Cocoa and chocolate processing plant at the UDA

On November 10, in the food laboratories of the Faculty of Science and Technology of the University of Azuay, the inauguration of a cocoa and chocolate processing plant was held. This thanks to an agreement between the university and ELECAUSTRO SA that aims to train to improve the processes in the manufacture of these products.

The plan is to educate communities and students through workshops. Currently we are working with a parish called San Antonio de Paguancay (Zhucay) in Cañar, "since this is a cocoa area par excellence", as mentioned by Fernanda Rosales, Coordinator of the School of Food Engineering.

“We give them training to improve their processes, because they have small chocolate plants, but they have problems with the processes. What we did was enter with the university technicians and we began to give good manufacturing practices, time and temperature control, better roasting and refining of the cocoa. Next year begins a second phase that deals with formulations, development of cocoa-based products, tourism, environment and marketing ”, adds Rosales.

The project is called “Strengthening the value chain of the chocolate industry in the Zhucay compound”, and it was born from the fact that the community had the product but it lacked quality, so they wondered how to optimize the processes. Then they asked ELECAUSTRO SA for help, they went to the University, talked with Andrés López, dean of the Faculty of Science and Technology, and this initiative was born.

 “What we seek, through the union of the schools, is to make an integrated project to be able to diagnose what would be the best tourism routes in Zhucay or in the Chaucha parish, which is where we are also going to start working, so that people go, get to know the places and buy the products that are made there ”, concludes Rosales.

UDA Correspondent