From Cocoa Tree to Milo

I have a favourite chocolate drink and it's Milo.

I have asked before, where does Milo come from? It looks like it's from the Nestlé brand and you're correct of you think do but the journey of Milo starts right on the cocoa tree.

Cocoa pods grow straight on the main stem of the tree, not on the smaller branches as is the case with mangoes and oranges. This is because the pods are extremely heavy and require direct food from the tree trunk. It's actually a good thing and the pods get to reap all the benefits from the soil through the tree’s trunk.

The seeds or beans we use are inside the pods and there is a lot of juice too. All that can’t be held by a foot or so above the ground by little branches. They would all fall off before harvest season.

The color of the pod shows you the flavor of the chocolate. When the pods are green, they are not yet flavored and we can't really consider them as ripe enough to use.

But when they turn yellow, it means they are filled with the natural sugars and are ready to contribute to the deep chocolate cocoa flavor that Milo and other brands like it has. I'm sure you also so another colour of cocoa in the video. There are some pods that ripen and actually turn black. Those are spoiled and are left alone to be discarded by the farmers.

With the good healthy ones, when the pods turn yellow and are ready to be harvested, they are cut open. They leave the beans to dry in the sun where the rich chocolate scent begins to come out. After that, they are ground down and used as cocoa powder.