Hello everyone,
For quite some time now, I’ve been in love and fascinated with theobroma cacao, the plant. Whose seed was once used as currency in pre-columbian civilizations in South America I live in Puerto Rico, one of the places the Spanish conquistadors brought seeds and and started commercial production in the 17th century. Historical records show that along with ginger, cacao was the main agricultural crop at that time.
In that same century, the archipelago was hit by a hurricane that affected the crops. Because of food shortages, farmers had to abandon cacao. Almost three centuries later, generations of those original trees, (some people speculate that some, now naturalized, varieties are related to Venezuela’s porcelanas), remain hidden at old farms.
It is a fascinating story, but not the one we would like to read on history books and remember with nostalgia. Together with other initiatives, we would like to be part of the resurgence of cacao production in Puerto Rico.
Not any cacao, but one of the finest, social and environmentally responsible in the world.
I’ve setup a kickstarter campaign to help us accelerate the plans to bring back Puerto Rico’s cacao heritage and “reboot” commercial production. In addition to the traditional ways of helping us we also are accepting the most popular cryptocurrencies.
We've set up a series of rewards for different pledge levels, including final artisan bars, dehydrated cacao pods (for souvenir or educational purposes) , adopt-a-tree program, and other items that you may find of your liking.
We’re open to suggestions and any questions you may have.
You can find more details of the story and our plan at the official campaign page here :
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/yabisi/yabisi-kakaw-rebooting-puerto-ricos-cacao-heritage
