As Silva team we are sending our warmest Christmas wishes your way. We hope your home will be filled with happiness. Because we want to thank you for the great partnership, lovely encounters, and delicious chocolate, we get one step ahead of Santa Claus and give you a little something already: a tree in the Dominican Republic!
Did you know “Kamili” means ABSOLUTELY in Swahili? Synonyms of absolutely are precise, exact, unconditionally, unquestionably... All those words expresses what Kokao Kamili means to us!
CHUAO: A BEST-IN CLASS CACAO Chuao is known as the most mythical, famous and expensive cacao worldwide. We are thrilled to take you on a journey to discover the name, fame, and flavour of Chuao.
Despite perfect climatic conditions and abundant fertile soils, cacao arrived relatively late in Congo DRC. The first trees were planted in the late 19th century, when Congo was a colony of Belgian's King Leopold II. Commercial cacao plantations sprung up along the Congo River in western Congo in the 1920-30s. After independence in 1960 the cacao industry slowly disappeared, only to make a comeback some twenty years ago. Today, the centre of the cacao industry moved from west to east Congo, especially Kivu and Ituri. This used to be a coffee growing area, but in the late 1990s the coffee plants were affected by a serious disease, and farmers started to look for an alternative. And in came cacao! Silva Cacao, together with a team of specialists, helped to develop specialty cacao in the Ituri Province. Each cacao quality has a unique flavour profile, and a great story about improving the livelihood of smallholder farmers, conservation and protection of forests and wildlife, and increasing safety through mobile banking.
If you are interested to read more about our cacao origins (of course, all have perfect humidity), read on!
Looking at the climatic and geographical conditions of the Philippines you would think it is a major producer of cacao. However, this is not the case. Let’s take a closer look at the cacao landscape of the Philippines.
Although cacao has always existed in Nicaragua, it was never an important export product. Only in 1990s the potential of cacao for the national economy became apparent and production has increased steadily. What makes Nicaraguan cacao so good? Let's explore this a bit more.
We had the opportunity to have a long talk with Ellen and Luca from GoGround and heard their journey from a romance in Hyderabad to a professional cacao-processing unit in Kerala. It is a story full of highs and lows. We are sure you'll appreciate India Idukki cacao even more after reading this!
When sourcing cacao, it is interesting to know who is involved in the production, as it tells you more about the impact you are making on the field. At Silva we select our cacao suppliers because they bring something extra: Flavour, Farmer, Forest and the Future.
You might have seen pictures like the one above. Cut tests are quite photogenic. However, good looks are not the prime reason this test is performed. It is an important tool to identify problems in an early stage, assess the level of fermentation and evaluate beans. One of the most interesting difference between cacao purchaser for bulk industry and specialty cacao purchasers is that they use cut tests in completely different ways.