Due to its high cacao production, contributing almost 80% of the country’s total production, the Davao region was coined as the Cacao Capital of the Philippines. However, there are still areas in the region that are not maximized in terms of production; this includes the province of Davao de Oro (formerly Compostela Valley). This is despite all the resources devoted by the national and local government, as well as development partners, to strengthen the province’s cacao industry. This is also happening even if data shows that there has been a continuous expansion of areas planted with cacao—some of which used to be forests.
Tag: cocoa
Study on Policy and Regulation for Sustainable Cocoa in the Philippines. CACAOmustahan. Volume 1, Issue 1. February 2023. Report highlights from SFITAL Philippines
Based on the 2019 data from the Philippine Statistics Authority, the country’s average production of cacao remains to be at 0.5 to 1 kilogram per tree per year. This shows that the Philippines is still far from achieving its Cacao challenge of producing 2 kilograms of cacao per tree per year. The achievement of this target does not rely solely on biophysical and environmental factors. The policy and regulations surrounding cacao production in the country also plays a huge role in obtaining this goal.
Monitoring and Evaluation of Sustainable Cacao Roadmap of North Luwu
The development of monitoring and evaluation systems is inseparable from the process of developing a sustainable cocoa roadmap. Each strategy outlined in the sustainable cocoa roadmap is broken down into interventions and activities that are practical and implementable. Each intervention has achievement indicators and targets that will be used as monitoring and evaluation tools.
CACAOmustahan. Volume 02, Issue 01. January-December 2023
Baseline study on the current farming systems and cultivation practices present conducted by World Agroforestry (ICRAF) Philippines for the SFITAL (Sustainable Farming in Tropical Asian Landscapes) shows farmers’ openness to adapt and practice cacao based agroforestry. Most of them are also familiar with agroforestry as a significant number of them are already introduced to good agricultural practices through other programs and projects of the government, such as the Rural Agro-industrial Partnership for Inclusive Development and Growth (RAPID Growth) Project of the Department of Trade and Industry. Most farmers surveyed also prefer developing a single-type agroforestry with one stratum consisting of two to three components.
Trajectories of Cocoa Production in Tshopo Province: Potential for Climate-Change Mitigation
The global demand for cocoa has increased. As a result, the area used for cocoa production rapidly increased. Africa alone produces over 70% of the cocoa in the world, with Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire being the main producers. Although listed as a crop that drives deforestation and forest degradation, cocoa farming has the potential to actively contribute to forest restoration. If practised in agroforestry and fallow or degraded areas, it can considerably contribute to biodiversity conservation, climate change mitigation, poverty mitigation, and other services. The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), which features a large forest in the Congo Basin (60%), has become a new hotspot for this cash crop. As one of the areas suitable for the development of this crop, which has been grown since colonial times, Tshopo province, DRC, is experiencing rapid increases in its cocoa-growing area. As such, our objective in this study was to track the trajectories of cocoa farming in Tshopo and determine their contributions to climate change mitigation through the restoration of degraded ecosystems. We described all cocoa development initiatives in the Tshopo province, along with their potential responses to climate change.
Carbon stocks and footprints of smallholder cacao systems in Polewali Mandar, West Sulawesi
Cacao (Theobroma cacao) is a commodity that plays an important role in supporting economic and social development. However, cacao production can also be a major contributor to carbon emissions, which has stimulated various efforts toward sustainable cacao farm management. There remains a gap in knowledge regarding the links between carbon stocks and carbon footprints, which can serve as indicators of environment “friendliness.” In this study, we investigated carbon stocks and carbon footprints in two cacao cultivation systems, agroforests and monocultural systems, and the biophysical aspects (biotic and abiotic factors) that might contribute to the variability of carbon levels. System inventories, soil samples, and farmer interviews identified the characteristics and management practices of two cacao production systems. Results show that cacao agroforests accumulated more carbon stocks than cacao monocultures, 134.4 Mg C ha−1 and 104.7 Mg C ha−1, respectively, while cacao monocultural systems had higher carbon footprints than cacao agroforests, 1914.4 kg CO2e ha−1 and 932.1 ± 251.6 kg CO2e ha−1, respectively. Canopy cover, tree density, and soil organic carbon were the biophysical aspects that showed a significantly positive correlation with carbon stock levels, while canopy cover had a significantly negative correlation with carbon footprint levels. These results suggest that cacao agroforests are more climate-friendly management systems due to their ability to maintain high carbon stock levels while producing low carbon footprints.
