Cocoa processing steps

Cocoa beans have a complex journey from jungle trees to foil-wrapped confections. Here is a simple breakdown of the steps involved in the cocoa making process.

Harvesting

Chocolate begins with Theobroma Cacao tree. Pods from this tree are harvested for the making of chocolate only once fully ripened. Unripened pods yield beans with low cocoa butter content and low sugar content.

Processing of cocoa in ghana

The natural sugars in cocoa beans fuel the fermentation process, which is responsible for much of the classic cocoa flavor.

Once harvested, the seeds are separated from the pods and pulp and allowed to begin the fermentation process.

Fermenting

Raw cocoa beans have a bitter and undesirable flavor. Fermentation transforms this bitterness making it into the more complex precursor to the classic cocoa flavor we are familiar with.

Cocoa processing flow chart

Fermentation is achieved with natural yeast and bacteria that are present in the cocoa beans. The beans are simply left out in the heat and moisture to ferment for approximately seven days. After fermentation, the beans are quickly dried to p

how cacao is processed

how is cocoa powder processed