Cacao grows naturally in the tropics, between ten to twenty degrees north and south of the equator-what is called the “Cocoa Belt.” The leading countries that supply cacao include Nigeria, Brazil, Indonesia, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Ecuador, Papua New Guinea, Dominican Republic, and Cameroon. Other well-known countries that grow cacao include Malaysia, Madagascar, Mexico, Samoa, Cuba, and Grenada. The cacao tree is not easy to grow and requires a certain kind of climate, particularly in hot and rainy weather. While it strives in warm temperatures, it has to be kept away from direct sunlight and is thus usually grown under the shade of taller trees. The cacao tree can shoot up to as high as 40 feet and have pods or fruits that grow as long as a foot. The fruit or pod develops a brownish-yellow to purple color and can contain as much as 20 to 40 cacao seeds or beans in a pink and whitish pulp.
The Best Cacao Beans
The best quality cacao beans come from Brazil, Venezuela, the Ivory Coast, Central America, Madagascar, and the Caribbean. The owner of Paris’ Maison du Chocolat, Robert Linxe, believes that Ariba cacao beans from Central America are the finest in the world mainly because of its intense flavor and pronounced character. Some of the most common beans used on quality milk chocolate bars worldwide are Manjari, Guanaja, Guayaquil, and Pur Caraibe.