Ministry of Agriculture & Rural Development CARD Progress Report 013VIE05 Cocoa Fermentation and Drying and Quality Assessment in Vietnam MS3: FIRST SIX-MONTHLY REPORT August 2006 1 Institute Information Project Name 013VIE05 Cocoa Fermentation and Drying and Quality Assessment in Vietnam Vietnamese Institution Can Tho University Vietnamese Project Team Leader Ha Thanh Toan, PhD Vietnamese Institution Nong Lam University Vietnamese Project Team Leader Dr Pham Hong Duc Phuoc Vietnamese Institution Western Highlands Agro-forestry Science & Technical Institute Vietnamese Project Team Leader Dr NGUYEN VAN THUONG Australian Organisation QDPI&F Australian Personnel Neil Hollywood Date commenced February 06 Completion date (original) February 08 Completion date (revised) August 08 Reporting period First months to August 06 Contact Officer(s) In Australia: Team Leader Name: Position: Organisation Neil Hollywood Senior Microbiologist QDPI&F Telephone: Fax: Email: 617 34068643 617 34068699 Neil.hollywood@dpi.qld.gov.au In Australia: Administrative contact Name: Position: Organisation Michelle Robbins Senior Planning Officer QDPI&F Telephone: Fax: Email: 617 33462711 617 33462727 Michelle.robbins@dpi.qld.gov.au In Vietnam Name: Position: Organisation Ha Thanh Toan Director, Biotechnology R&D Institute Can Tho University Telephone: Fax: Email: 84 71 830604 84 71 830604 httoan@ctu.edu.vn Project Abstract The Government of Vietnam is focusing on high quality of Vietnamese cocoa and set a goal of having 10,000 of planted cocoa by 2010, aiming especially in Dak Lak province and the Mekong Delta, which is a priority region for CARD projects It is critical that Vietnam produces a high quality fermented cocoa that would provide income for Vietnamese farmers The best way to assure good quality attributes is to train the relevant Vietnamese scientists on assessment of cocoa quality and fermentation and drying methodologies The obvious choice for training are scientists of Vietnamese Cocoa Development team in Nong Lam University, scientists from the Can Tho University, and WASI, the official cocoa research institute, located in Dak Lak province In this project smallholder methods of fermenting and solar drying of cocoa will to be tested and adjusted to Vietnamese conditions and aspects of farmer adoption These methods will be passed to small farmers through extension and other appropriate channels In tandem with this, training of Vietnamese staff, in cocoa sensory and chemical analysis, at QDPI&F is to be conducted This will be done in the aim of producing cocoa of desirable quality attributes, which can then be monitored at the participating Vietnamese Institutes Executive Summary The project objectives for the first months and achievements are as follows: The first trip by the Australian collaborator was made in April-May During this visit the three collaborating institutes were visited as were Success alliance, Bent Tre Department of Science and Technology and some industry personnel Activities conducted and relevant factors noted are as follows: The purpose of this visit is outlined in the project document in Section 2.3.1 “Implementation approach and strategy” The purpose of the visit as outlined in this section was for the Australian project leader to: Visit the Vietnamese institutes and Industry personnel Meetings with SUCCESS Alliance and Department of Science and Technology, Ben Tre staff regarding their existing data on smallholder production and incomes as well as their existing recommendations regarding fermentation and drying methodologies Conduct baseline survey of factors such as: techniques re harvest, fermentation and drying of cocoa, farmer’s incomes and distribution of income, labour inputs, size of holdings and Industry factors such as transportation and marketing procedures Assessment of price and availability of materials required for fermentation boxes, solar dryers and solar hot houses Assessment of most suitable locations for fermentation boxes and dryers for on-farm trials Organization of time for training activities for Vietnamese personnel in the Australian Institute Finalisation of list of equipment and consumables needed to be purchased in Australia Participate in initial fermentation and drying trials These various purposes were achieved as follows The Vietnamese Institutes and Industry Personnel Can Tho Province and University Can Tho Province is not currently a large producer of cocoa and SUCCESS Alliance does not operate there either There was only one major farmer within the vicinity of Can Tho city This farmer operated in an area where several other villages and/or farmers did grow cocoa but, due to their small production (30-40 trees) sold pods to him rather than attempting fermentation and drying themselves The methodologies employed by this farmer were found to be similar to that employed in Ben Tre under SA and DOST recommendations These recommendations are of a high standard and a high degree of innovation by farmers was noted They need some fine tuning to achieve a West African standard The main problem was with difficulty in drying during the wet season In Can Tho they not have the benefit of extension agencies such as DOST and SUCCESS Alliance Farmers also suffer from not having a cocoa buyer in the province Cocoa has to be transported by bus to Ben Tre province for sale Nong Lam Province and University Nong Lam University were also visited Nong Lam was noted to have extensive facilities for future analytical work and a well established and trained sensory evaluation section It was also noted to have an advanced crop-drying facility The university also has its’ own plantation, with fermenting and drying facilities as well as