Cocoa beans

Chocolate production begins with the harvesting of the pods of the cacao tree (Theobroma cacao). The Latin binomial means "food of the gods." The cacao tree is a small evergreen and its pods, when ripe, may be colored yellow, orange or red and shaped like a football. Each pod contains 20-50 seeds, or "cocoa beans." The pods are cut off the tree by cocoa harvesters with machetes.

The seeds are removed, along with the light-colored, sweet, pulp inside the pods and left to ferment for a few days. Traditionally, this was done in big heaps on the ground. In more modern operations, this is done in bins. After a few days, the seeds are separated from the pulp, spread out more thinly and allowed to dry in the sun. Once dry, the cocoa beans are shipped to chocolate manufacturers