🍫 Behind Every Chocolate Bar, There’s a Story
Before a rich bar of chocolate reaches your hands, there’s a journey that spans thousands of kilometers, multiple hands, and a careful combination of nature and human touch. This episode invites you into the fascinating transformation of the cocoa bean—from rural farms to modern factories—bringing you behind the scenes of one of the world’s most beloved ingredients.
🌱 Step 1: Cocoa Cultivation in Tropical Harmony
Cocoa trees (Theobroma cacao) thrive in humid tropical climates, particularly around the equator. Indonesia is currently the third-largest cocoa producer in the world after Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana, contributing approximately 650,000 metric tons per year (FAO, 2022).
Most cocoa in Indonesia is cultivated by smallholder farmers, often in family-owned plots smaller than 2 hectares. These farmers usually adopt agroforestry systems where cocoa grows under the shade of larger trees—creating a balanced ecosystem that also yields bananas, coconuts, or cloves.
“Cocoa is not just a crop. For many Indonesian farmers, it’s a generational livelihood, inherited and preserved.” – Indonesian Cocoa Association (Askindo)
🔪 Step 2: Harvesting – Manual, Traditional, and Skillful
Harvesting takes place when the colorful pods—yellow, orange, or red—are fully ripe. Farmers use knives or machetes to cut them directly from tree trunks and branches. Each pod contains 30–50 wet cocoa beans surrounded by a sweet, white pulp.
The beans must be removed swiftly and carefully to maintain quality, then moved immediately to the next stage: fermentation.
🍇 Step 3: Fermentation – Where Flavor Begins
Fermentation is crucial for developing the characteristic chocolate flavor. In Indonesia, farmers usually ferment beans in:
- Wooden boxes (stacked like drawers)
- Baskets covered in banana leaves
The beans ferment for 5 to 7 days, during which time yeast and bacteria break down the pulp and initiate chemical reactions that generate aroma precursors.
Fun fact: Unfermented beans taste nothing like chocolate. They’re bitter, earthy, and even a bit sour.
This process raises temperatures up to 50°C and changes the color of the beans from white to dark brown.
🌞 Step 4: Sun Drying – Preserving the Beans
After fermentation, the beans are spread out on bamboo mats or raised beds under the sun to dry. This reduces moisture from around 60% to just 6–7%, preventing mold and spoilage.
Drying typically takes 5 to 10 days depending on weather. Proper drying is an art in itself—over-drying can make beans brittle, while under-drying leads to fungus and loss of aroma.
In some areas, mechanical dryers are used during rainy seasons, but sun drying is still the most common and cost-effective method.
🧺 Step 5: Sorting, Bagging, and Transport
Dried beans are sorted to remove impurities like stones, sticks, or defective beans. This is usually done manually or using simple sieves.
Once cleaned, the beans are packed into 60-kg jute bags and transported to local collectors, cooperatives, or directly to exporters. Beans may pass through 2–3 hands before reaching processors or manufacturers.
In Indonesia, key cocoa-producing provinces include:
- Sulawesi (over 70% of total output)
- Sumatra
- West Papua
🏭 Step 6: Arrival at the Factory – The Modern Phase Begins
At the factory, cocoa beans are:
- Cleaned from dust and debris
- Roasted to develop deeper aroma
- Winnowed to remove the shell, leaving behind nibs
- Ground into cocoa liquor (or mass)
This mass can then be:
- Pressed into cocoa butter and cocoa powder
- Combined with milk and sugar to create chocolate
For Jaya Cocoa, this step is where our commitment to quality and sustainability shines. We work closely with suppliers who maintain traceability and support smallholder farmers—ensuring every gram of cocoa powder tells a story of integrity.
🌍 Bonus: Cocoa and the Global Supply Chain
Did you know?
- Over 70% of the world’s cocoa comes from small farmers with less than 3 hectares of land.
- Only 5–6 countries dominate the processing stage.
- Ethical cocoa sourcing is becoming a top consumer concern, with a global shift toward Fairtrade, organic, and traceable cocoa.
❤️ Final Reflection
From the quiet rhythm of cocoa farms in Indonesia to the precise machinery of modern factories, cocoa’s journey is rich in tradition, community, and innovation. At Jaya Cocoa, we honor this journey by offering high-quality cocoa powder that connects farmers and chocolate lovers across the world.
Stay tuned for Episode 3 where we dive deep into the factory floor to explore the science of cocoa powder processing!
