cocoa
DESCRIPTION
biology of economic agricultureTRANSCRIPT
THE ORIGINS OF COCOA CULTIVATION IN
MALAYSIA
Part 1 Development and Economic
Considerations of Cocoa Industry
Introduction
Three decades ago, cocoa production was dominated by Ghana, the Ivory Coast, Nigeria and Brazil. Only in a decade ago Malaysia was recognized as the third largest producer after the Ivory coast and Brazil.
This is a consequence of the development policy of export-led growth and the role of the state in providing necessary forms of encouragement and technical assistance…
Three phases :
in corresponding to:
i. changes in commodity prices,
ii. the investment climate and
iii. the nature of political control in Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah & Sarawak
1st phase (1880s – mid 1940s)
as experimental crop, overshadowed by rubber and palm oil.
2nd phase(1948 – early 1960s)
as a corollary to the policy of greater economic diversification.
3rd phase (late 1960s – onwards)
as an important commercial crop after oil palm and rubber
The First Phase
• Cocoa (Theobroma cocoa) was probably introduced by the Dutch in the 1700s.
• Its earliest presence in 1778, found in the garden of a Portuguese widow in Melaka.
• Experimented as commercial crop by European planters in Melaka, Penang, Singapore, Perak and N. Sembilan.
• In Sabah, it was planted by natives, two or three groves of cocoa on the Segaluid River in 1886.
• In 1922, government of Sabah grew cocoa on experimental garden in Sandakan.
• In Sarawak, there were no further mention of cocoa.
• In Malay Peninsula, due to the lower prices of rubber, led to some rubber companies experimenting with newly available cocoa seedling on old rubber areas earmarked for replanting.
• Trial planting began at Temerloh and Kuala Lipis (Pahang) and Serdang (Selangor) with seeds from Sri Lanka (forestero and nicaraguan varieties).
• In 1934,at Federal Experimental Station (FES) in Serdang (Selangor), trinitario was planted in small test plot.
• In 1937, the DOA established new test plots in FES at Cheras, Kuala Lipis and Temerloh with seed from Java, Sabah and Medan.
• In summary, during first phase, cocoa was only minor importance to the economy because it was overshadowed by more profitable ‘industrial crops’ rubber and oil palm.
• Cocoa was still undergoing trials and required more care and intention.
The Second Phase
• The initiative was taken by colonial government through private sector to boost the cultivation of cocoa.
• It was a consequence of uncertain long-term prospects for tin and rubber industries; the strong demand for cocoa and misgivings about cocoa supply from the traditional producing countries.
• Provided with London finance market and investment from Cadbury’s contributed to the expansion of cocoa industry.
• As an integral part of the colonial government’s strategy after WW II.
• DOA conducted a survey of all cocoa trees to ascertain the total planting material in the country.
• Revealed the adequate number of trees to form the basis for crop expansion.
• There was a feasibility study of cocoa in Malaya, Sabah and Sarawak done by a researcher from East Malling Research Station, E.E. Cheeseman.
• Cheeseman’s report played an important role in the colonial government’s diversification strategy and as a guideline for potential investors.
His report were summarized below:-
1.Federation of Malaya was the most important of the three territories for cocoa cultivation because of its larger population, its well-developed transportation system and the existence of the plantation company structure with its capital resources and supervisory staff which could supplement the efforts of the DOA.
2. Cocoa was suitable as a smallholding crop and could serve very usefully as the cash crop basis for land settlement schemes in sparsely-populated areas. But, because of the farmers had limited land; it was dangerous to substitute cocoa for rubber (their main source of income). Cocoa needs technical knowledge and provision of central fermentaries.
3.In the Fifth Division of Sarawak was the most promising region for cocoa.
4. North Borneo (Sabah) had a first class andesite soils which could be used for cocoa cultivation. Cocoa also could be grown in a compact block compared to scattered districts in Malaya.
5. The Borneo territories had other disadvantage compared to Malaya- they had small populations and were hampered poor transportation systems.
6. All three territories were handicapped by the shortage of planting material although the Borneo territories were worse-off than Malaya in this respect.
• This report was well received by the government and was followed by intensified research into:
1. breeding and selection of superior planting material
2. trial planting on agricultural stations
3. plantation throughout the country
• Received well respond from private sector, example;
1. Harrison and Crosfield, Cadbury Brothers and Colonial Development Corporation formed a company known as Malayan Cocoa Limited to plant cocoa.
