Latest news with #Cacao
Forbes
3 days ago
- Business
- Forbes
Turning The Cacao Harvest Into More Than Chocolate
Cacao beans are processed through fermentation, roasting and grinding to make chocolate flavoring. ... More They only comprise 30% of the harvested weight of the Cacao crop There are many potential pathways for innovation in the food and beverage sector, but one strategy that is particularly positive from both an economic and sustainability perspective is to find uses for components of the harvested crop that haven't previously been utilized. A list of candidate crops for this concept has been published by the Good Food Institute. When this sort of potential can be developed it not only adds to the total crop value, but it increases the overall resource-use-efficiency in terms of land, water, fuel and other inputs for the growing process. For most of the major commodity crops virtually all of potential co-products and 'side-streams' are being captured and sold (see the examples for corn and soybeans). For many other crops it would be quite challenging to develop the processes, logistics and business structures that would be needed to fully use the harvest. That is why it is encouraging to see an example of this kind of innovation being applied to Cacao - the crop that provides the world with one of our favorite flavors - chocolate. Cacao is harvested as pods, only 30% of which are the beans used to make chocolate flavoring (Photo ... More By). Cacao is a tropical tree crop that produces large pods. The seeds within those pods are commonly called 'beans' and they comprise only 30% of the harvested weight. The other 70% is a combination of a fibrous 'skin' and a white pulp material. A split Cacao pod showing the fibrous skin and the white pulp which covers the "beans" Typically, none of the pulp or skin is used to make commercial products and the focus has been on the steps necessary to extract, clean and ferment the valuable 'beans.' That flavoring is then combined with other ingredients to achieve the sweetness, 'mouth feel' or other organoleptic features of the chocolate experience. Two companies at the opposite ends of the chocolate value chain independently initiated projects with the goal of more fully utilizing the Cacao harvest. One was started by an entrepreneur named Oded Brenner who had run a successful restaurant business in the US but who sold that and decided to move into a new category. He was inspired by seeing whole Cacao pods in fresh fruit markets in South America and set out to develop a network of beverage shops to sell products made from frozen Cacao components. Oded co-founded Blue Stripes with Aviv Schweitzer in 2018 to develop this business, but during the COVID pandemic they ended up shifting to a consumer packaged goods (CPG) model for sale at grocery retail. A crew harvesting Cacao pods Meanwhile a Cacao plantation owner in Ecuador was independently experimenting with the logistics and processing steps to turn the previously un-used parts of Cacao pods into consumable products. Throughout history the Cacao industry has faced severe pest issues, particularly in terms of plant diseases. In 1965 a new Cacao cultivar called CCN51 was developed which had resistance or tolerance to three major diseases and which has four times the yield of the traditional cultivars. That reinvigorated the Cacao industry in several countries. There is some controversy about the quality of chocolate from CCN51 but that can be addressed by the details of the fermentation process and/or by blending. CCN51 is clearly the most attractive option for growers because there are not significant premium price options for the other types. To fully utilize the harvested pods, the plantation had to work out new steps and facilities for harvesting, handling, refrigeration, temporary storage (6 days for some steps), processing details and bottling/packaging line in order to utilize the pulp and skins. The plantation made the substantial investment required for this change to what could be called a 'Cacao winery.' Since Blue Stripes was sourcing their initial frozen ingredients from Ecuador, the two innovators ended up being introduced. That led to the formation of a partnership spanning production through marketing. The Cacao Water pressed from the pulp is then flavored with other fruits When the pods are harvested the beans are extracted from the pulp which is then pressed and pasteurized to generate Cacao Water – a novel, tart flavored liquid. THe solid portion of the pulp is dried to make gummies The solid material from the pulp is made into 'gummies' or put into a trail mix. The fibrous skin of the pod is ground and turned into a pasta-like product or a bread flour. This full set of products from the Cacao pods delivers its full 'superfood' content including minerals (magnesium and potassium), vitamins B, C and D, powerful antioxidants, electrolytes and dietary fiber. These components can be linked to many potential health benefits. The outer husk of the Cacao pod can be used to make a pasta Blue Stripes launched their Cacao-based products in 2022, and they are currently available at all Whole Foods stores throughout the US. Retail level sales now exceed $10 MM per year and initial consumer interest suggests significant growth potential.
Indian Express
02-05-2025
- Business
- Indian Express
Tariff tracker, May 2: How tariffs are ruining US businesses
The costs are piling up for US companies, especially small businesses, as President Trump's tariffs continue to strangle free trade. On Wednesday (April 30), the official data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis showed that the US GDP contracted in the first quarter. This was thanks to the spike in imports, which typically drag down GDP, as companies tried to build up inventories in anticipation of high tariffs. The GDP contraction has provided a break for all concerned to vociferously outline the costs of Trump's tariffs. For instance, General Motors, one of the iconic US automakers, slashed its full-year profit outlook by a whopping $5 billion, thanks to the increase in costs due to tariffs. For perspective, $5 billion is roughly a third of the annual profit. Moreover, this hit on profits is happening even after Trump provided relief to US automakers from the stacking up of tariffs of different kinds (such as tariffs on commodities like steel, and then tariffs on countries and then sectoral tariffs, etc) Similarly, Harley-Davidson, another iconic US motorcycle brand, withdrew its profit guidance for 2025 owing to a lack of clarity about the US trade policy. Thanks to the sweeping nature of these tariffs, their debilitating effect is not limited to any one sector. Hershey, which is synonymous with all things chocolate, stated that it expects tariffs to raise costs by up to $20 million in the second quarter (April, May and June) because it has become costlier to import Cacao. At the going rate, the increase in costs could go up to $100 million in each of the last two quarters of 2025, according to reports. While big companies can either dial down profit forecasts or withdraw guidance, the worst affected are the small businesses of the US that neither have the financial reserves to survive a prolonged trade war nor the ability to quickly modify their supply chains. Not surprisingly, then, the US Chamber of Commerce (which is the world's largest business organisation, and advocates for policies that help businesses create jobs and grow the economy) sent a letter to top Trump cabinet members begging for relief for small businesses. In the letter, collectively addressed to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, and US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, they ask the administration 'to address the impacts of tariffs by granting automatic exclusions for any small business importer, establishing a process for companies to apply for an exclusion if the company can demonstrate that tariffs pose a risk to employment for American workers, and providing exclusions for all products that cannot be produced in the United States or are not readily available'. All this came on a day when there was more bad news on the macroeconomic front. The Institute of Supply Management's (ISM) Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) for manufacturing — a proxy for manufacturing activity in the US — shrank in April by the most in five months as lean order books prompted the steepest output contraction since 2020, according to a Bloomberg report. ISM's survey Chair Timothy Fiore said the readings 'are a huge warning' and that 'we are heading in the wrong direction'.
Times
26-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Times
The forgotten genius who taught Damien Hirst and inspired Britart
In 1996 the artist Helen Chadwick's career was on the rise. In 1987 she became one of the first women to be nominated for the Turner prize. In 1994 she broke the Serpentine Gallery's attendance records with her exhibition Effluvia, which included what are still her two most famous works — Cacao, new that year, a slightly quease-inducing bubbling fountain of melted chocolate, and Piss Flowers, 1991-2, bronze casts of the oddly floral shapes made in the snow by first her, then her husband's, streams of urine. A year later, her 1992-3 photograph series Wreaths to Pleasure — flowers carefully arranged in viscous liquids such as hair gel, bubble bath, oil, antiseptic cream and milk — went on display at the Museum
