Muthomi Ireri
Climate change is putting immense pressure on the rainforests where cocoa beans thrive, but chocolate lovers need not worry just yet. Companies are exploring innovative ways to grow cocoa or develop substitutes to ensure a steady chocolate supply.
Around the world, from Northern California to Israel, food scientists are working on advanced alternatives. California Cultured, a plant cell culture company in West Sacramento, is pioneering a method to grow cocoa from cell cultures. By placing cocoa bean cells in a vat with sugar water, the cells quickly mature in just a week—a process that traditionally takes six to eight months. This method also uses less water and labor, making it more sustainable. Alan Perlstein, the company’s CEO, explained, “We trick the cocoa cells to grow and divide, and after reaching a certain level, we harvest and transform them into chocolate.”
Cocoa trees, which typically grow in regions close to the equator like West Africa and South America, are highly vulnerable to climate change. As these areas face rising temperatures and drying lands, scientists and entrepreneurs are racing to make cocoa more resilient to environmental changes and pests. They are also developing cocoa substitutes to meet the high demand for chocolate, especially in the U.S. and Europe, where sales exceeded $25 billion in 2023.
With the supply of cocoa under threat, some companies are looking to boost it through lab-grown cocoa, while others are creating chocolate alternatives using ingredients like oats and sunflower seeds. For instance, Planet A Foods in Germany has developed “ChoViva,” a chocolate alternative for baking, by combining oats and sunflower seeds.
Meanwhile, traditional chocolate companies like Mars are working to strengthen the natural cocoa supply. Mars has a research facility at the University of California, Davis, where they study cocoa plant resilience to help farmers produce stable crops despite climate challenges.
In Israel, Celleste Bio is working on growing cocoa bean cells indoors to produce cocoa powder and butter. This method promises to keep cocoa production stable regardless of climate change, attracting interest from major chocolate manufacturers like Mondelez, the maker of Cadbury.
As companies like California Cultured and Celleste Bio continue their innovations, they aim to gain FDA approval to label their products as chocolate, given that they are genetically identical to traditionally harvested cocoa. As climate change continues to pose risks to global supply chains, these efforts offer a promising solution to produce chocolate domestically and sustainably.
Dj Vnyash
