Caracterização das sementes de cacau (theobroma cacao l.) produzidas no oeste da Bahia

Abstract

The southern region of the state of Bahia is the main cocoa producing region in Brazil and after the “vassoura de bruxa” disease that compromised a large part of production, alternatives are still being sought to overcome this problem. One of the advantages of planting cocoa in the Cerrado would be the possibility of increasing cocoa production in the absence of this disease. In order to contribute to local studies of seeds produced in Western Bahia, the characterization of cocoa seeds of the varieties CCN 51, CP 49, BN 34 and PS 1319 produced at Fazenda Est‚ncia Solaris in the city of Riach„o das Neves - BA was carried out during fermentation and after drying. The soluble solids content (ºBrix) was determined at the beginning of fermentation and the pH and temperature of the cocoa beans were monitored during fermentation, in addition to the pH fermentation after drying the fermented beans. Chemical and physical-chemical characterization was carried out for the samples collected in the initial hour, every 24 hours during the 6 days of fermentation and after the 5 days of drying. Monitoring the temperature and pH of the fermenting mass and evaluating the moisture content, water activity, pH, titratable acidity, ash and lipids, during fermentation and at the end of drying, reinforcing that the evolution of the fermentation process was efficient, when compared to the literature. Through the analyzes carried out, subjected to a drying that plays an essential role in the quality of the final almonds.