Dear Sir,

The world of chocolate is changing. Cocoa growers now have the opportunity to play a leading role in the industry by providing cocoa beans of high quality at prices to the grower that reflect this quality.  Xoco is a company whose mission is to foster this role by developing the market for gourmet cocoa beans. We begin by identifying fine cocoa trees, reproducing them, and selling the young trees. Then we conduct the post-harvest treatment, sales and marketing of beans.

Although I began my professional life as a medical doctor, I have had a long-standing interest in gourmet food and cooking. Ten years ago I co-founded Scharffen Berger Chocolate Maker, a gourmet chocolate manufacturer. Recently acquired by Hershey, Scharffen Berger today leads the US market.  At Scharffen Berger I focused on identifying beans with the best flavor characteristics and blending them to create the chocolate that gave us recognition among gourmet consumers and chefs. 

Bean quality is the most important element in making fine chocolate.  Both manufacturers and consumers are just beginning to understand this; even today the demand for fine cocoa beans outpaces production, and the demand is only likely to experience significant growth. It is key that the beans come from trees with certain characteristics (roughly those identified with Criollo and Trinitario varieties) and that they are then fermented and dried to the exact point at which they release the taste and aroma characteristics consistent with the making of the highest quality chocolate. Xoco plans to play a leading role in driving a quality movement among cocoa producers. We will offer trees for sale that have desirable genetic characteristics. And we will insure that this desirability is maintained by offering post-harvest treatment and direct sales of the beans. This will benefit everyone: Consumers will get better chocolate and will learn how to appreciate gourmet tastes and flavors, as well as the role played by growers in creating these flavors. Gourmet chocolate makers will be able to continue and expand the high quality business that sets them apart from traditional chocolate producers. And cocoa bean producers will earn significant and stable price premiums that will lift them out of the unpredictable and uncontrollable cycles experienced by commodity growers.