The municipality of Tierralta is located in the macroregion of the Colombian Caribbean coast, in the southern part of the Córdoba region, in the Sinú River basin at the foot of the Paramillo National Natural Park. This natural park is an essential refuge for the biodiversity of the northern Colombian coast. This protected area has an extraordinary wealth of fauna and flora ecosystems due to its topographic and climatic variations.
However, its ecological stability is threatened by a series of human activities such as illicit crops and, more generally, the Colombian armed conflict that has deeply affected the region.
The countryside surrounding Tierralta is characterized by extremely high soil fertility, which is threatened by inappropriate land use and activities such as extensive cattle ranching, illegal intensive cultivation and deforestation for the sale of timber. In this context, the agroforestry model of cocoa cultivation is a compelling economic alternative that allows for the sustainable management of natural resources.
Tierralta and Valencia are the municipalities with the largest cocoa production in the department of Córdoba. For more than eight years, the local association of producers has been the protagonist of the rural economy of the region: it has been rebuilding the social and economic fabric in the communities affected by the Colombian armed conflict and today has 193 members.
The organization produces high-quality cocoa using a polyculture system and a well-organized model of community fermentation and drying facilities, located in different areas of the countryside around Tierralta.
The association responded enthusiastically to Cacao Disidente's proposal to develop a range of fine cocoa lots. This has allowed it to work closely with producers and fermentation plants to determine the production and processing standards for fresh cocoa from each cultivar in the region, in order to offer a reliable range of lots, each with a specific sensory profile.
