Chocolate production worldwide has shown a trend of accelerated growth in recent years, this in response to the great demand for this coveted product, not only for its aroma and excellent flavor, but also because it has been associated with with the benefits it provides to health due to its high content of bioactive substances.
The raw material for the production of chocolate are cocoa beans, whose world production in 2020-2021 according to the World Cocoa Organization, was 5,226 thousand tons, of which 18% is produced in America. Ecuador ranks sixth in terms of global cocoa production and is the main producer of “Fino de Aroma” cocoa, highly desired for its excellent sensory characteristics.
The two most produced varieties of cocoa in Ecuador correspond to the “Fino de Aroma” cocoa and the “CCN-51” which is currently the most cultivated, which is characterized by its high yield and greater resistance to pests. However, this variety presents a lower quality in terms of sensory characteristics compared to “Fino de Aroma” cocoa, being more acidic and astringent, in addition to not having fruity and floral flavor notes.
It should be noted that the quality of the cocoa bean depends not only on the genetics of the plants, but also on a key process that is fermentation, which plays a key role in the development of aroma and flavor precursors.
In general, in Ecuador, on-farm fermentation is a spontaneous process in which factors such as temperature, relative humidity and microbial contamination are not controlled, therefore, the resulting cocoa presents great variability, thus affecting a heterogeneous quality of the beans. obtained between each production batch and a low sensory quality due to inadequate fermentation, since at this point undesirable microorganisms can develop that could generate strange flavors in the product.
Consequently, the price of Ecuadorian cocoa in the international market is low, compared to the beans exported by other countries. This fact is mainly due to the inadequate post-harvest processes applied, which do not guarantee adequate quality of the final product.
Given this problem, the GIBIOM research group of the University of Azuay and the Faculty of Science and Technology have carried out studies focused on strengthening and improving post-harvest processes in the Ecuadorian cocoa production chain, where they have specifically worked on the fermentation stage. , with the aim of standardizing and adequately controlling the process, in order to obtain a cocoa of the CCN-51 variety with superior sensory characteristics.
At the University of Azuay, research has been previously carried out in which fruit pulps (banana and passion fruit) were incorporated during the fermentation stage, in order to provide fruit aromas and flavors to the grain, achieving excellent results.
Based on these experiences, the microbial diversity present throughout the modified fermentation process was investigated, for which DNA was extracted from the samples on each of the fermentation days and in collaboration with the TecBase of the Technological Institute of Monterrey (Mexico), a metagenomic study was carried out to determine which microorganisms are present in the process.
The knowledge obtained so far is of great relevance because it allowed us to identify that there are certain yeasts and bacteria that contaminate during the process and therefore give strange flavors to the cocoa, on the other hand, it was possible to identify the microorganisms present in the fermentation that have a favorable metabolic potential and can contribute positively to cocoa fermentation, these microorganisms are isolated and purified and are part of the bank of microorganisms that the GIBIOM laboratory has.
As a second stage of this research, we will seek to develop a starter culture, which consists of an adequate mixture of microorganisms that allows a more controlled fermentation process to be achieved, capable of guaranteeing a consistent and predictable high quality in the fermented dry beans, thus having an impact on in a significant way and with an economic impact on cocoa production at the local and national level. (YO)