and its heritage for future generations.
Environmental Benefits
Cacao thrives in diverse agroforestry systems, benefiting both farmers and the environment.
Farmer Education
For farmers and training on the ground creates a consistent and healthy value chain from gene to bar.
Farmer Empowerment
To protect their cultural heritage and forests while adopting best practices in cacao farming to reach a higher earning potential.
Consumer Education
On the taste of real, delicious chocolate made from Heirloom cacao through our broad network of craft chocolate makers, chocolatiers and retailers worldwide.
Encouraging Participation
Of the local population in the preservation of their cacao and its heritage for future generations.
More than flavor
"Heirloom cacao is a gastronomic and historical revival of flavor and aroma. It's a living relic of human and plant interactions from the ancient past brought forward in the form of the most joyful finest-tasting chocolate experiences imaginable."
— Jacob MarlonExecutive Director of the Belize Foundation for Research and Environmental Education (BFREE)
The Heirloom Cacao Designation is more than a recognition — it’s a scientific and cultural commitment to protecting cacao’s finest genetics and flavor diversity. Recognized by the USDA and supported by a global network of farmers and chocolate makers, HCP works to safeguard varieties that define the heritage of fine chocolate.
By choosing Heirloom cacao, you support sustainable farming, biodiversity, and the preservation of the world’s most exceptional flavors.
+24
Heirloom designations
certified worldwide
+12
Countries engaged
in preservation efforts
+3200
Farmers connected
through HCP
What Makes Heirloom, Heirloom
- 1.
Farmers are carefully identified through our global network of local HCP ambassadors
- 2.
Heirloom designation is an identification cacao varieties with exceptional flavor, genetic diversity, and cultural value. Each HCP-designated farmer represents a living link between centuries of cultivation and the future of fine chocolate.
- 3.
HCP local partners work directly with the farmers to improve post-harvest processes to prepare samples for submission
- 4.
Samples are sent to our partner lab for genetic and flavor analysis
- 5.
Samples that meet the HCP criteria are awarded the Heirloom Designation and added to the HCP Registry
- 6.
Farmers receive a premium price for their HCP-designated cacao, incentivizing the preservation of these exceptional varieties and supporting their livelihoods
- 7.
HCP-designated cacao is tracked through our blockchain-based traceability system, ensuring transparency and authenticity from farm to chocolate maker
- 8.
Chocolate makers can source HCP-designated cacao with confidence, knowing they are supporting biodiversity, cultural heritage, and sustainable farming practices
Mapping the originsof Heirloom cacao worldwide.
Across 11 countries, HCP collaborates with farmers and partners to identify and protect the world’s most remarkable cacao varieties — the roots of fine flavor chocolate.
Stories of collaboration
The HCP is focused on working with local implementing partners on the ground to provide training and educational resources for farmers to grow and improve their crops. We have long-standing collaborations with world-renowned chocolate makers and the genetics laboratory at the USDA to make our mission possible.
Partner Spotlight: Guittard Chocolate’s Role in Cacao Preservation
The complex boasts an energy-efficient A label, meeting sustainability standards for the years to come.
Partner Spotlight: The United States Department of Agriculture
While the sensory profile of a cacao bean tells us how it tastes, its DNA tells us what it truly is. The Heirloom Cacao Preservation Fund (HCP) relies on a rigorous scientific foundation to identify rare varieties, and at the core of this effort is the Sustainability and Perennial Crops Lab at the USDA in Beltsville, Maryland.
Wild Cacao Could Die Out. We Can’t Let It.
Caputo's Market and Deli located in SLC, UT, is a specialty food market and deli, focused on protecting and preserving the food traditions of the world's collective ancestors.
Your support drives measurable impact.
HCP publishes annual reports detailing program outcomes, designations, and financial transparency. Explore how donations are invested across research, fieldwork, and farmer partnerships.
PDFFebruary 2, 2026
HCP Protocols
Review the presentations of the lead scientists of the USDA-ARS Stakeholder Workshop on April 24th, 2025 in Beltsville, MA.
VideoOctober 21, 2024
HCP Technical Training Series
The HCP developed instructional training videos at Kamananui Research Center on Oahu in Hawaii, which covers the full production process of Heirloom cacao.
VideoJuly 11, 2024
Preservation in Peru
The Lesley Family Foundation has made it possible for us to continue our research in Peru.
PDFOctober 10, 2022
The Review of Cacao Germplasm Movements
Cacao is an important tree crop impacting on livelihoods of millions of farming families in tropical and sub-tropical countries worldwide. This review serves to help conserve cocoa genetic diversity by identifying places for in situ collection and germplasm collection for ex situ genebanks.
PDFJune 5, 2025
Producer's Guide to Fine Flavor
HCP Ambassador Natalia Aristizabal attended an intensive training at the Cocoa of Excellence lab in Rome in order to create a guide for farmers to be able to analyze the flavor of their cacao. The HCP uses this guide when performing in-person trainings on the ground.
PDFJune 1, 2025
HCP Technical Nursery Guide
Technical nursery guide for cacao management.
Frequently asked questions