Benefit from this formation : brought together local plantation interests, an experienced manufacturer and the colonial government’s development agency.
2. Guthries in conjunction with Rowntrees (chocolate manufacturer) inter-planted cocoa with oil palm.
3. Malayan Cocoa joined forces with Van Houten and Zoon NV in 1955 to form the United Cocoa Development Company Limited.
• This phase also saw the promotion of cocoa as a smallholder crop.
• In the interests of a huge Malay peasantry, it was essential to emphasize rural development and increase the take-off from the backward peasant sector to the advanced plantation sector.
• With the direct intervention by government, land settlement schemes was introduced in rural area.
• In 1953, the colonial government established a statutory corporation, the Rural and Industrial Development Authority (RIDA) which was primarily orientated towards ’economic development programmes for Malays.
The Third phase
• This phase in cocoa cultivation is concomitant with the national government’s strategy for economic diversification and the ruling party’s ideology of Malay advancement in the capitalist sector.
• The formation of Malaysia in 1963 and the exclusion of Singapore in 1965 presented a new opportunity for the case of Malay capitalism.
• In 1965, the Majlis Amanah Rakyat (Council of Trust for the People) or MARA was formed, to replaced the failing RIDA.
• In the decade after dependence, economic condition for most of the population had been deteriorating.
• The mean income of Malay households declined from 68 per cent of the national average in 1957 to 64 per cent in 1970.
• Peasant landlessness continued unabated while the pace of land settlement in government schemes in the 1960s remained slow.
• The culmination of the first dozen years of post-colonial development came in the form of post-election race riots in May 1969.
• Aftermath of that situation, came a drastic reorientation of some government programmes and policies.
• The strengthened position of UMNO, the ruling Malay party, produced new policies and programmes on the economic front which were to have an important impact on cocoa cultivation in Malaysia.
• New Economic Policy (NEP) was formed in association with the Second Malaysia Plan for 1971-75.
• Two prongs of the NEP were :-1. The eradication of poverty of the Malays.2. To restructure society to reduce and
eventually eliminate the identification of race with economic function.
• The measures outlined for poverty eradication included land settlement for some of the landless, government technical assistance as well as productivity and commodity price increases (for padi) for the peasantry.
• Cocoa was introduced as a key cash crop in order to play an important role in the raising peasant incomes.
• A hybrid cocoa with superior yielding properties and tolerance to disease made it especially attractive as an intercrop with coconut.
• Research had shown that the two crops were complementary – coconut providing shade cover to the cocoa.
• The major advantages of the cocoa-coconut combination were:1. Both crops were economically useful.2. Field labour requirements could be easily regulated, less effort, less capital outlay and lower technical skills.
• The interest in cocoa in the 1970s was revived largely because of the prevailing world shortage of cocoa and the high market prices.
• Cocoa acreage expanded and increase in West Malaysia and Sabah between 1960 and 1976 .
• By the establishment of M’sian Agricultural Research and Development Institute (MARDI), the research and development of cocoa and coconuts had been carried out.
To summarize, cocoa acreage expanded in the late 1960s and 1970s, because:
1. in response to price incentives.
2. involvement of both private and public sectors.
3. fostered its agricultural development plans by the state.
4. techniques developed earlier during the rubber and oil palm, enabled the easy transfer of technology from the plantation to the smallholding sector.
5. political stability, the good infrastructure developed during the colonial period and the existence of professional bodies such as Incorporated Society of Planters (ISP) and East M’sian Planters Asscociation (EMPA).
• Other organizations were established: 1. MCGC – M’sian Cocoa Growers Council – to coordinate and promote cocoa research.2. FAMA – Federal Agricultural Marketing Authority – to promote the sale of cocoa beans and grading scheme.3. MCB – Malaysian Cocoa Board – to
promote and enhanced development of cocoa industry.
To conclude:
• The pattern of cocoa cultivation has changed rapidly over the past fifty years.
• Cocoa was developed first as a commercial crop during the colonial period by plantation and manufacturing interests.
• Development by smallholders took place after the Independence and was fostered by the state or govt.
• The plantation has come to play an important role in the economic development philosophy and plans of the Malaysian government.
Part 2: The cocoa tree -Theobroma cacao L.
