Cocoa Harvest Season: From Pod to Export-Ready Dried Beans
Cocoa can be harvested almost all year round, but it has peak seasons. Here is how to recognise ripe pods and process them into fermented beans.
Cocoa trees bear fruit directly on the trunk and main branches. They flower almost all year, so there is always something to harvest. Still, there are periods when far more pods ripen at once: the peak harvest.
When is the peak?
In North Sumatra, cocoa generally has two peaks a year, following the rainfall pattern. Between them, harvesting continues at lower volumes. See the harvest calendar for monthly supply estimates.
Signs of a ripe pod
- The colour changes: green pods turn yellow, and red pods turn orange.
- Loose beans can be heard when the pod is shaken.
- Pods are cut at the stalk with a sharp knife without damaging the flower cushion on the trunk, which produces the next fruit.
Storing and opening the pods
Harvested pods are usually stored for a few days, then split open. The beans, wrapped in white pulp, are removed, while the placenta and damaged beans are discarded.
Fermentation: the key to chocolate flavour
The wet beans ferment in wooden boxes or baskets for about five to seven days and are turned regularly. During this stage the pulp breaks down and the precursors of chocolate aroma develop. Unfermented beans taste astringent and bitter and sell for much less.
Drying
After fermentation, the beans are sun-dried to a moisture content of about 7 percent. Beans that are not dry enough mould easily during storage and shipping.
What we check
At the warehouse, we run a cut test on sample beans to assess fermentation, and check moisture, bean size, and mould before packing the cocoa in sacks.