Guatemala
LACHUÁ
A conservation-focused group of indigenous producer associations located in a hill-studded, jungle-rich area of northern Alta Verapaz.
2023 Data - Product
Quality: Ultra Premium
Flavor: Strawberry, mocha, lemon zest & peanut
Fermentation Style: Box
Drying Style: Patios & solar dryers
Quality Practices: Temperature monitoring during fermentation, pH or sugar monitoring during fermentation, specific protocols for flavor & cut tests during fermentation
Hand Sorting: Yes
Certifications: Organic
Number of awards in 2023: 7
2023 Data - Planet
Crops that are used for intercropping: Banana, plantain, palm, citrus & timber
Environmental practices: Soil and river bank conservation
Organic hectares cultivated: 110
Average percent of shade of cacao farms: 38%
Distance of producer to facility (km): 4
Distance to port (km): 463
Ocean freight CO2kgs per MT (US): 49
Ocean Freight CO2kgs per MT (EU): 137
2023 Data - People
Community-focused initiatives: Training and technical assistance in cacao production, plot management & diversification
Trainings conducted: Farm productivity, ecological practices & cacao quality
Producers purchased from: 95
Female producers: 30
Organic producers: 95
Producers under 35 y/o: 18
Total # of producers trained: 70
Total # of female producers trained: 23
Total # of producers under 35y/o trained: 18
Full time employees: 3
Part time employees: 7
Part time female employees: 5
Average farm size (ha): 1.2
Average sales per producer (dry kg): 101.66
Average annual cacao revenue per producer: $249.42
The Lachuá region is home to a pristine cenote lake within a national park, which has been a protected RAMSAR site since 2006, and to communities of indigenous Q’eqchi’ Maya families.
Cacao Verapaz works in partnership with two smallholder associations located around the lake, ASODIRP and KATBALPOM. Together with three additional associations of other products like cardamom and chili peppers, they are leaders in creating economic incentives to develop and maintain biodiverse agroforestry buffer zones around the lake.
The communities work together to use sustainable agroforestry as a buffer, protecting the area from industrial palm oil development and other forms of extractive agriculture pervasive in northern Guatemala. The producers of Lachuá are highly professional and efficient; Uncommon Cacao conducted a cost of production study in this region in 2019 which found that producers in this region earn a 50%+ profit margin on their cacao sales, after including both monetary and non-monetary costs to produce cacao.
Pictured is producer Pedro Pa Beb harvesting a cacao pod
TERROIR
The cacao farms in the Lachuá region are planted amidst lush karstic limestone hills that rise up from the rolling verdant landscape. Planted in more recent decades with a combination of trees selected locally for performance and flavor, the Lachuá cacao is complex and has personality.
We love this cacao because of its unique citric acidity. Lachuá cacao combines tangy fresh berries with nostalgic coffee, nut, and chocolate base notes, offering a wide variety of compelling flavors possible through dialing in different roasting profiles.
The Lachuá region is home to a pristine cenote lake within a national park, which has been a protected RAMSAR site since 2006, and to communities of indigenous Q’eqchi’ Maya families.
Cacao Verapaz works in partnership with two smallholder associations located around the lake, ASODIRP and KATBALPOM. Together with three additional associations of other products like cardamom and chili peppers, they are leaders in creating economic incentives to develop and maintain biodiverse agroforestry buffer zones around the lake.
The communities work together to use sustainable agroforestry as a buffer, protecting the area from industrial palm oil development and other forms of extractive agriculture pervasive in northern Guatemala. The producers of Lachuá are highly professional and efficient; Uncommon Cacao conducted a cost of production study in this region in 2019 which found that producers in this region earn a 50%+ profit margin on their cacao sales, after including both monetary and non-monetary costs to produce cacao.
Pictured is producer Pedro Pa Beb harvesting a cacao pod
TERROIR
The cacao farms in the Lachuá region are planted amidst lush karstic limestone hills that rise up from the rolling verdant landscape. Planted in more recent decades with a combination of trees selected locally for performance and flavor, the Lachuá cacao is complex and has personality.
We love this cacao because of its unique citric acidity. Lachuá cacao combines tangy fresh berries with nostalgic coffee, nut, and chocolate base notes, offering a wide variety of compelling flavors possible through dialing in different roasting profiles.
2023 Lachuá Farmgate price
$2.34 USD
This is the actual price paid to the cacao producer for their product (typically on a per kg or per lb basis) when they sell it to the first buyer.
Farmgate price is often paid for "wet" or fresh cacao, recently harvested and scooped out of cracked pods for sale. Wet cacao loses 60-70% of its weight during fermentation and drying, typically reaching 7-8% humidity before it is sold.
Uncommon calculates farmgate price for each cacao supplier based on the specific weight loss conversion percentage provided to us by the supplier, and we report farmgate price on a per kg dried equivalent basis for all cacao beans we source.
Pictured is Roy Fraatz, Technical and Quality Manager at Cacao Verapaz conducting a training.
2023 Lachuá Association price
$3.72 USD
This is the price the exporter pays the association for cacao.
In some cases in our supply chain there is an organized group of producers that aggregate cacao and sell it to an exporter.
Pictured are Miguel Cuc, Anselmo Luc, Raul Quezada, Hugo Mo, and Jose Pop in front of the association's drying decks.
2023 Lachuá FOB price
$5.75 USD
This is the price paid by Uncommon to our partners for cacao transported and loaded onto a ship for export.
Uncommon then covers all of the costs of shipping, freight charges, insurance, import, domestic logistics, warehouse ingestion, customs and duties.
Free on board (FOB) is an international shipping term that represents the seller's responsibility for bringing the cacao over the rails of the export ship.
2023 Lachuá Average sales price
$8.32 USD
This is the weighted average price per kg for cacao sold to the premium & ultra premium chocolate makers who purchased it during this year from Uncommon Cacao.
Notable Awards
Flavor Profile
Strawberry, Mocha, Lemon Zest & Peanut
We believe that the difference between traceability and transparency is published and verifiable data for each and every step in our supply chain.
