Status of Cacao Industry

in the Philippines

Joni S. Aborde
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Let’s Cacao Talk !

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Cacao
• Family – Sterculiaceae
• Genus – Theobroma
• Species - cacao

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 About Cacao
• Theobroma cacao, the
scientific name of Cacao,
literally translates as
“food of the gods” in
Greek.
• The name Theobroma
cacao was first given to
the cocoa tree by Carolus
Linnaeus –the Father of
Modern Day Taxonomic
Plant Classification.
• It is grown mainly for its
seeds known as the cocoa
beans which are used to
make cocoa mass, cocoa
powder and chocolate.
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Dried cacao seed or bean

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Major Cultivar Groups

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 • considered as the most prized, rare and expensive
1. Criollo variety
• native to Central and South America
• believed to be the the 1st cacao seed planted in
the Philippines brought via the Acapulco-Manila
Galleon Trade in 1670
• difficult to grow, as extremely susceptible to pests
and diseases
• beans are white to pale pink in colour and
recognized as a superior quality, less bitter and
more aromatic
• considered as the “Prince of Cocoas,”
• an ingredient in premium chocolates
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2. Forastero • a native of the Amazon basin
• the most versatile variety and most commonly
grown cocoa
• mainly grown in Africa, Ecuador and Brazil
• accounts for 80% of the world’s cocoa supply
• significantly harder, disease resistant and high
yielding
• beans are purple-coloured and mainly used to
give chocolate its full-bodied flavor
• have bitter taste, thus, often blended with
superior cocoas

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3. Trinitario • the hybrid of Criollo and Forastero
• combines the best of the two other main
varieties the hardiness and high yield of Forastero
and the refined taste of Criollo
• the predominant fine flavor cocoa and can be
found in all the countries where Criollo cocoa was
once grown including Southeast Asia and the
Philippines
• being used in about 10% of the world cacao
supply.

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Cacao Industry in The Philippines

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Brief History

• The first cacao in Asia was planted in the Philippines in 1670

• Commercial farms developed in the 1950s
• Production level reached 35,000 MT by 1990
• Production started to decline due to several factors such as
-weather and climatic condition,
- pests and diseases infestation
-aging trees
-decreasing world market price
-competition with other plantation crops such as banana
and palm oil.

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Characteristics

• consists mostly of smallholder farmers who supply medium-scale

manufacturers
• domestic production is insufficient; local cacao demand outweighs the
cacao supply both locally and globally
• exports are far less than country's import (imports amounted to 3,662
tons, while cacao exports amounted to only 512 tons, DTI Report, 2012)
• factors that affect cacao production in the country
-the lack of post-harvest knowledge, equipment, and facilities to
ensure bean quality for chocolate manufacturing

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• Despite its competitive advantage, the Philippine cacao
production at present only stands at 10,000–12,000 MT
from the 20,000–25,000 hectares (ha) of land planted
with cacao per industry estimate. The said estimate is
higher as compared with the figures shown by the 2015
Philippine Statistical Authority which was at 13,910 ha
only producing 6,020 MT.

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 Top Cacao Producing Regions in the Philippines

Source: 2017-2022 Philippine Cacao Industry Roadmap 14

Key areas of Cacao Production

Batangas
• accounts for 0.47 metric tons of cacao production as of 2016
• well known for its tsokolate tablea or chocolate tablets which are
considered one of its delicacies and is often used to make traditional
Filipino hot chocolate.

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Cebu
• contribute only around 1% of cacao production in the countryalong
with other Central Visayas provinces
• known for producing quality cacao
• there are currently less than a hundred farmer associations,
cooperatives, and individual growers planting on an estimated 2,000
hectares in Cebu, the province aims to have a greater share in cacao
production
• home to criollo or the “cacao bisaya,” which is a superior quality
cacao that has a strong, aromatic bittersweet taste and rich texture
• home to Ralfe Gourmet, The Chocolate Chamber, and Casa de
Cacao headed by Raquel Choa who is known for elevating Philippine
cacao-based products
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Davao Region
• According to the Philippines Statistic Authority's CountrySTAT, 81% of
annual production of cacao in the Philippines comes from the Davao
region.
• Davao del Sur, Davao City, Davao del Norte, Davao Oriental,
and Compostela Valley are the top 5 producers in terms of volume of
production in 2016
• There are also more than 20,000 hectares of cacao farms in the
region, and Davao City, amongst the 5 provinces, has the largest
area of 6,060 hectares
• The region is also home to one of the well-known cacao agri-ventures
in the country, Malagos chocolate.

