Chocolate: Facts and History

The word “cacao” derives from “kakawa,” likely from the Olmec language—an ancient Mesoamerican precursor to Maya. And “chocolate” is said to come from the word “xocolatl,” or “bitter water,” in reference to the bitter sipping chocolate revered during the golden age of the Maya people in Belize. Even the scientific name for the cacao tree honors this ancient fervor for all things chocolate: Theobroma cacao means, roughly, “food of the gods.”

August 18, 2020

Caribbean Chocolate History

Accounts from 16th-century Spanish invaders detail ancient chocolate traditions of the Maya people, including how they stood up to pour the rich, spicy chocolate from one vessel to another on the ground, in the process creating a thick chocolate foam on top—the most coveted sip of the drink. Hieroglyphics on Maya murals and ceramics depict this ritualistic pouring of chocolate for rulers and gods.

Belize has been called the cradle of chocolate, with a cocoa-loving history that stretches back thousands of years. Today Belize’s cacao farmers, mostly in the country’s southern Toledo District, cultivate the native Criollo plant, which is considered to be the highest quality cacao bean native to Central America.

Grenadian Chocolate

In the southeastern part of the Caribbean, Grenada, known as “The Chocolate King Of The Caribbean” It’s no surprise, that a place called the Spice Isle would produce some of the globe’s most exciting cocoa — and some of its best chocolate.

The story of Grenadian chocolate goes back to 1714, when cocoa trees were first introduced to the island. The industry grew to the point that, by the 1760s, Grenada was the largest producer and exporter of cocoa, responsible for about 50 percent of British West Indian cocoa exports. In 1772, Grenada exported 343,400 pounds of cocoa.

That concentration of growers and producers has made Grenada into what’s almost certainly the Caribbean capital of chocolate, with an industry that isn’t just world-class in quality but also decidedly tourist-friendly.

St. Lucian Chocolate

There is yet another island that that produces chocolate: Saint Lucia. While Saint Lucia is known as an upscale Caribbean island, it’s also become a destination for chocolate lovers.

Its located in the Eastern Caribbean, and has lush rainforest is ideal for growing cocoa.
Cacao (in the form of nibs or powder) is the bean in its raw state; after being roasted and processed, it’s referred to as cocoa. it is packed with antioxidants and has been shown to reduce high blood pressure.

Cacao trees thrive in volcanic soil, so the island has produced cacao for centuries on its mountainous slopes. Previously, the beans were shipped off to Europe and the U.S., but now Saint Lucia is keeping some of those beans for its own chocolate production.