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 Cacao, pronounced 'ka-KOW', is the raw, agricultural ingredient used to make chocolate. It is grown in various parts of the world along the Equator, where humid temperatures and jungle-like surroundings provide ideal conditions for growing this colorful fruit. In shades of red, orange, yellow and green, cacao pods sprout from the trunks of cacao trees, and cacao beans (seeds actually) are found inside the pods where a delicate, sweet, fruity pulp surrounds the cacao bean cotyledons (which later become nibs). Cacao pods are harvested throughout the year as they reach optimal ripeness, mainly from October though May.
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Most of the world's cacao is still grown on small farms that provide many families who are located in remote areas of the world with their economic livelihood. Once cacao is harvested, fermented and dried, farmers have as many as 2-3 weeks (as opposed to one day for limes and such) to get their dried cacao beans to market, via donkey for instance. This means that even a farmer located in a remote village, with few roads or other infrastructure between his family and the nearest town, can make a living by farming cacao.
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