• Cocoa (Theobroma cacao) is a tropical tree crop originating from the Amazon basin where it grows in the shaded rainforest understorey and can reach 20 m. The tree produces pods that contain about 40 cocoa beans surrounded by a sweet tasting pulp. When fermented and processed, the beans produce one of the most desired flavours in the world, chocolate.
• Cocoa seedlings have a single main stem that grows vertically to a height of one to two metres. The bud then forms three to five branches (the jorquette) that grow out at an angle as fan branches. Further upright suckers (chupons) emerge below the jorquette and grow up through the fan branches forming more jorquettes and further whorls of fan branch growth. In this way the tree becomes higher, forming several layers of jorquettes, each successively weakening and eventually fading out.
• The root system of a mature tree comprises a taproot up to 2 m long and a dense system of lateral roots in the top 20 cm. These roots spread out to lengths of 5-6 m forming a dense surface-feeding mat.
• Flowers arise from cushions in the wood of the main stem and fan branches that is at least two to three years old. Only 1-5% of flowers are successfully pollinated and form pods. Pollinating insects are mainly tiny midges that require cool, dark, moist habitats and breed in rotting vegetation.
• Even though only a small percentage of flowers are pollinated, the tree sets too many fruit to carry to maturity. Cocoa has a fruit thinning mechanism where the young fruit (cherelles) stop growing, turn black and shrivel but do not fall off the tree. This is called cherelle wilt and is often mistaken as a disease situation.
• The remaining pods take five to six months to ripen after pollination. Ripe pods also do not fall off the tree.
Ripe cocoa pods showing the cocoa beans
History and usage
• For many centuries, the Mayas in South America harvested cocoa from the wild for use in religious ceremonies. In Central America, the Aztecs used cocoa to make a thick chocolate style drink and cocoa beans were used widely as currency.
• It is not known how cocoa originally reached Central America but after the conquest of Mexico, cocoa cultivation spread to the Carribean, then across the Pacific to the Philippines, the East Indies and India.
• Cocoa also began to be cultivated in Brazil from where it was eventually taken to Africa in the 19th century.
• European nations gradually became aware of cocoa in the 17th century. When the Swiss developed milk chocolate manufacturing late in the 18th century, increased consumption stimulated the demand for cocoa that led to widespread cultivation.
• In the 20th century, production increased rapidly - from less than 125,000 tonnes in the early 1900s, cocoa has become a major commodity crop reaching a record 3,100,000 tonnes in Yr 2000.
• By value, cocoa is now the seventh largest food commodity traded globally.
Where is cocoa grown?
• Climatic and site requirements place cocoa in the tropical regions of the world generally within 15o of the equator. This region is predominantly underdeveloped and highly populated, and cocoa production has evolved with access to cheap and plentiful labour.
• Irrigation is rarely used and planting has been restricted to regions with reliable, year round rainfall.
• Cocoa is usually grown under remnant forest, planted shade trees or intercropped with other commercial crops that protect the cocoa.
• In Malaysia and Indonesia, cocoa is also grown in full sun, although shade is used during establishment. The height of cocoa is kept to about 3-5 m to make management and harvesting easier.
• Average yields are low, about one tonne/ha or less of dry beans. Harvesting has a high labour demand for a relatively short and often unpredictable season.
• After harvest, beans are fermented and dried by growers or at a central fermentary and then traded.
• About 70% of world production is grown by smallholders on a low input, low output basis. Typically, family or village labour is used at relatively little cost, trees can be individually managed and the quality of bean fermentation is usually assured.
• As a rule of thumb, one labourer is required per 2.5 ha of established cocoa in traditional production systems.
• Remaining production (about 30%) is on plantations from about 20 ha and upwards. Only recently have plantation companies running large-scale operations grow cocoa.
• Cocoa does not offer the advantages of other crops grown under estate style management systems. It does not require substantial capital expenditure on processing equipment and industrialised fermentation has generally compromised quality.
• Also, labour productivity on plantations is critical to profitability but there has been no determined effort to mechanise cultural practices. To be competitive with smallholders, plantation cocoa must achieve higher average yields and this requires higher levels of inputs for sustainability.
Environmental requirements
Temperature• The ideal range of temperatures for cocoa is minimums
of 18-21oC and maximums of 30-32oC. Commercial cocoa production is limited to where the average minimum in the coldest months is greater than about 13oC. If the absolute minimum temperature falls below 10oC for several consecutive nights, the yield is likely to be reduced. Defoliation and dieback occurs between 4-8oC.
