These snaps I have clicked near to my sweet home, Wayanad, Kerala, on 2nd Feb 2009The word "cocoa" is derivative of "cacao". "Cocoa" can often also refer to the drink commonly known as hot chocolate; to cocoa powder, the dry powder made by grinding cocoa seeds and removing the cocoa butter from the dark, bitter cocoa solids; or to a mixture of cocoa powder and cocoa butter
The cacao tree is native to the Americas. It may have originated in the foothills of the Andes in the Amazon and Orinoco basins of South America where today, examples of wild cacao still can be found. However, it may have had a larger range in the past, evidence for which may be obscured because of its cultivation in these areas long before, as well as after, the Spanish arrived. It was first cultivated by the Olmecs at least 1500 BC in Central America.
Immature cocoa pods have a variety of colors, but most often are green, red, or purple, and as they mature their color tends towards yellow or orange, particularly in their creases. The pods on a tree do not ripen together; harvesting needs to be done periodically through the year. The ripe and near-ripe pods, as judged by their color, are harvested from the trunk and branches of the cocoa tree with a curved knife on a long pole. Care must be used when cutting the stem of the pod to avoid injuring the junction of the stem with the tree, as this is where future flowers and pods will emerge. The pods (or the seeds extracted from them) are transported to the fermentation area on the plantation.
Hope this helps you to know about Cocoa fruit and its role in yummy chocolates
