Adioesmac or the “Asociación de Desarrollo Integral de Organizaciones Económicas y Sociales de la Microregión de Alta Verapaz”, is a cooperative of small-scale cacao farmers in the Alta Verapaz region of Guatemala. The cooperative is committed to sustainable and organic farming practices, and works to support the economic development of its members while also preserving the natural environment.
The cooperative has about 40 farmers each harvesting a couple of hectares and then coming together to coordinate a centralized fermentation. This particular farmer group was one of the first in Guatemala to learn modern fermentation techniques that have fueled the rise of craft chocolate in the past 20 years.
Perched on a mountaintop overlooking the extensive jungled hills of the Cahabón region, the association processes cacao using cascading wooden fermentation boxes and a combination of greenhouse dryers, raised bamboo decks, and drying patios.
This group’s first experience in fine cacao export was in the early 2000’s with Scharffenberger (the first ever North American Craft Chocolate Maker); in recent times, they were the first association in the region to export centrally fermented cacao to U.S. bean-to-bar makers, and have sold exclusively to Dandelion Chocolate through Cacao Verapaz since 2014. Dandelion calls these “potato beans,” and they are huge indeed, coming in at 46 beans per 100g. The association has continued to plant more cacao every year with support from the Ministry of Agriculture and various NGOs; most of the cacao planted is reforesting areas of “milpa” or corn and bean production, and children of the association members are starting to take over cacao production and processing for their parents.
We source these cacao beans through Uncommon Cacao. Uncommon Cacao is great because they publish transparency reports for each of the cacao producers they work with. Check it out below!
We currently use ADIOESMAC cacao beans for the following chocolate bars:
- ADIOESMAC 70% Dark Chocolate
- Peanut Hank 62% Peanut Butter Dark Chocolate
-Señor Hankito 70% Spicy Dark Chocolate