• Although cocoa will grow above 32oC, the upper temperature limit is not well defined and shade cover will influence maximum temperatures in the cocoa anyway. High temperatures may affect bean characteristics and yield.
Rainfall• The distribution of annual rainfall for regions in
which cocoa is grown is 1,250 - 3,000 mm per year. The rainfall must be well distributed and any dry period should be no longer than three months.
• Annual rainfall greater than 2,500 mm may result in a higher incidence of fungal diseases.
• Irrigation is rarely used and information on growing cocoa under irrigation is limited.
Soils• Cocoa is grown on a wide range of soil types but
soils with moderate to high fertility are favoured since fertiliser inputs under traditional production systems are low. The main requirements are:– 1.5 m depth of free draining soil – good moisture holding capacity– pH range from 4.5 to 7.0 preferably close to 6.5
Wind• Attempts to establish cocoa without shade
often fail and one of the main causes is wind damage.
• Cocoa prefers calm conditions and persistent moderate wind can cause problems during establishment.
• Young vigorous plants can be bent over and new leaves can be broken at the axils.
How cocoa is grown?
Propagation• Seedlings are generally used for planting. They are
raised in nurseries where shade, wind protection, nutrition and irrigation are provided.
• Hybrid seeds are often sourced commercially but even with these the plants raised can be highly variable in growth and performance.
• Seed is collected from ripe pods and, if the fresh beans are planted immediately, at least 90% should germinate within two weeks. Planting of seed direct to the field is not practiced due to lack of irrigation and problems with weed and pest management.
• Vegetative propagation is used where selected characteristics are desired. The trees raised are much more uniform in growth and performance than those raised from seed.
• Various techniques including, rooted cuttings, budding and grafting are used.
• Cocoa presents special problems for in-vitro propagation and reliable, economic methods for mass tissue culture propagation have not been developed.
A healthy seedling ready for budding
Preparing rootstock removing bud patch
Bud patch removed from scion shoot
Tying budded portion after inserting the patch
Budding tape removed 21 days after budding
Sprouted bud
Seedling shoot above the sprout snapped back
Establishment
• Young cocoa plants may be field planted after three to six months. Establishment without shade is rarely successful so the shade must be well established prior to field planting. As well as sun protection, the shade reduces wind exposure and provides a better microclimate. Shade strategies include retaining remnant forest; planting temporary and permanent shade species and interplanting with species that also provide a commercial return. Shade removal is possible after three to four years. In many situations windbreaks will be beneficial or necessary.
• Planting density depends on factors such as tree vigour, light interception and the farming system.
• It may range from 800 - 3,000 trees/ha with about 1,200 trees/ha being common in Malaysia under permanent shade.
Nutrition
• About 200 kg N, 25 kg P, 300 kg K and 140 kg Ca are needed per ha to grow the trees prior to pod production.
• For each 1,000 kg of dry beans harvested, about 20 kg N, 4 kg P and 10 kg K is removed - if the pod husks are also removed from the field, the amount of K removed increases to about 50 kg.
• Soil and leaf analyses can be used to determine the nutritional needs of cocoa.
• There are some problems with leaf analyses due to the difficulty in sampling leaves of the same age and the influence of shading on the nutrient composition of leaves.
• Visual symptoms of mineral deficiencies are well documented and can be used as a qualitative guide to fertiliser requirements.
Weeds
• Weed control is mainly an issue during establishment - traditionally young cocoa is weeded by manual slashing along the tree rows or around young plants.
• More recently, herbicides are also being used.• When cocoa is mature and a complete canopy is
formed, heavy shading and leaf mulch inhibits weed growth so that only occasional attention to removing woody weeds is required.
• Weeds will be an issue wherever the canopy allows light to penetrate or there are paths provided for access.
Pruning
• Cocoa propagated from seed is pruned to develop the preferred structure shown in the picture. Pruning is mainly used to limit tree height.
• The first jorquette should be formed at 1.5-2 m. Further chupons are continually removed preventing subsequent jorquettes and restricting further vertical growth.
• Some pruning of fan branches may be required to maintain evenness in the structure and remove low hanging branches. The end result is the formation of a tree with the canopy at a convenient height for management.
• Vegetatively propagated plants have a different structure and will require different mgmt.
