Cocoa (Theobroma cacao) is a tropical crop and the only source of chocolate. It is native to South America and was domesticated by the Maya and Aztecs. Cocoa trees have a taproot system and produce pods containing 30-50 beans. There are three main cocoa varieties - Criollo, Forastero, and Trinitario. Cocoa requires tropical conditions with temperatures between 15-32°C and annual rainfall between 1500-3500mm to grow. Proper pruning, fertilization, weed control and other cultivation practices are needed to maximize cocoa yields.

1. cocoa

2. Family: Sterculiaceae
Genus: Theobroma
Species: Cacoa
Scientific Name: Theobrama cacao L.

3. Cocoa is the third important beverage crop next
to coffee and tea.
Cocoa is the tropical crops
Important item of confectionary industries and is
the only source of chocolate

4. contain percentage
fat 57
protein 7
carbohydrate 7
theobromine 1.7
moisture 6
ash 2.7
minerals 1.1
pectin 4.1
fiber 2.1
cellulose 1.9
pentosans 1.2
Mucilage & gums 1.6
Tannin & acids 6.6

5.  Cocoa is a native species of tropical humid
forest on the lower eastern equatorial slopes of
the Andes in South America.
 Theobroma literally mean “food of the Gods”.
 Cocoa was domesticated and the produce used
for the consumption for the Maya and Aztecs.
 The 1st European drinks cocoa is a Spanish
after conquered Mexico.

7.  Cocoa is the one of the 22 species assigned to
the genus Theobroma cacao and only the
species have value and economic important.
 Other species :
 T. bicolor
 T.angustifolium
 T. grandiflorum

8. The tap roots of cocoa grows predominantly
downward with only few branches.
 Under suitable growing condition when the soil
is deep they grow to a depth of about 150cm.
 The function of the roots is considered to be
anchorage.
 The main feeding roots are those arise from the
tap roots and grow laterally

9. Most of these roots just concentrated below the
soil surface up to the depth 15 to 20cm.
The lateral spread of such roots will be 120 to
150cm around the adult cocoa tree.
The bulk of feeding roots of cocoa is
concentrated near the surface.
Any digging of soil can caused injuries to the
roots

10.  The cocoa rooting pattern can be modified to
an extent by the environment.

12.  Cocoa grow in tiers.
 The shoots of seedlings that grow upwards is
called “chifon”.
 After growth 1 – 1.5M chifon cease 3 to 5
lateral branches .
 Lateral branches called “ fan”.
 The point which fan arise is called “
jorquette”

15.  Leave of the fan are arranged in one plane and
are alternate.
 Leave arrangement of chifon will be spiral.
 Chifon leave have longer petiole.

16. COCOA FLOWERS.

17.  Cocoa flowers are borne on thickened leaf axils on
stems called “cushions”.
 In every cushions is up 50 flowers.
 The cocoa flowers is a compressed cyme and have 5
sepals, petals and 10 stamens in two whorls .
 Every ovary have 5 united carpels
 Every flowers contained 40-60 ovules.
 The flowers which not fertilised will be falled within 24
hours

18.  The pollination was assisted by the small
insects called ceratopogonid midges.
 The insects are small and barely visible to the
naked eyes.
 The midges are attracted by the pigmented
tissues of the staminodes and the guidelines of
the petals.
 Flowers starts opening in the afternoon and are
fully opening by the forenoon the next day.

19.  The cocoa fruits is a botanically a drupe , often
called “pod”.
 Each cocoa pod contained 30 – 50 beans.
 Classifications cocoa pod:
 a) Criollo
 b)Forastero
 c) Trinitario

20. criollo forestero Trinitario

21.  Pod yellow or red when ripe .
 Deeply 10 furrowed,markedly
warty.conspicuosly pointed.
 Pod wall too thin, seed large and oval.
 Cotyledons white or pale violet which are less
astringent.
 The beans fermented quickly but yield is very
poor.

22.  Produces highest quality cocoa.
 Susceptible to stress.
 Not adaptable all situations.
 Clone :
A) Central American Criollo
B) Venezuelan Criollo

23.  Unripe is green and turn yellow on ripening.
 In conspicuously ridged and furrowed.
 Surface smooth, end rounded or bluntly pointed.
 Pod wall very thicked.
 Seed flattened ,fresh cotyledons deeply pigmented
and dark violet giving an astrigent product.
 High yield and hardy.
 The beans take 5- 6 days for fermentation

24.  Origin from Trinidad.
 Cross criollos x forasteros.
 Hetetrogenous and exhibits a wide range of
morphological and physiological characters.
 Characteristic base on range criollo and
forastero.

