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Mandeep Bhatti

Aryam Teffra

Period 2

The Columbian Exchange: Cacao

What is Cacao?

  • Cacao is essentially chocolate in its raw, purest form, cacao is derived from the seeds (also known as cacao beans)
  • Is the fundament to chocolate products

What is Cacao?

Origin

  • The cacao tree was originated and cultivated in Central and South America.
  • Cacao beans consumption can be traced back to ancient Mayan in 500 A.D. and were later on developed for more uses (e.g. spicy drink)
  • Evolved in the Upper Amazon region in an area that now includes parts of Peru, Ecuador and Colombia.

Origin

Discovery By West

Discovery

  • First European to discover cacao was Christopher Columbus followed by Hernán Cortés
  • Late 15th century to early 16th century

Where did it go?

Spread of Cacao

  • Spread from South America into Spain via Colmubus' Voyage back from the New World in 1504
  • Later spread to France and then throught the rest of Europe
  • Eventually spread to the rest of the world via major trade routes (By 17th century)
  • Became a valuble good aboard the Columbian Exchange
  • Also spread into West Africa and the Ivory Coast for production purposes (16th century)

Old World: Acculturation

  • It was still served as a beverage when the Spanish first brought chocolate back to Europe. However, the chili pepper that made the spicy drink was soon replaced by sugar to make a sweet beverage. The sweetened chocolate beverage was a luxury that only a few could afford. However, by the 17th century, the drink became common among European nobility.

Old World

Dutch

Dutch

1828 marked the “modern ear” of chocolate making when Dutch chocolate maker Conrad J. van Houten patented an inexpensive method for creating a fine powder known as “cocoa”. The powder was then treated with alkaline salt that help the power the mix the water easily. The creation of powdered chocolate made it easier to mix with water, sugar and a possible combination of other ingredients to make chocolate a solid form. Many other chocolate makers began to build on Van Houten’s success to make a variety of chocolate products.

Production

Production

  • As the demand for cacao increased, more European countries such as France, United Kingdom and Holland started cultivating cacao in their colonies in the Caribbean, Ivory Coast of Africa and a few parts of South East Asia
  • In many chocolate-producing West African nations, and espcially the Ivory Coast, slaves (mostly children) were used on cocoa plantations.
  • Best grew in a warm climate near the equator

Profit

  • The Aztecs profited from their trade of cacao initially, but their fortunes were shortlived
  • European Countries such as Spain, France, and England considered cacao as a "cash crop"

Profit

New World: Impacts

  • As demand of cacao beans went up, demand of sugar also increased
  • This led to the increase of sugar colonies in the Caribbean and specifically a French colony known as St. Domingue.
  • Also the demand of African slaves increased as natives were dying off to diseaes, which boosted the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade

New World

Coloumbian Exchange

Overview

Cacao Role:

  • Served as a "cash crop" and brought good fortunes to the maritime empires of Europe
  • Contributed to the population growth of Europe by providing essential vitamins and nutrition
  • Was one of many factors for facilitating sugar colonies/plantations
  • A common desired good, even seen as currency in some states (Aztecs)

Sources

https://www.sfu.ca/geog351fall03/groups-webpages/gp8/history/history.html

https://www.scharffenberger.com/pages/the-origins-of-cacao#:~:text=The%20cacao%20tree%20is%20believed,of%20their%20diet%20and%20culture.

https://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Cacao

https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/whp-origins/era-5-the-first-global-age/53-the-colombian-exchange-betaa/a/read-the-columbian-exchange-beta

https://chocolateclass.wordpress.com/2020/03/25/cacao-in-early-european-culture/

https://www.history.com/topics/ancient-americas/history-of-chocolate

Sources

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