About us | CACAONICA

Our path

Our history

Cooperativa CACAONICA R.L. is a grassroots organization based in the municipality of Waslala, in Nicaragua's North Caribbean Coast Autonomous Region. It was founded in June 2000 with 69 members — producers with very small cacao plots and limited production volumes.

CACAONICA was born from cacao producers themselves, with the unwavering support of the German NGO Pro-Mundo Humano and the Instituto de Desarrollo Rural (IDR), which in the early 1990s began campaigns to recover cacao areas and to bring producers into cacao marketing.

In early 2004, with support from the Promundo Humano programme, CACAONICA made its first commercial shipments with Ritter Sport — the first container marked the start of that relationship. In 2011, after weathering an internal crisis, the cooperative opened a market for direct export to ETHIQUABLE - France, still our main customer and a strategic commercial ally. In recent years other buyers have joined, including Silva Cacao - Belgium and Chocolate del Caribe – Costa Rica.

To meet our customers' demand, we have also consolidated exports with other cooperatives such as la Campesina and Flor de Dalia.

Cooperative gallery

A visual tour of the organizational work, crop management and infrastructure that underpin our quality.

Productive and organizational life

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The cooperative's board of directors in session — Organizational work and collective decision-making sustain the cooperative's growth.

Young cacao plant in a renovation plot — Plantation renewal strengthens productivity and the resilience of the agroforestry system.

Cacao nursery with young plants growing — Nurseries make it possible to prepare healthy planting material for new growing areas.

Cacao pods on the tree, ready for harvest — Careful crop management improves quality from the origin.

Technical work in a cacao nursery — Technical assistance accompanies farming families at every stage of the process.

Cacao beans in the drying process — Controlled drying helps preserve the bean's aroma, colour and consistency.

Cacao during drying and fermentation — Each lot receives post-harvest handling to ensure traceability and quality.

Cacao drying infrastructure — Adequate infrastructure is essential to meet commercial and export standards.

Certifications

Our processes follow standards that strengthen commercial trust and the standing of our cacao.

Pequeños Productos - www.SPP.coop®

Visual evidence of the seals and certifications linked to the cooperative's work.

Rain Forent Alliance Nature People

Visual evidence of the seals and certifications linked to the cooperative's work.

Mission

We are a leading associative organization in the production, collection, marketing and export of cacao, working to improve the quality of life of our members' families and of allied cacao producers.

Vision

To be a sustainable associative organization, a leader in the production, marketing and export of fine flavour cacao.

Our values

The principles that guide our daily work.

Sustainability

We promote agroforestry practices that protect the environment and secure long-term productivity.

Cooperativism

We work by cooperative principles of equity, solidarity and democratic participation.

Quality

We pursue excellence at every stage: from cultivation to the marketing of cacao.

Community development

We invest in the well-being of farming families and their communities.

Fair trade

We guarantee fair prices and decent conditions for all our members.