25.  The distribution of germplasm collection must
be thoroughly international recognized
agencies.
A) International Cocoa Genebank , Trinidad.
B) Lembaga Koko Malaysia
C) Ghana Cocoa Institute

26.  Priorities in Breeding :
a) yield improvement.
b) disease ( vsd,black pod etc)
c) Pest
d) retention flavors
e) adaption environment
f) tree shape, pod size and beans characters

27. The genetic base of cocoa is very narrow.
The type of genetic will be based:
a) Yield
b) Pod and bean character
c) Reaction of pest and disease
d) Adaptation to the environment

28.  Cross – pollinated not advisable.
 Bud wood from vegetative materials more ideal
 The introduced material will be quarantined
until be certified from pest & disease

29.  Selection of seedling is can contribute high
yield through adaption of :
a) Space and planting distance.
b) Shade tolerance
c) Soil condition
d) Nutrient supply
.

30. Yield criteria:
a) Plants yielding not less than 100pods/ year
b) Each 1 pod 350gms – 400gms
c) Fermented 35-40 beans weight 1.0gram dry
bean.

31.  Hybrid method is one of the method to obtain
good varieties.
 Method of hybrid
a) Hand pollination
b) Pre selection
c) Clonal seeds garden

32. HAND POLLINATION

33.  Problem in hybridization
a) Can caused in breeding
b) Can caused no pod sets
c) Hybrid can caused high seedling

34.  The important climatic factors
a) Temperature
b) Rainfall
c) Altitude and latitude

35.  15 to 32 °c and this range considered
optimum.
 These temperature limits set the latitude limits
for the best growth of cocoa to within 8° north
and south of the Equator

36.  Requirement annual rainfall range 1500mm to
3500mm.
 Lower than 1500mm may cause the cocoa
stress.
 If the rainfall more than 3500mm were favor
incidence of disease such as black pod
(Phytophthora palmivora).

37.  Cocoa is grown in the wide range of soil.
 Soil of high rainfall areas are relatively coarse
textured and acidic to neutral in reaction.
 Very coarse sandy soil are not suitable for
cocoa.
 The sandy loam soil is the suitable for cocoa
cultivation.

38.  Cocoa can be propagated from
a) Seeds
b) Vegetative propagation.

39.  Seed propagations is the cheap and easy.
However, the seedling is highly variable
genetically.

40.  Vegetative propagation can be developed as
followed:
a) Budding
b) Rooting of cutting
c) Grafting

43.  Planting
a) Cocoa seeds can be sown directly or seedling
planted anytime if soil moisture condition are
suitable.
b) The best time for field planting of seedling would
be of pre-monsoon (march-april, october-december)

44.  The spacing would be based on the:
a) Topography
b) Clone
c) Shade pattern
d) Soil type
e) Planting density
Normally the planting distance:
1.7m x 1.7m or 2.7m x 2.7m

45.  Cocoa normally cultivated under shade
 Type of shade
1) Gliciridia
2) Coconut
3) Legume trees (ex: petai, petai belalang, etc)
In the early stage, 75% shade required. This is
brought it down to 25% after matured.

46.  The fertilizer recommendation for cocoa under
average management is 100:40:140/plant for
a year.
 For cocoa under better management where the
average annual yield is more than 60 pods,
double this dose is tentatively recommended.

47.  Feeding root of cocoa are concentrated on the
surface soil, occurring within of 15 cm from the
surface.
 They are concentrated in a radius of 120 to 150
cm in established (adult cocoa)
 Fertilizer may preferably be applied in shallow
basins of 120 to 150cm radius and raked in
without serious damage to the roots
 The genera recommendation in most cocoa-producing
countries is to broadcast fertilizer in the
entire field without any soil tillage.

48.  Timing the application of fertilizer:
a) The stage activity and the season of moisture
availability may have to be consider.
b) For irrigated cocoa, fertilizer may be applied in four
equal split during may-june, september-october,
december and february.
c) For young cocoa in field, the dose of fertilizer may be
one-third the annual dose for adult plant for a first
year and two-third for the second year.
d) A cocoa under good management will start giving
reasonable yield from the third year, full doses of
fertilizer are supplied from this point on.

49.  The purpose of pruning:
a) To control the growth
b) Excessive development of branches
c) To facilitate harvesting
d) To control pest and disease

50.  The first tier should be developed at height not
less that 1 to 1.5m
 If plant jorquette at lower height, the stem with
the developing fan maybe nipped of just below
the jorquette.
 The chupon should be
removes below the height.

51.  The weeds control in cocoa
a) Circle weeding
b) Slashing
c) Selective weeding

52.  Top working is useful to rejuvenate old
unproductive plant and also to convert
genetically poor yielders to high yielders.
 The technique was standardized at the Cadbury
plantation
 The technique consist of snapping back at the
desired tree below the jorquette after the
cutting half way

53.  Cocoa does not flower uniformly throughout the
year and there are peaks of flowering within 3
months of the year.
 These periods of peak flowering are often for
the different region.
 This depend on climate factors (ex: Ghanaian
cocoa)
 Normal flowering at peak may-july

54.  Several factors to influence the floweing and
fruit set:
a) Genetics
b) Environmental factors
i) Moisture stress
ii) Temperature
iii) Solar intensity
c) Physiological factors

55.  The pods mature is about 150 to 170 days from
the days of pollination.
 The periods varies depending on environmental
conditions.
 The stage of maturity of pods is best judged by
change of color of the pods
 Unripe pods shows green or red depend on clone
or hybrids
 The change of color start from the grooves on the
pods and then split into the entire surface

56.  The pods start change the color is shows ripe pods
and can be remain on the tree within 1 month
 The interval is between 18 days to 1 month
 The safer periods to harvest at fortnightly interval
 This is to prevent the incident of the black pod
disease.
 Fruits are borne on the cushion. The good
harvesting practice is to avoid cushion damages
on the pods.