plant nursery being used to produce cocoa seed and seedlings for sale WASI and Dak Lak Province Basic information regarding cocoa production in the Central Highlands and projected figures for replacement of coffee with cocoa were obtained during the visit to WASI WASI was noted to also have well equipped laboratories with suitable equipment for the conduction of fermentation and drying trials They also have an extensive plantation, exceeding the size of that at Nong Lam and would be a logical choice of sites for the conduction of some fermentation and drying trials as well as testing of hot house fermentations, due to their cool climate A presentation was given to local authorities to inform them of the purpose of the project Department of Science and Technology in Ben Tre and SUCCESS ALLIANCE These organisations provided the following information: Ben Tre Province is the most developed area in Vietnam for cocoa production, with a base of more than 3000 cocoa farmers, of which more than 100 were engaged in small scale cocoa production and processing in 2005 Estimates vary widely, but production was about 30 tons of fresh pods in 2004 This is a small, but rapidly growing, production base and it is vital to influence all stakeholders to adopt recommended fermentation and drying practices To date there are 2900 participating farmers in SUCCESS Alliance in Ben Tre, with four model fermentaries, 11 model farms and five nurseries established This is supported by a network of 72 farmer trainers, 10 DARD staff and SUCCESS Alliance field staff In addition ED&F Mann Ltd And Cargill Ltd Have buying stations set up in Ben Tre Figures of plantings and projected plantings by SUCCESS Alliance were provided by them and are given as an attachment A baseline survey report of SUCCESS Alliance participating farmers from 2005 was also obtained from them and has been presented Cargill Gerkens and ET&F Mann who provided information on their activities, the local industry and buying practices were also visited Information from Cargill Gerkins and Success Alliance is provided in a separate attachment Conduct baseline survey of farmer practices This activity was conducted in both Ben Tre and Can Tho provinces at local farmer/ buying point sites Can Tho province has only one farmer who conducts fermentation and drying Therefore the bulk of the survey was conducted in Ben Tre province The bulk of this survey was conducted in August and the findings have been presented as a separate report Assessment of price and availability of materials for fermentation boxes and solar dryers Construction of fermentation boxes and the first of the dryers were undertaken at Can Tho University A local timber mill was contacted regarding the construction of sets of fermentation boxes Four sets of four sizes for fermentation of 100kg, 50kg, 25kg and 10kg wet beans were ordered The total price of these 16 boxes was USD500 This was considered to be excessive for the average farmer Much of the price was for labour It is considered that, with the simple plans available, a farmer would be able to construct them himself, thus eliminating this portion of the price Timber thickness could also be reduced resulting in cheaper boxes One set of boxes was for experimentation at Can Tho and the other three for distribution to smallholder sites During the visit two sets were delivered to Ben Tre province and one set to Mr Vinh in Can Tho A large scale dryer, with a drying bed area of 3M x 4M was constructed at Can Tho University during this visit This size of dryer is much larger than that intended for smallholder farmers (2Mx2M) It was constructed to this size to accommodate the number of samples generated during fermentation trials where up to different fermentation treatments may be conducted at the one time Prior to the visit, availability in Vietnam of the polycarbonate material used was checked with the Israeli firm which produces it It was found not to be sold in Vietnam therefore an order was placed with the manufacturers and delivery organised to Vietnam The remainder of materials required, mainly tubular steel, was found to be readily available The total cost of this dryer was approximately USD800 A smaller unit of 2M x 2M drying bed was also constructed and the price was USD400 It was therefore decided that the use of tubular steel, for the framework, and associated welding costs was excessive A second visit to Vietnam was undertaken by the Australian collaborator and the QDPI&F drying specialist in August The drying specialist produced a design to optimize utilization and therefore costs of materials for the dryer design and this has been reported Identifying suitable locations for placement of fermenting boxes and solar dryers The one farmer, in Can Tho province, who ferments and dries his own cocoa, was selected for Can Tho In Ben Tre two sites were selected in association with SA and DOST Organisation of time for training activities Training on the methodologies for analysis of fermenting and drying cocoa were completed during the visit in April Laboratory staff were shown the methods employed for physical and chemical tests employed during these trials The dates for training in sensory and analytical assessment of fermented dried beans, to be conducted in Australia, were set The Australian project leader made arrangements for this training since his return from Vietnam Samples to be employed in this training were generated during fermentation and drying trials at Can Tho University and by obtaining local commercial samples from Can Tho and Ben Tre Province This training at QDPI&F was conducted in August Finalisation of list of equipment and consumables needed to be purchased in Australia The