Today, we visited Sibö, a company specializing in the production of chocolate. We learned about the history of chocolate and a tasting of several chocolates. Despite the heat, I enjoyed the presentation. In addition to some of the chocolate being the best I have ever had, the presenter was hilarious. We heard a lot of stories and information about the chocolate-making process. 

We have been on a few coffee tours, so I have noticed some similarities between coffee and chocolate. Both need a unique environment to grow. We learned that chocolate can not be grown in Europe. The chocolate in Europe is imported from the Americas and Africa. The production process of both focuses on quality over quantity. Costa Rica is a small country, so it can not compete with the extensive production in other nations. A problem faced by companies in both fields is the hiring of workers. Ticos are moving away from the farms. The dream of a Tico is to work from a desk. Some of the educated want to help, but not by working in the fields. The pay of a farmer is not high. Benefits are provided, and usually foreigners will take advantage of this opportunity. Coffee businesses usually hire from Nicaragua. The Sibö presenter today mentioned hiring employees from several places like Venezuela. 

Similarities in production exist. Cacao and coffee have their shells removed. Once finished, they are fermented, dried, and roasted. Both coffee and cacao are sun-dried. We learned of alternative methods for coffee, but the sun is a free resource that allows for more to dry at once. Cacao needs to be dried slowly. It takes a few days to dry out in the sun. If the cacao dries too fast, the acetic acid will stay in the beam and turn the bean taste sour. If the cacao dries too slowly, the bean will get moldy and taste like dirt. 

After the Sibö presentation, we went to Riverside for lunch and a tour. There is a common goal of having sustainable practices in Costa Rica. This is something the owners of these companies believe in, even if it does not directly profit these companies financially. There is some benefit in that people like to know what they are having is fresh and sustainable. Sibö does not use plastic packaging like many other companies do. They use husk from cacao to make cacao paper boxes for packaging. The packaging is 95% cacao shell and 5% recycled paper. This is expensive, but they believe in it. Café Britt uses coffee skins and coffee wood they produce as fuel. Riverside uses compost to grow ingredients on-site, and the restaurant was built using the structure of the restaurant previously there. Most of the ingredients are grown at Riverside. Sustainability helps market these companies and improve the world around them.