Mars, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and IBM have together unraveled the cocoa genome in a joint research project. The results are publicly available, for the common good of cocoa farmers worldwide, and to secure a sustainable cocoa supply.

For approximately 6.5 million farmers – most of them on small, family-run plantations - cocoa is a crucial crop both for their survival and the economies of their nations. However, cocoa production is regularly plagued by pests and diseases that cause crop losses of up to 80%. Other adverse effects such as drought due to climate change present cocoa growing regions with additional challenges.

In the case of crops such as maize or wheat which are also grown in industrial nations, unlocking their genome has led to significant productivity gains. However, with cocoa mainly grown in countries with limited research capacities, this work had not been undertaken yet, so that growers could not benefit from the ensuing achievements.

In order to remedy this deficit, Mars, Incorporated, together with scientific partners such as the Agricultural Research Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA-ARS), IBM and the University of California in Davis, carried out the sequencing and analysis of the cocoa genome and made the results available to the public domain at http://www.cacaogenomedb.org/.

The purpose of this research was by no means to genetically modify cocoa trees, but to enable the breeding of more robust and resistant cocoa plants that offer higher yields and have an improved water and nutrient absorption. The publication in the public domain ensures that the research results remain perpetually accessible and without patent, for further studies and cultivation efforts.

Back to top^