(I) Five to six million farmers in the tropics who cultivate
the cacao trees from which cocoa is produced rely on
the sales of the seeds to feed themselves and their
families. (II) Cacao tree grows only in a narrow band
within about 18 degrees north and south of the Equator.
(III) They extract the seeds, often called ‘beans’, from
football-shaped pods and then ferment and dry them to
form butter and powder. (IV) The livelihoods of another
40 to 50 million depend on the long production road
whereby the cacao seeds travel from a farm to the
candy on store shelves. (V) In Ivory Coast, which
produces 40 percent of the world’s cocoa, such farming
accounts for a full 15 percent of Gross Domestic
Product (GDP) and employs 5 percent of households.