Researchers have found that in Cote d’Ivoire’s national park protected areas are converted to agriculture, mainly for growing cacao. The land conversion leads to a loss in biodiversity of primates. The articlementions that cacao farming can be done through shaded agroforestry, a technique that does not remove all the native trees on a farm. It provides better revenues for farmers, preserves habitat for animals, promotes soil and nutrient retention and—best of all—produces better tasting chocolate. “Cocoa production and biodiversity are not mutually exclusive entities,” the magazine quotes the researchers.

Land clearing for oil palm plantations on Jambi has made life difficult for remote forest dwellers. Photo: Iddy Farmer/CIFOR

(Bioversity International coordinates the Cocoa of Excellence Programme, funded through FTA.)

Also watch: CATIE: The end of chocolate