What is Cacao? - Is is related to Chocolate?

Chocolate is one of the most craved foods in the world. Why? Because it simply tastes breathtaking. The rich, chocolaty addiction that we know so well has branched into numerous varieties with, at times, unexpected added ingredients.

Chocolate can be described as one of your first memories. For example picture classic childhood favourites like chocolate moose or a cup of hot chocolate. But no one can really remember those early years. It is only when you become a little more older and wiser that you begin to enjoy once again the feel of a bar of chocolate melting on your tongue.

Whether it is the dark, milk or white, the taste just harmonises with your body. Making you feel something sensational. Everything else just falls away at that moment. I guess you could say it is like having your first love. It leaves you with a sweet taste. It leaves you wanting more.

Our world is turning into organically thinking health conscious beings. With food cultures such as veganism booming, paleo diets sprouting and low-carbohydrate diets building, it makes you wonder whether this is a trend or is this way of life secretly saving lives?

These are simply superfoods.

Described as a superhero fighting off fatty foods and processed goods. Foods almost guaranteed to make us slim, healthy and happy. It is a word we hear all the time. A food that is rich in compounds and beneficial for our health. This organic method is slowly changing the way of the world.

We are becoming a ‘superfood evolution’. It is clear that this planet does contain superfoods. They are seen as a type of medicine. The diagnosis from these foods have helped us learn that what we put into our bodies matters. One of the most talked about ‘plant medication' at the moment is cacao.

Raw cacao or raw chocolate has become especially popular since the mid 2000’s when it was largely promoted by those adhering to a raw food diet. Today most cultures around the world still use cacao in the form of chocolate or cocoa products.

In fact, cacao is so popular that it has even formed an entire community on its own. If you belong in the cacao-culture you would be added to the numerous population of people that cannot resist the taste.

“This statistic shows the production of cocoa beans in 2018/19 and 2019/20. In crop year 2018/2019, about 2.15 million metric tons of cocoa beans were produced in the Ivory Coast of West Africa, Côte d’Ivoire.” - Statista, 2019

So, what is Cacao culture? Cacao is the French term for Cocoa. Cacao is bitter, more nutty and contains more fruity flavours compared to cocoa which has a more toasted slightly sweeter taste.

At first glance you might suspect that cocoa and cacao are the same thing. You might not even recognise the differences unless you know about it. But if you wanted to taste chocolate in its purest form and experience the realness of chocolate, then knowing how cacao is made and sourced is what really matters.

Whats important to remember is that chocolate is made from the same raw material, the bean, the seed of a very special tree. So lets reel it back all the way to nature to meet the Theobroma cacao tree.

Commonly known as the ‘food of the Gods’, the tree can grow up to 8m tall with its fruit up to 30cm long as told by The Eden Project (2020).

The tree grows in sub-tropical and tropical regions and is a small evergreen. It comes from the nuts or seeds of the trees hanging fruit. If you had to look up you would spot the purple, green, red or yellow pods. It won’t look like chocolate from the outside. The secret lives within the pod

Beneath the thick reign of the cacao pod encased within a white flesh pulp are the beans. Each pod produces up to 20-50 beans.

From the initial harvest of the Theobroma cacao tree that process is very much the same because either way the seed needs to be fermented. Once the pulp from the seed is extracted, it is placed inside a container for the process of fermentation to occur. Fermentation springs specific changes into life. Colours change from white to purple and eventually into the deep rich colours of chocolaty goodness that we are so familiar with. It is here the divide begins.

Cacao refers to the most mineral processed purest form of chocolate you can get. It is left to dry and sometimes roasted and then crushed up into varies forms of flakes or ground up into cacao powder. Cacao is then a very mineral process which means that is has a very high concentration of antioxidants, vitamin-B, vitamin-C and minerals which tend to be destroyed in the heat process. In other words, the difference is that cocoa is heated.

