Close-up view of cacao seeds fermenting in a wooden bucket in Barlovento, Venezuela. The seeds come from cacao pods, which grow on the Thebroma Cacao tree. Fermentation, which converts the seeds' sugars into acids, is the first step in the process of making the seeds into cocoa. The fermentation process lasts from two to eight days and causes the seeds to develop their distinct cocoa flavor. The fermented seeds will later be dried in the sun, roasted, peeled, and ground.
Creative Commons BY-NC-SA
This item has a Creative Commons license for re-use. This Creative Commons BY-NC-SA license means that you may use, remix, tweak, and build upon the work for non-commercial purposes as long as you credit the original creator and as long as you license your new creation using the same license. For more information about Creative Commons licensing and a link to the license, see full details at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/.