The cocoa producers' association Jempe Bakau were awarded with public funds that promote rural development, Avanzar Rural, to finance the infrastructure, equipment and machinery necessary for an artisanal chocolate plant located in the Awajún native community of Shampuyacu.
© Conservation International
"We are very happy to have gone a step further. We don't just want to harvest the fruit. Our dream is to sell cocoa paste, cocoa flour and its derivatives in international markets. And maybe even win at chocolate exhibitions," said Warren Wajajai, president of the Jempe Bakau Association, who also mentioned that the plant is expected to process up to 5,000 kilograms of cocoa per year.
The business plan was presented to the evaluation committee of Avanzar Rural on June 21st and a non-refundable fund of S/ 125,000.00 was granted. "We will begin to invest this money in August when we will begin building the chocolate plant and purchasing other equipment like a roaster, a disc mill, a cocoa tempering machine, refrigerator, a humidity meter, supplies and others," said David Calua, project formulator for Conservation International Peru’s partner, Ecosistemas Andinos.
© Conservation International
The funding will directly benefit more than 40 cocoa-producing families from native Awajún communities in Alto Mayo, who have been working for five years with the support of Conservation International and its partners. "This chocolate plant is complemented by the first post-harvest cocoa module in the Alto Mayo basin, recently inaugurated in the same community. This completes the cycle of the production chain and adds value to the product, from selective harvesting, post-harvesting and, finally, the production of cocoa paste and its derivatives for the most demanding cocoa markets," added Ana Luisa Mendoza, Sustainable Business Manager of Conservation International Peru.