ZORZAL – Chocolate from the Dominican Republic
ZORZAL, Dominican cocoa farming
The Dominican Republic is one of the world’s leading producers of organic cocoa. In the province of Duarte, ZORZAL cocoa is grown by 25 farming families. All are trained in organic and environmentally friendly farming techniques. Biodiversity is preserved and forests are restored.
ZORZAL cocoa grows in the Cibao Valley where the soil is rich and fertile. In addition to the 50 hectares of cocoa, the ZORZAL farm has set up a fermentation center and established partnerships with neighbouring small farmers.
Name : ZORZAL
Region : Cibao, province of Duarte
Country : Dominican Republic
Organisation : social company made up of 25 families of smallholder farmers
Plantation surface area : 50 hectares
Variety : Amelonado and Trinitario
Environmental action : farmers involved in reforestation are paid for planting trees. This helps to restore an ecological corridor of 200 km.
Protecting the fauna and flora
The company’s mission is to demonstrate that it is possible and economically viable to produce cocoa of the highest quality while protecting the natural environment.
Over the past years, some of the country’s forests have been cleared for monoculture. However, this exploitation of land poses a serious threat to flora and animals, such as the Bicknell’s thrush. Every year, this small bird migrates more than 4,000 km from North America to the Dominican Republic. But its favourite wintering grounds – the rainforests – are shrinking. ZORZAL has made this endangered bird the focus of its nature conservation activities. The farm is located next to the “Reserva Zorzal”, 70% of which is conserved and will remain %22wild forever%22.
The ZORZAL estate and its small farmers cultivate their cocoa in an agro-forestry system, forming a natural protection belt for the Zorzal reserve.
The company also supports reforestation activities aimed at restoring a 200 km ecological corridor in the northern chain of the Dominican Republic.