Seeds Gallery EU,
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<h2><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Rå kakao bitar - de bästa antioxidanterna</strong></span><br /><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong><span style="color:#d0121a;">Priset är för förpackning av 10 gram av denna krydda.</span></strong></span></h2>
<p><span style="color:#000000;"><span>The </span><b>cocoa bean</b><span> or simply </span><b>cocoa</b><span> (</span><span class="nowrap"><span class="IPA nopopups noexcerpt">/<span><span title="/ˈ/: primary stress follows">ˈ</span><span title="'k' in 'kind'">k</span><span title="/oʊ/: 'o' in 'code'">oʊ</span><span title="/./: syllable break">.</span><span title="'k' in 'kind'">k</span><span title="/oʊ/: 'o' in 'code'">oʊ</span></span>/</span></span><span>), which is also called the </span><b>cacao bean</b><span> or </span><b>cacao</b><span>(</span><span class="nowrap"><span class="IPA nopopups noexcerpt">/<span><span title="'k' in 'kind'">k</span><span title="/ə/: 'a' in 'about'">ə</span><span title="/ˈ/: primary stress follows">ˈ</span><span title="'k' in 'kind'">k</span><span title="/aʊ/: 'ou' in 'mouth'">aʊ</span></span>/</span></span><span>),</span><span> is the dried and fully </span>fermented<span> </span>seed<span> of </span><i>Theobroma cacao</i><span>, from which </span>cocoa solids<span> (a mixture of nonfat substances) and </span>cocoa butter<span> (the fat) can be extracted. Cocoa beans are the basis of the sweet food preparation called </span>chocolate<span>, and of such </span>Mesoamerican<span> foods as </span><i>tejate</i><span>, a pre-Hispanic drink that also includes </span>maize<span>.</span><span>The three main varieties of cocoa plant are Forastero, Criollo, and Trinitario. The first is the most widely used, comprising 80–90% of the world production of cocoa. Cocoa beans of the Criollo variety are rarer and considered a delicacy.</span><span> Criollo </span>plantations<span> have lower yields than those of Forastero, and also tend to be less resistant to several diseases that attack the cocoa plant, hence very few countries still produce it. One of the largest producers of Criollo beans is Venezuela (Chuao and Porcelana). Trinitario (from </span>Trinidad<span>) is a hybrid between Criollo and Forastero varieties. It is considered to be of much higher quality than Forastero, has higher yields, and is more resistant to disease than Criollo.</span></span></p>
<p>A cocoa pod (fruit) has a rough, leathery rind about 2 to 3 cm (0.79 to 1.18 in) thick (this varies with the origin and variety of pod) filled with sweet, mucilaginous pulp (called <i>baba de cacao</i> in South America) with a lemonade-like taste enclosing 30 to 50 large seeds that are fairly soft and a pale lavender to dark brownish purple color.</p>
<p>During harvest, the pods are opened, the seeds are kept, and the empty pods are discarded. The seeds are placed where they can ferment. Due to heat buildup in the fermentation process, cacao beans lose most of the purplish hue and become mostly brown in color, with an adhered skin which includes the dried remains of the fruity pulp. This skin is released easily by winnowingafter roasting. White seeds are found in some rare varieties, usually mixed with purples, and are considered of higher value.</p>
<p>Cocoa trees grow in hot, rainy tropical areas within 20° of latitude from the Equator. Cocoa harvest is not restricted to one period per year and a harvest typically occurs over several months. In fact, in many countries, cocoa can be harvested at any time of the year.Pesticides are often applied to the trees to combat capsid bugs, and fungicides to fight black pod disease.</p>
<p>Immature cocoa pods have a variety of colours, but most often are green, red, or purple, and as they mature, their colour tends towards yellow or orange, particularly in the creases. Unlike most fruiting trees, the cacao pod grows directly from the trunk or large branch of a tree rather than from the end of a branch, similar to jackfruit. This makes harvesting by hand easier as most of the pods will not be up in the higher branches. The pods on a tree do not ripen together; harvesting needs to be done periodically through the year.Harvesting occurs between three and four times weekly during the harvest season. The ripe and near-ripe pods, as judged by their colour, 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 damaging the junction of the stem with the tree, as this is where future flowers and pods will emerge.One person can harvest an estimated 650 pods per day.</p>
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