(Original) South China Sea Old Forest
Cacao beans are known as the golden fruit that grows on the cacao tree and are considered the most delicious food god has ever given to mankind. The cacao tree is native to the rainforests of Central America, and as early as 3,000 years ago, the American Maya recognized and planted the cacao tree, who harvested the cacao fruit and peeled the nuts to ferment, and grinded the pulp, added water and peppers to make a bitter drink. After consumption, theobromine and caffeine effect can make people feel excited. In the 16th century, Columbus and the Spaniards discovered the plant and began drinking it. Later, Europeans added white sugar and developed a solid chocolate production process, which flowed to all over the world due to its peculiar and delicate taste, becoming a well-known high-end snack food.
The cacao tree is an evergreen plant of the genus Cocoa in the family Sycamore family, and due to its growth conditions, it is only distributed in the tropical climate zone of 20 degrees north and south latitude. Suitable annual average growth temperature of 22-26 °C, rainfall of 1400-2000 mm, high humidity, fertile soil ecological environment, 4-5 hanging fruit after planting, 10 years after the peak period of fruit hanging. Cocoa flowers and fruits grow on the main trunk or old stem, the fruit is long and large, oval-shaped, 15-20 cm long, about 7 cm in diameter, and the flowering period is nearly all year round. There are 30-50 seeds (cocoa beans) in the cocoa fruit, and the cocoa beans contain 40-50% cocoa butter, which can be made into cocoa powder and processed into chocolate. The cacao fruit is initially green and turns orange-yellow and reddish-brown when ripe. The flowers and fruits are very eye-catching and have great ornamentality. Europeans deep processed cocoa beans into chocolate pulp, and then added a variety of dried fruits or milk ingredients to make a variety of chocolate products, popular all over the world. As the demand for chocolate market rose, cacao trees were introduced to Africa. Cultivated in Asia, it has become the world's most expensive snack confectionery food.
At present, the countries with the largest production of cocoa beans in the world are Goth diva and Ghana in Africa, and the countries that produce cocoa beans in Asia are Indonesia, Malaysia and Vietnam. The suitable growth areas of cocoa beans in China include a few areas such as southern Hainan, southern Yunnan, and southern Taiwan. China does not have a cocoa scale planting area, at present only Hainan Xinglong Botanical Garden, in 1957 from Indonesia introduced a cocoa tree into a forest, every year normal fruit. Through 46 years of careful cultivation and management of this cocoa forest, the cocoa growth law in the Hainan environment was explored, which proved that the cocoa trees in Wanning and its south of Hainan can grow normally, and accumulated experience for future large-scale planting. In addition to using the cocoa grove as a specimen tree for visitors to see, the harvested cocoa beans are processed to make 11 kinds of chocolate series products, which are sold as tourist goods in the park. The Tropical Spice Beverage Research Institute is the only coffee and cocoa research institute in China, and the research work of more than 40 years has accumulated rich information, which is the technical force relying on the development of coffee and cocoa chocolate industry chain in China.
At present, the state has decided to build the world's largest free trade island in Hainan. Unlike other free trade islands in the world, Hainan has an agricultural population of more than three million, a vast rural area, and a relatively large proportion of agricultural industries. Hainan should vigorously develop tropical and efficient agriculture as its development goal according to its own actual conditions and domestic and foreign market demand. For China, most of the country is in the temperate zone, tropical land only accounts for 0.36% of the total area, obviously Hainan tropical land is precious. To develop the cocoa-chocolate industry chain, the lack of contiguous land is a restrictive factor. The countermeasure should be to cut down 50,000 mu of betel nut forests infected with yellowing disease and 50,000 mu of rubber forests that are aging and low-yielding and need to be renewed according to the principle of maximizing the comparative benefits of tropical crops and maximizing the value of land output, and plant 100,000 mu of cocoa trees in betel nut forests, or plant cocoa trees in betel nut forests and cocoa trees in rubber forests, or obtain 100,000 mu of land resources through land lease circulation, and develop the cocoa industry. Promote the development of drip irrigation facility agriculture, regulate the growth factors of smart agriculture, and achieve high-yield and high-quality results of cocoalin scale planting. Implement the operation mode of "farmer (farm) - scientific research institution - company". Actively publicize the long-term, active planting policy, rationally distribute the interest relationship between the upstream and downstream links of the industrial chain, and avoid the unreasonable situation of low yield of planting link and high yield of processing link, so as to facilitate the sustainable development of the industry.
Hainan Province betel nut plantations reached 1.36 million mu, the output of 900,000 tons, is the largest betel nut province in China, but it must be seen that the prospect of the betel nut market is not bright, the sales market is narrow, mainly pointing to Hunan. People in the region have historically had the custom of eating betel nut, but the risk of oral cancer caused by long-term consumption of betel nut cannot be ignored. In 2003, the World Health Organization and the State Food and Drug Administration of China listed betel nut as a first-class carcinogen. Although this conclusion is still controversial, it has attracted public attention and will inevitably affect the business prospects of betel nut. In the last decade, I have contracted a yellowing disease called betel nut cancer, which is difficult to treat. The price of rubber has been depressed for a long time, causing the rubber forest to lose control and abandon the cutting, leaving it abandoned, which is a pity. Therefore, reducing the area of betel nut and rubber and changing the breeding of cocoa is a feasible way to turn harm into profit, adjust and optimize the agricultural industrial structure, and develop tropical and efficient agriculture.
Cocoa - chocolate industry chain added value is high, the market capacity is large, the market demand is strong, the market prospect is very broad, relying on planting, driving processing, promoting sales; primary, secondary and tertiary industries linkage, comprehensive benefits are remarkable. Processing chocolate products from cocoa nuts, the process, process, equipment, ingredients, etc. are relatively simple, and can be made even under family conditions. Under the conditions of existing township facilities, as long as we strengthen the investment of talents, technology and funds, introduce foreign funds, and develop the chocolate processing industry in the townships and towns of cocoa planting areas. This is of great benefit to the revitalization of rural industries, the cultivation of characteristic industrial towns, the creation of jobs, and the promotion of poverty alleviation in poor townships and towns. At the same time, it is of great significance to develop the Hainan cocoa-chocolate industry chain to add tourism commodity (food) manufacturing to the free trade port, enrich the characteristic tourism commodities (food) in Hainan region, cultivate an international tourism consumption center, and promote the upgrading and transformation of tourism on Hainan International Tourism Island.