Efforts are underway in Fiji to revive the country's cocoa industry, one year on from Tropical Cyclone Winston.
A European Union-funded project, in partnership with the Secretariat of the Pacific Community, has set up three new cocoa processing units, each of which includes a fermenter and cocoa dryer.
The co-founder of a Fiji-based chocolate company, Tomohito Zukoshi, built the units and says they will provide a consistent A-grade quality cocoa for farmers.
Mr Zukoshi told Amelia Langford that Cyclone Winston took its toll on Fiji's cocoa sector but he remains optimistic.
Photo: RNZ
Transcript
TOMOHITO ZUKOSHI: At the time the cyclone hit, it wasn't good timing because that was in February and flowers had started blooming and small cocoa crops had started growing, so the cyclone took all the leaves away and then took out the roots. The big shading trees were all gone, especially the coconut tree shade...[Farmers] were nearly crying every day and our side - the chocolate processing - was the worst hit because we had invested so much of our manpower to do the pruning and clearing before the cyclone, then the cyclone hit and it just became worse and then we lost the entire 2016 crops so we didn't have any cocoa coming from our contracted farmers.
AMELIA LANGFORD: That must have been devastating?
TZ: Yeah, in the cocoa and chocolate industry we always keep some stock ... so we were living off our stock but our supplies were limited so we couldn't go into exhibitions...including the New Zealand chocolate and coffee shows. We couldn't sell our chocolate...because we couldn't guarantee the supply of chocolate.
AL: So how would Fijian chocolate taste compared to other countries' chocolate?
TZ: Fijian cocoa chocolate tastes like the hidden aroma of roasted almonds...a bit of hazelnut but the biggest one is the slight scent of the orchid, which is unique to Fiji chocolate.
The Secretariat of the Pacific Community says plans are also well underway to build a cocoa nursery housing 50,000 plants.
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