On 9 and 10 May, in a workshop titled “Feedback on the breadfruit and hibiscus flower trials in cacao plantations”, the Cacao Forest (PCF – RD II) team presented the results of the breadfruit and hibiscus flower commercial production trials carried out. The workshop was held on the premises of the CONACADO and COOPROAGRO cooperatives in the province of Duarte.
Project coordinator Sebastián Cárdenas explained the limits required to ensure that volumes were sufficient to make harvesting breadfruit profitable in the context of Dominican cacao plantations. He also outlined the positive outcomes observed during the trial involving the planting and processing of hibiscus flowers, which has real potential to generate additional income for cocoa producers and can be more easily adapted to the local context.
The lessons learned from the pilot schemes carried out under the Cacao Forest project’s commercial production strategy for cacao-associated products have resulted in a series of recommendations and guidelines designed to boost the income of cocoa-producing families in the long term. As a result, they have helped improve the design of agroforestry systems in cacao cultivation.
The workshops were presented to 15 CONACADO producers and 12 COOPROAGRO producers.