57.  The harvested pod can be store for 2 – 7 days.
 This enhances the pre-fermentation activity
including
a) Reduce acidity
b) Rise in temperature
c) Increase chocolate flavour

58.  Cocoa is affected by more than 1500 insects in
different cocoa growing countries in the world
 Only a small numbers is of economic important
 Among the major pest infecting cocoa:
a) Cocoa pod borer
b) Tea mosquito bug
c) Mealy grey weevil
d) Cockchafer beetle
e) Rat
f) squirrels

59.  Pot rot (Phytopthora palmivora, P capsici,P
megakarya and P citrophthora)
 The pod become black and occurred during rainy
season.
 The whole pod will infected by the fungus.
 The beans however can be escaped if the infection
not serious.
 Regular pruning can minimized the infection or
Bordeaux mixture or copper oxychloride at 15 days
interval

60. BLACK POD

61.  Charcoal pod rot(Lasioplodia thebromae)
 The pod occurs during dry season.
 Pale yellow spot on the pod and enlarge into
chocolate brown.
 Use Rovral ( Iprodione) or bordeaux mixture

62. CHARCOAL DISEASE

63.  Monilia pod rot( Moniliophthora roreri )
 The infection only in young pod and become
black and falls.
 The control by removed the infection young pod
by weekly interval

64. MONILIA DISEASE

65.  Vascular streak dieback( Oncobasidium
dieback )
 the disease may occur on the main stem of
seedling or on the branch of older seedling.
 1st symptom the pale yellow on second or third
leaf at seedling stage.
 Treatment use fungicide Thiram

66. VASCULAR STREAK DIEBACK

67.  Pink Disease( Corticium salmonicolar)
 Fan branches and small twigs are infected and
pinkish color .
 Removed the branches infected and sealing
with shellcote or Bordeaux mixture.

68.  Ceratocystis wilt ( Ceratocystis fimbrata)
 The disease caused by damaged beetle borer
or pruning wounds.
 The mature leaves will wilted and dry and
remain at the branch for several weeks
 Used insecticide and fungicide mixture or
minimized wounding during pruning and
harvesting

69.  Fermentation
 The raw cocoa beans are covered with sugary
mucilaginous pulp .
 The beans covered with pulp will called “wet
beans “
 The economical part was called “nib”.
 The raw nib was bitter and no aroma , flavor or
chocolate taste.

70.  The chocolate flavor developed by 2 process.
 Fermentation ( grower)
 Roasting ( manufacturer)

71. Heap
fermentation

72.  The pulp contains 84.5% water, 10% glucose
and fructose, 2.7% pentosan, 0.7% sucrose,
0.6% protein, 0.7% acids and 0.8%inorganic
acid.
 The changes due to development of microbial
populations
 This continues 24-36 hours activity of yeast
leads to the production of COat the aerobic
2
process.

73.  This process to developed of lactic acid
bacteria which assist in the breakdown of sugar

74. 1) Ripeness of pods
2) Pod disease
3) Types of clone
4) Quantity of cocoa
5) Duration
6) Turning
7) Seasonal effect

75.  2 types
1) Box maturation: the bean set for fermentation in the
box are to be mixed as usual on the third and fifth
days. Five extra turn may occur on the sixth and
seventh days, and beans may taken out on the eighty
day.
2) Dried maturation: beans may be kept to thickness of
25 cm and dried at 50oC. Stacking to depths lower or
higher than 25cm result in poorer quality presumably
because of too fast drying of bean in the former and
lack of adequate aeration in the latter.

76. Box
maturation Dried maturation

77.  Traditional standard methods
a) Heap method
b) Tray method
c) Box method
d) Basket method
e) Curing on drying platform.

78. 1) Color of the beans
2) External shell color
3) Smell of fermenting mass
4) Development of heat
5) Plumpy nature of the beans and color of the
exudates.

79.  Sun drying
 Artificial drying

80.  International standard stipulate:
1) The ambient humidity must not exceed 70%
2) The bag must be stored at least 7cm from the
ground, normally on a duckboard to allow free air
circulation
3) There must be passage at least 60cm wide
between the walls and the bags and between
bags of different type of cocoa.
4) Protection against storage pests/rodents must
be ensured.

81. 5) Step must be taken to avoid contamination by
odors, off flavor or dust
6) The moisture content should be checked at
frequent intervals