Reclaiming the Forgotten 80% of the Cacao Fruit
Cacao fruit
Here’s an eye-opening fact that most chocolate enthusiasts probably never think about: according to the World Cocoa Foundation, 80% of the cacao fruit, including the pulp and husk, is usually thrown away. The result? Twenty-two million tons (and growing) of agricultural waste is generated each year. In today’s world, where sustainability and circular food systems are more important than ever, cacao fruit presents a wealth of opportunities and flavor.
What is Cacao "Waste?"
Juice
Pulp
Husks
Marika van Sanvoort, cacao consultant and founder of the Netherlands-based Pacha de Cacao, with a farmer and cacao pods
“The global cocoa industry was never built to value the fruit, only the bean,” says Marika van Sanvoort, cacao consultant and founder of the Netherlands-based Pacha de Cacao, a social enterprise focused on cacao juice products. “Every year, millions of liters of cacao juice are lost on farms. In Ecuador, more than 70 percent of the fruit’s mass is discarded during post-harvest, simply because there is no infrastructure to collect and process it.”
She continues, “What we call ‘waste’ is actually nutrient-rich, flavorful, and full of potential. With Pacha, we’re not only collecting what was once left behind, we’re building a new value chain around it. One that is fairer, cleaner, and more complete.”
It’s a fact that while cacao beans drive the global chocolate industry, the surrounding pulp, often referred to as “baba” in Latin American countries, is an aromatic, tropical fruit in its own right. It's not just flavorful, it’s functional, and increasingly, it’s being reimagined by chocolate makers, chefs, and sustainability innovators outside of cacao growing regions.
Genvieve Leloup, a Swiss Belgian chocolatier and taster based in New York City and founder of Chocomotions, elaborates on the fermentation process. “About 20% of the pulp drips from the fermentation boxes and is not needed for the fermentation to occur. 80% is plenty for the process to happen. Of course, some cacaos are more ‘juicy’ than others, and it’s easier to get pulp from a cacao that inherently generates more pulp.”
This "extra" pulp opens a door to new income streams, especially important considering that more than 90% of the world’s cocoa comes from 5 to 6 million smallholder farmers, many of whom are paid commodity prices. “I think that if more people know about the possibilities of using the pulp in recipes in our countries, we may be able to create more demand for it and thus possibly generate more income for cacao farmers from a product that would otherwise be discarded, lost, or underused,” Leloup notes.
Finding uses for Precious Pulp
Caramels
Juice
Smoothies and Jam
Babamel caramel
Leloup herself has been introducing cacao fruit to new audiences. Inspired by its flavor, she began experimenting with “baba” in a range of confections. Her best-selling Babamel: cacao fruit pulp caramels are described as “honey-sweet and silky-smooth on the palate, bursting with fruit tang and creamy softness.” Other innovations include Babalade, a marmalade launched at Chocoa to rave reviews, and her personal favorite: the “Baba ganache,” used in truffles and spreads. “It’s pretty addictive!” she adds.
Pacha de Cacao
At Pacha de Cacao, van Sanvoort had a similar lightbulb moment. While in Ecuador, she tasted fresh juice straight from a cacao pod and thought, “Why is no one working with this?” She recalls, “The flavor was so vibrant and fresh. We started small, experimenting with fermentation, flavor balance, and shelf-life, always with the goal to keep it as close to nature as possible.”
Today, Pacha’s cacao juice is enjoyed in a variety of ways, as a morning energy boost, a mealtime thirst quencher, or even as a cocktail mixer. “It connects people to something real, something alive. It surprises people!”
Cacao Pulp Smoothie photo credit Dandelion Chocolate
Processing cacao pulp, however, is no easy feat. Ron Sweetser, Cocoa Sourcing and Quality Manager at Dandelion Chocolate in San Francisco, explains the challenge: once a pod is opened, the pulp begins fermenting almost immediately. “We source our cacao pulp from Hacienda Palo Santo in Ecuador. Not many farms process pulp as it requires specific and expensive equipment plus pasteurization,” he says. Capturing the runoff juice during fermentation is possible, but only if done with sterile, specialized equipment. Fermenters generally need to transfer seeds and pulp into fermentation boxes within four hours of pod opening, making this a tight window.
Still, where others see spoilage, Dandelion sees opportunity. Executive Pastry Chef Lisa Vega turns the pulp into a variety of unique creations, from the popular cacao fruit smoothie, which offers tropical notes of lychee and melon, to cacao fruit Gâteau Basque jam, frozen paletas, and even cacao fruit icing.
Finding Uses for Cacao Husks
Chocosol coffee and bars
And it’s not just the pulp being reclaimed. Michael Sacco, founder of Chocosol in Toronto, is finding new uses for the cacao husk. While cacao husk mulch and tea are already on offer (Chocosol sells its cacao husk to local tea makers), the company is about to launch a Cold Brew Mocha in collaboration with Guelph, Ontario’s Royal City Brewery. Using a 3:2 ratio of coffee to cacao shell grind, currently sourced from Ecuador and Venezuela, Sacco says the team is finalizing recipes and conducting tests for the 2025 holiday season.
Further plans include a Mexican coffee blend with ground cacao shell, accented with cinnamon or forest garden vanilla. “We like to not waste and be creative,” Sacco says, emphasizing that supporting regenerative forest gardens, which grow cacao, coffee, vanilla, cinnamon, and even mamey, is a central “passion point” for Chocosol, one that’s been driving the business since its inception.
By reclaiming the pulp and husk that have long been discarded, a new wave of makers and entrepreneurs is transforming chocolate from a commodity into a more sustainable, inclusive, and flavor-rich system. What was once thrown away is now celebrated, showing that innovation and sustainability can go hand in hand with flavor and new ideas.