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Six (6) intermediate products that can be derived from cacao beans:
-cocoa nibs -cocoa butter,
-cocoa liquor (tablea) -cocoa powder and
-cocoa cake
-chocolate confectionary blocks.

• Its diversified use, both for food and non-food, provides broader
market opportunities.
• As a health food, cacao is packed with vitamins and antioxidants
that make it almost a super food or a natural multivitamin.

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Cocoa-based products traded in the local and international market

-Wet cacao beans

-Ready to sow cacao seeds (seedling purposes)
- Cocoa nibs (beans, whole/broken, raw/roast
- Tablea (Cocoa paste or liquor, not defatted)
- Cocoa powder (not containing added sugar /
other sweetening matter)
- Cocoa butter, fat/oil
-Chocolates
-Chocolate Confectionery

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Major chocolate manufacturers located in the country

• Universal Robina Corporation,

• Commonwealth Foods, Inc.,
• Goya, Inc., and
• Columbia International Food Products Inc.

Most of these companies are situated in Luzon, with capacity ranging

from 20,000 to 36,000 MT of processed cocoa annually. Universal Robina
accounts 38% of the chocolate market, with Cloud Nine and Nips as top
selling products

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 Annual Domestic Consumption

Source: 2017-2022 Philippine Cacao Industry Roadmap 21

 Imports of Cocoa and Cocoa Preparations (million kg.)

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

Cocoa beans, whole or broken, raw
123 738 307 150 223
or roasted
Cocoa shells, husks, skins and
2,151 2,032 1,753 1,969 2,633
waste
Cocoa paste 6,080 5,434 4,522 640 579
Cocoa powder, unsweetened 13,284 15,024 13,872 11,120 13,340
Chocolate and other foods
11,645 12,453 12,711 13,939 16,655
containing cocoa

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia 22

 Exports of Cocoa and Cocoa Preparations (million kg.)

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

Cocoa beans, whole or broken,
299 196 127 440 554
raw or roasted
Cocoa shells, husks, skins and
20 - - - -
waste
Cocoa paste 121 41 265 245 138
Cocoa powder, unsweetened 313 663 812 21 15
Chocolate and other foods
784 863 786 1,028 3,002
containing cocoa

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia 23

 Philippine Cacao Trade Performance, CY 2014

Source: 2017-2022 Philippine Cacao Industry Roadmap 24

 Cacao Value Ladder

Source: 2017-2022 Philippine Cacao Industry Roadmap 25

 Cost of Production and Return of Investments (ROI)

Source: 2017-2022 Philippine Cacao Industry Roadmap 26

Cacao Production constraints

• wild weather pattern

• pests and diseases
• competition with other plantation crops,
• aging of cacao trees in major 3 production areas, and
• low productivity level.

Other factors
• social unrest
• low investments in postharvest
• limited production inputs

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 Constraints and Opportunities

Source: 2017-2022 Philippine Cacao Industry Roadmap 28

Source: 2017-2022 Philippine Cacao Industry Roadmap 29
 Government Support

• High Value Crops Development Program of the Department of Agriculture (DA);

• Philippine Rural Development Program of DA;
• National Greening Program of the Department of Environment and Natural
Resources;
• Coconut-Cacao Enterprise Development Project of Philippine Coconut Authority;
• Industry Clustering, Market Assistance, Trade Promotion and Shared Service Facility
Programs of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI);
• Market Resurgence Program (MRP) of DTI;

Source: 2017-2022 Philippine Cacao Industry Roadmap 30

 • Agrarian Production Credit Program of the Department of Agrarian
Reform;
• Mindanao Sustainable Agrarian and Agriculture Development
(MinSAAD) Project;
• Credit Program of the DA-Agricultural Credit Policy Council;
• SETUP, MPEX, and CAPE Programs of DOST; and,
• Research and Development Projects of the DA-Bureau of Plant
Industry and academe.

Source: 2017-2022 Philippine Cacao Industry Roadmap 31

References:
• Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Chocolate industry in the Philippines. Retrieved on September 10, 2019
from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chocolate_industry_in_the_Philippines

• 2017-2022 Philippine Cacao Industry Roadmap. Retrieved on September 10, 2019 from
http://bpi.da.gov.ph/bpi/images/PDF_file/Cacao%20Industry%20Roadmap%20-
%20Signed%20%20%20March%2010,%202017.pdf

Image Source:
• http://www.bing.com/images

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Thank you 

JRS Aborde

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