Cocoa Awards: Rewarding excellence in growing cocoa of origin (France)
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Cocoa Awards: Rewarding excellence in growing cocoa of origin (France)
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Category: Europe - France - Gourmet restaurants
- Gourmet restaurants
This is a press release selected by our editorial committee and published online for free on 2010-10-20
For its 2010 Edition, the Salon du Chocolat of Paris is inviting the general public to attend the International Cocoa Awards, the only competition of its kind rewarding the work of cocoa farmers and celebrating the diversity of cocoa flavours.
Inaugurated at last year’s biennial professional Salon, the event is doing overtime to show consumers how indulging their love for chocolate can improve the lives of the smallholder farmers who grow most of the world’s cocoa production, and in the process contribute to the conservation of cocoa diversity.
Not all cocoa beans are created equal. Their potential for making high-quality chocolate depends on their genetic makeup, but where the beans are grown–the mysterious ‘terroir’ effect–and how they are harvested and handled by farmers also affect the outcome. To reward craftmanship at farm level and provide recognition to established and emerging terroirs, the Salon du Chocolat has again teamed up with two international agricultural research centers, Bioversity International and CIRAD, the promoters of the Cocoa of Excellence initiative which supplied the entries to the competition.
No sooner had last year’s awards been handed out that cocoa-producing countries were invited by Bioversity to send fermented and dried bean samples representing the genetic and geographic origins of their region. Part of the sample was used by CIRAD scientists to prepare cocoa liquors that were characterized and evaluated by an international panel using standardized methods. The samples with recognized or interesting new flavour attributes were nominated for the 2010 Edition of the International Cocoa Awards and processed into chocolate by the chocolate makers Barry-Callebaut and Mars.
The 50 samples that made it through the Cocoa of Excellence selection process will compete in their geographic area of origin: Africa, Central America and the Caribbean, South America, or Southeast Asia and the Pacific. The jury of professionals and connoisseurs assembled for the occasion will score the cocoa, sweet, floral, fresh fruit, dried fruit, nutty, spicy and woody notes of each entry. The chocolates that best represent the three dominant flavour categories of their region will be singled out for recognition.
Participating in the International Cocoa Awards provides an opportunity for farmers to showcase their product and link up with manufacturers. But even the farmers who did not make the cut get something in return for their efforts. All the participants to Cocoa of Excellence will receive a detailed evaluation of their sample to help them improve the quality of the cocoa they grow…and maybe one day become contenders. The International Cocoa Awards will be held on 28 October 2010 and the results announced the next day.
Cocoa of Excellence is supported by Barry-Callebaut, Belcolade, the Cocoa Producers Alliance (COPAL), the Cocoa Research Unit (CRU) of the University of the West Indies, the International Cocoa Organization (ICCO), Mars and the World Cocoa Foundation (WCF).
It is also financed by the Common Fund for Commodities (CFC).
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