Why Nutrient Replenishment:

Every “mt” of dry cocoa beans and its’ pod husks remove 129 – 143 kg of nutrients from the farm, and the only nutrient that can partially be brought back to a cocoa farming system is Nitrogen.  All other nutrients including the bulk of nitrogen must be brought back to the farm by the farmer either as (large volume) organic material or as concentrated nutrients such as fertilizer. If nutrients are not replenished, the soil will be depleted of nutrients, the farm will produce less and less and tree health will decline. It takes significant funding and effort to bring such soils back to high fertility, not only for the cultivation of cocoa but for other crops as well. The biggest single asset for a farmer is his land and the fertility of his land, whilst soil fertility is one of the major drivers of high productivity and thus high income. Nutrient replenishment is therefore necessary both for short and long term high Return on Investment (ROI) as well as protection and appreciation of the farm land asset.