Heat allows for taste variance, removes acidity and gives chocolate connoisseurs a chance to stand out amongst there competitors when it comes to the taste. Cocoa still contains high antioxidants, fibres and proteins but as said before it is all to do with the concentration. Roasting is primarily done because it is believed to improve the flavour.

In other words Cacao is processed. Cocoa is roasted. Cacao is sold in its unaltered state, or known as ‘naked chocolate’.

It grows around the equator where climate conditions are suited for growing in shady locations, where regular rainfall and good soil are needed for successful production. According to The Eden Project, the trees are cultivated in West Africa on smallholdings by around about 2,5 million farmers (2020).

If you can’t live a life without chocolate you are lucky that you were not born before the 16th century. A bitter concoction in the form of a drink. It was a sacred source to the Mayan and Aztec people. Many years ago it was said that the Aztec’s used the beans as currency and drank the chocolate at royal feasts, presented it to soldiers as rewards as well as for rituals. All with a special ingredient - chillies.

However the word cocoa was originally adopted more in the European countries. Production and cultivation shifted to West Africa with Cote d’Ivoire providing two fifths of the worlds cocoa as of 2015 as told by Statista (2019).

Today chocolate has established itself within the rituals of our modern cultures. Many companies use the strategy of ‘healthy-foods’ to market and sell various food products in the industry. The main method is by advertising just how beneficial the product can be.

Cacao has numerous health and nutritional factors attached to it. It’s no wonder this ‘superfood’ is imported in such vast quantity.

Cacao is an antioxidant, which can be found in fruits and vegetables and has one of the richest sources of Polyphenols. The raw product is said to provide benefits of reduced inflammation, decreased blood pressure and improved blood sugar levels.

A site called healthline states that the benefits of cacao is so high in goodness that they have at least nine other health qualities, including: reducing high blood pressure; lowering risk of heart attack and stroke; improve blood flow to your brain and brain function; improve mood and symptoms of depression (Mandl, 2019).

Other health qualities include improving symptoms of type 2 diabetes, aid in weight control, cancer-protective properties, help people with asthma and can benefit your teeth and skin. Overall it is very rich in fibre and minerals.

Whether you choose raw cacao or coca-based chocolate it is always best to get higher quality organic alternatives to increase your chances that there are greater nutrients present.

When a brand specifies that it is a raw cacao product, this means that they have taken steps to ensure minimal temperatures during fermentation. According to healthline, Cacao can be found in 70% chocolate, mixed with your favourite dairy or nondairy milks, smoothies, puddings, be sprinkled over fruit and can also be added to your granola bars (Mandl, 2019).

Just remember that all healthy combinations come with reasonable portion sizes and a balanced diet. The reason why we tend to choose cocoa over the purer cacao is due to the fact that there were two products that really transformed the cocoa from being a once bitterly drink into various forms of snacks and milky liquids. These were of course, the addition of sugar and fat.

According to BBC news health, a packet of milk chocolate normally contains between 20-25% of fat and between 40-50% sugar (Mosley, 2017).

The combination of these and other aroma molecules creates a unique chemical signature that our brains love.

Not all superfoods like Cacao are quick and easy going lifestyle choices. With the cost of rising demand for superfoods growing, the cost on the shelf can be an eye-opener for some. But isn’t health priceless?

Next time you go to your local store, why not experience your chocolate journey in its pure form.

References:

1. Eden project. 2020. “Cacao”. Retrieved from https://www.edenproject.com/learn/for-everyone/plant-profiles/cacao

https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/cocoa-powder-nutrition-benefits#TOC_TITLE_HDR_2.

2. Mandl, E. 2018. “11 Health and Nutrition Benefits of Cocoa Powder Healthline”. Healthline. Retrieved from: https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/cocoa-powder-nutrition-benefits.

3. Mosley, M.2017. “The secret of why we like to eat chocolate”. BBC News. Retrieved from: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health.

4. Shahbandeh, M.2020. “Cocoa production by country 2018/19 & 2019/2020”. Statista. Retrieved from: https://www.statista.com/statistics/263855/cocoa-bean-production-worldwide-by-region/.