• There is little evidence of the value of pruning strategies to promote high yields. Mechanical pruning (hedging) is not practiced.
Pests and diseases
• High levels of yield loss to pests and disease is major problem for world cocoa production. The diseases of major economic significance are listed in the table (next slide) with an estimate of the annual production losses attributed to each (this list is not exhaustive and there may be others of lesser but still notable importance).
Major diseases of cocoa
Disease Region World Production
Loss Estimates
• Black Pod (Phytophthora) Africa, Brazil, Asia 450,000 tons
• Witches Broom (fungus) Latin America 250,000
• Frosty Pod Rot (fungus) Latin America 30,000
• Swollen Shoot Virus Africa 50,000
• Vascular Streak Dieback Africa 30,000
• Though over 1,500 different insects are known to feed on cocoa, only about 2% are of economic importance.
• However, when cocoa is introduced into a new area a previously unrecorded pest almost invariably attacks it.
• Mirid bugs such as Helopeltis are the most significant and widely occurring insect pests of cocoa, and cocoa pod borer is a major pest in Malaysia and Indonesia.
• Mealy bugs are generally not a major pest themselves but are a well-known vector for viruses of cocoa.
• In the wild, natural sowing of cocoa relies on animals such as rats and monkeys breaking into ripe pods and feeding on the sweet mucilage around the beans. Significant yield losses from such damage are experienced in almost all parts of the world where cocoa is grown and may well be 5 - 10% on average.
Harvesting and bean extraction
• Cocoa harvest is not limited to one discrete period but spread over several months and in some regions there may be pods available for harvest throughout the year.
• Typically, there are one or two peak harvest periods influenced by flowering in response to rainfall. However, temperature and the crop already on the tree will also influence flowering so that the yearly-cropping pattern can vary in areas with relatively uniform climate.
• On ripening, pods turn from green or deep red to yellow or orange.
• Only the ripe pods that have changed colour are harvested though the timing is not critical since under-ripe pods will ferment satisfactorily and ripe pods can be left on the tree for two to three weeks.
• After this, pods may rot and the beans may germinate inside the pod.
• Harvesting is by hand using machetes or knives to cut pods from the tree since pulling the pods from the tree can damage the flower cushion and tear the bark.
• After harvest, the pods are opened to extract wet beans and this can be done immediately or delayed for up to several days. This is also a manual operation - usually the pod is cut open and the beans are scooped out by hand.
• The placenta, which joins the beans inside the pod, is preferably separated from the wet beans prior to fermentation.
• Machines have been developed for pod breaking and bean extraction but have not been adopted either because of difficulty in separating the wet bean from broken pod fragments or because they have not suited the needs of cocoa growing operations.
Fermentation and drying
• Fermentation and drying are the last operations carried out on-farm prior to trading of dried beans. Fermentation is essential for the development of chocolate flavour (further developed during roasting of the beans).
• After extraction, the wet beans are bulked together and gradually heat up as a result of exothermic chemical reactions in the pulp caused by the activity of microorganisms.
• Initially, the mucilage is broken down and drains off as ‘sweatings’, after 36 - 72 hours the beans are killed and a series of chemical changes takes place inside the bean some of which continue during drying.
• Although chemically complex, methods of fermentation are simple. Fermentation is carried out in specially constructed wooden boxes, in heaps covered by banana leaves or in baskets.
• Much of the heat generated is retained by insulation but this is more difficult with small quantities of beans and a minimum of about 90 kg is required using traditional heap or box methods.
• The process usually takes from five to seven days to complete depending on the type of cocoa being grown and local practice. The mass of beans is turned or stirred at least once for aeration.
Fermentation boxes (800 kg capacity), Malaysia
• Fermented beans are then dried in the sun or artificially to a level that is safe for storage and transport (6-7 % moisture content dry basis).
• Artificial drying can cause beans to be very acidic if they are dried too quickly.
• Dried beans are hand sorted or mechanically sieved and winnowed to remove defective beans and debris.
• The "pod index" expresses the number of pods required to produce one kilogram of dried beans. A low pod index usually means good bean size and a saving in harvesting costs since there is a high weight of beans per pod.
• The "recovery" is the proportion of dry fermented beans to wet unfermented beans expressed as a percentage. It ranges from about 40% for under-ripe pods to 45% for over-ripe pods but is also affected by variety and season.