Cocoa producers in Ghana and Ivory Coast to explore Anima fermentation to produce fine chocolate

The quest to add value to the chocolate produced by Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire, the two leading producers of cocoa in the world, has led to the establishment of the World Cocoa Initiative Competition (WCIC).

A preliminary event took place at the Bushman Café in Abidjan from November 2 – 4, with stakeholder participation from Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire, aimed at establishing the rules for the competition. The workshops were attended by several researchers from various backgrounds on cocoa cultivation, chocolate production and certification. Participants included Cocoa researcher, Albertus Eskes, Kristen Hard (the first female chocolate maker in the U.S. and CEO of Cacao Atlanta), officials from National Agronomic Research Center (CNRA) and more.

Participants agreed on exploring the use of Anima fermentation process to improve and standardise the production of fine chocolate in the West Africa region. Albertus Eskes, who developed the Anima fermentation process believes his fermentation technology can turn bulk cocoa into fine cocoa.

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According to Eskes, he developed the new technology because bulk cocoa is characterised by acidity, bitterness and stringency from the fermentation process while fine cocoa, usually made from single-origin beans, expresses more fruity, spicy or floral aromas.

The method was developed between 2015 and 2019, carrying out a total of 250 experimental and 250 commercial fermentations. Each of the Anima fermentations was controlled over time with a method of sensory evaluation of beans.

In Anima fermentation the processes are intensified, allowing to reduce its duration to 3 to 5 days. The end of fermentation is determined by the taste of the beans.
Anima dried beans are all compartmentalised and mostly brown or brown/violet. There are no light violet beans. It is notable that the beans from the same fermentation all taste the same, suggesting that 100% are well fermented.Anima fermentation itself is responsible for the elimination of bitterness or astringency , for the strong expression of sweet, honey, or almond and for a tasty persistence in the mouth . At the same time, it allows the expression of citric acidity, fresh and/or ripe fruit and varietal floral aroma .

Albertus Eskes talking about Anima fermentation

In Eskes’ presentations at the World Chocolate Initiative Competition workshops, his research suggested that the preference for beans and Anima chocolates usually varies between 8 and 10 points while traditional control usually have preferences between 5 and 7. The Anima method can be applied in small, medium or large fermentation boxes. It is a simple method that does not require input from outside the farm.

Albertus Eskes also used the event to talk about his other fermentation methods namely Tradima, and TropMix. While Anima and Tradima transform ordinary cocoa into high-quality fine cocoa without the Dutching process, TropMix allows for the addition of fruit pulps or spices during fermentation to produce flavor beans.

He highlighted two new cocoa by-products he has developed namely CacaoNuts (dried fresh cocoa beans) and CocoaPerfume (captured fruit aromas).

World Chocolate Initiative Competition was created by Alain Kablan Porquet (director for Cote d’Ivoire) and Eyetse Lorraine Ocloo (Director for Ghana) to address the challenges faced by cocoa-producing countries in Africa, with a unique focus on the best producers, in order to unleash the full potential of the continent. This chocolate initiative aims to create a framework for cocoa-producing countries to offer a global chocolate market based on product quality, traceability and above all a more inclusive value chain.