ci-bulk
Côte d'Ivoire (bulk cacao)
Côte d'Ivoire · Southern forest belt (San-Pédro, Daloa, Soubré, Abengourou) reviewed
Amelonadoadmixture
The world's largest cacao producer, supplying roughly 40 percent of global output as high-volume bulk beans grown by smallholders across the southern forest belt.
| Country | Côte d'Ivoire |
|---|---|
| Region | Southern forest belt (San-Pédro, Daloa, Soubré, Abengourou) |
| Growing region | Africa |
| Coordinates | 6.20°, -5.50° (approx.) |
| Elevation | 50-400 m |
| Producer | regional |
| Genetic groups | Amelonado, admixture |
| Traditional class | Forastero |
| Also known as | Ivory Coast, Ivorian bulk |
| Bean notes | Predominantly Amelonado-derived smallholder material descended from a narrow West African founder stock, increasingly interplanted with higher-yielding Upper-Amazon hybrid varieties; cotyledons typically dark purple. |
| Harvest season | main Oct-Mar; mid-crop May-Aug |
| Fermentation | Smallholder heap fermentation, typically 5-7 days; quality varies widely with handling. |
| Drying | Sun-dried on mats, tarpaulins, or raised racks at the farm or village. |
| Flavour | plain cocoa · earthy · low acidity · slight bitterness |
| Updated | 2026-05-22 |
Sources
- Motamayor et al. 2008, 'Geographic and Genetic Population Differentiation of the Amazonian Chocolate Tree', PLoS ONE 3(10):e3311
- ICCO Quarterly Bulletin of Cocoa Statistics — production data
- FAO — Côte d'Ivoire cocoa sector profiles