Modelling the spatial distribution of the classification error of remote sensing data in cocoa agroforestry systems
Cocoa growing is one of the main activities in humid West Africa, which is mainly grown in pure stands. It is the main driver of deforestation and encroachment in protected areas. Cocoa agroforestry systems which have been promoted to mitigate deforestation, needs to be accurately delineated to support a valid monitoring system. Therefore, the aim of this research is to model the spatial distribution of uncertainties in the classification cocoa agroforestry. The study was carried out in Côte d’Ivoire, close to the Taï National Park. The analysis followed three steps (i) image classification based on texture parameters and vegetation indices from Sentinel-1 and -2 data respectively, to train a random forest algorithm. A classified map with the associated probability maps was generated. (ii) Shannon entropy was calculated from the probability maps, to get the error maps at different thresholds (0.2, 0.3, 0.4 and 0.5). Then, (iii) the generated error maps were analysed using a Geographically Weighted Regression model to check for spatial autocorrelation. From the results, a producer accuracy (0.88) and a user’s accuracy (0.91) were obtained. A small threshold value overestimates the classification error, while a larger threshold will underestimate it. The optimal value was found to be between 0.3 and 0.4. There was no evidence of spatial autocorrelation except for a smaller threshold (0.2). The approach differentiated cocoa from other landcover and detected encroachment in forest. Even though some information was lost in the process, the method is effective for mapping cocoa plantations in Côte d’Ivoire.
Comparative proteomic analysis of non-embryogenic and embryogenic callus, somatic and zygotic embryos of Theobroma cacao L.
The induction, development, and maturation of somatic embryos in cocoa are subjected to numerous failures during the various development stages. Understanding the biochemical/molecular events governing somatic embryogenesis in T. cacao will help to overcome these failures. The present study focused on cocoa somatic embryogenesis proteomic variations with the aim to shed light on the constraints of somatic embryos during their development stages (induction, expression, and maturation). These were investigated using combinations of LC–MS/MS coupled with TripleTOF 5600 + and Orbitrap Fusion methods during cocoa (Theobroma cacao L.) somatic embryogenesis. Non-embryogenic callus (NC), embryogenic callus (EC), somatic embryos (ESN), and zygotic embryos (EZM) were used as samples. Sample analyses followed by bioinformatics research identified a total of 1762 proteins. The differentially expressed proteins (DEPs) were derived from NC (429), EC (301), ESN (911), and EZM (511) and classified according to ontological categories. The analysis of KEGG pathways in NC and EZM showed that they were mainly enriched in metabolic pathways and the biosynthesis of secondary metabolites. While in EC and ESN, they are enriched in endoplasmic reticulum protein processing. Based on protein–protein interaction analysis, proteins in EC and ESN were highly regulated and involved in environmental stress. On the other hand, proteins in NC and EZM, highly regulated were involved in energy metabolism. This proteomic study provides clues to understand the low rate of conversion to plant in somatic embryogenesis and helps to build a model for improved culture medium.
Successful grafting elite cocoa clones (Theobroma cacao L.) as a function of the age of rootstock
Côte d’Ivoire, the world’s largest cocoa producer, faces numerous challenges because the yield of orchards is low due to several factors including the non-use of improved plant materials. This work is part of ICRAF’s Vision for Change (V4C) project, which aimed at contributing to the regeneration of cocoa farms by making effective plant materials available to small cocoa producers. It essentially consisted in evaluating the effect of the age of the rootstock on the success of grafting to obtain a satisfactory quantity of improved plants in the nursery. The study was carried out in Adiopodoumé at the National Agronomic Research Center (CNRA). Ten elite cocoa clones from the “Vision for Change” project were used as scions. Top grafting was performed on seedlings of 2, 3- and 4-months used as rootstocks. The experimental design was a randomized complete block design with 3 replications. Data collection was focused on the grafting success rate and morphological parameters. The results showed that the grafting success rate is proportional to the rootstock age. Two months after grafting, the success rate was low. This indicates that grafting should eventually start at 3 months. This period could therefore represent a good stage to successfully graft and replant cocoa seedlings.
Drivers of cocoa agroforestry adoption by smallholder farmers around the Taï National Park in southwestern Côte d’Ivoire
The encroachment of agricultural expansion into protected areas has led to severe biodiversity loss. To promote sustainable agriculture practices and reverse the anthropogenic pressure, several initiatives such as the Cocoa and Forests Initiative (CFI) and the National Strategy for Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+), have been undertaken. This study examines the adoption of cocoa agroforestry by smallholder farmers in the vicinity of the Taï National Park (TNP) in Southwestern Côte d’Ivoire. A structured questionnaire was administered to 323 cocoa farmers to understand their practices and perceptions of cocoa agroforestry. Results showed that most farmers (95%) grow unimproved cocoa varieties with an average yield of 376 ± 36 kg ha−1 year−1. The majority of farmers (86%) use agroforestry practices in their farming systems, with pruning techniques being used by 82% and fertilizers applied by 27%. Additionally, 54% of farmers are adopting improved agroforestry practices or planting more trees in their cocoa plantations. Factors influencing cocoa agroforestry adoption include gender, the length of residency, the number of cultivated cash crops and the incidence of black pod attacks. These findings highlight the potential to leverage community knowledge in promoting sustainable agricultural practices and generate positive impacts. These results have important implications for future initiatives aiming to promote sustainable agriculture practices and biodiversity conservation in the region. By capitalizing on the adoption of agroforestry and leveraging socioeconomic factors, it is possible to enhance the conservation of the TNP and promote sustainable cocoa farming practices.