finalisation of materials and consumables was completed during this visit Most of the capital items have been ordered in Australia and either delivered or awaiting delivery from Australia This included the data logger, motorised mortar and pestle for WASI and oxygen probe All other items and laboratory consumables are readily available in Vietnam Participate in initial fermentation and drying trials The first fermentation and drying trial was completed during this visit The four different fermentation box sizes and heap fermentation were conducted Testing of the dryer indicated a good performances with temperatures of over 60oC being generated on the drying bed for several hours during the middle of the day This resulted in drying times of 4-5 days This compares well with the 10-12 days required using current smallholder drying practices A detailed report on these fermentation and drying trials is available if required Budgetary Factors With the project budget a few adverse factors have occurred Firstly, the polycarbonate material was held in customs for three weeks at a cost of USD1000 The main reason this happened was that the material was sent directly from Israel and problems were encountered with locating the original invoice by customs This had to be taken from the amount allocated for fermenting boxes and solar dryer construction Secondly materials and labour costs were higher than expected There have been savings in areas such as airfares and capital items purchased A submission, separate to this document, will have to be made to CARD for a reallocation of monies within the budget Introduction & Background Due to a very strong cocoa grinding industry and growing consumption, there is a lack of properly fermented cocoa in the Asia Pacific region Much of the fermented cocoa is currently being important from West Africa Vietnam has the capacity to fill at least part of this supply need, but it is critical that cocoa produced is comparable to best quality, West African cocoa The Vietnamese government has an aim of increasing cocoa production especially in the Western Highlands and Mekong Delta regions It is intended that the Mekong Delta area, using smallholder farmers, will be the site of the bulk of new plantings Currently there are 2700ha of cocoa planted in this region In the Mekong Delta area, the majority of cocoa is in Ben Tre Province This is a neighbouring province of Can Tho, where Can Tho University and the proponent are situated Ben Tre province is also being promoted by the central government as a pioneering province for cocoa development in the Mekong Delta region Cocoa development activities have strong support from the local MARD (Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development) branch Due to the fact that cocoa cultivation is very new in Vietnam, there is little expertise in cocoa quality in any of Vietnam’s academic and research organizations A Cocoa Development team from Nong Lam University is the most knowledgeable in many aspects of cocoa, especially in agronomic issues related to the establishment of the crop Can Tho University is adjacent to Ben Tre province and WASI (Western Highlands Agricultural Science Institute) can service the cocoa industry in the Western Highlands WASI is also the official Vietnamese cocoa research institution mandated by Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) Therefore these three institutes were included for participation in the project The project aims include addressing capacity building in all aspects of cocoa processing and quality assessment in these Institutions The project aims include studies of methods of optimising the processing of cocoa, especially in regard to harvesting and fermentation and drying procedures Dak Lak, because of its’ cooler climate, has separate requirements regarding fermentation and drying from the other two provinces This aim, it is hoped, will result in premium prices for cocoa Once methodologies have been developed for a range of harvest sizes, adaptive, on-farm trials will be established These trials will involve the distribution of dryers and fermenting boxes to selected smallholders in Can Tho, Ben Tre and Dak Lak On-farm sites are then to be monitored at intervals to note factors such as; he manner in which the procedures are adopted and perform, the quality of product compared to that obtained in other countries and the rest of Vietnam, maintenance problems which may occur and the benefits to family members, including gender issues such as, labour reduction and income effects These trials would need to be undertaken over at least a one-year period to adequately assess performance, maintenance and any other associated problems with the methodologies, which may be encountered in different seasons With a successful conduct and outcome from the on-farm trials, extension activities would then be undertaken This could be in the form of booklets, production of simple plans for fermenting boxes and dryer construction, local media reports, and dissemination via extension officers within relevant Vietnamese agricultural agencies and with training projects such as SUCCESS Alliance (SA) For cocoa quality evaluation, staff from the three participating institutes will receive training in physical, chemical and sensory evaluation of cocoa They will also receive training in the conduct of fermentation and drying trials In this manner, capacity building of the participating institutions will be implemented Progress to Date 5.1 Implementation highlights The project objectives for the first months and achievements against contract and proposal activity log frames are as follows: Contract and proposal activity 1: Contract signing Status; Completed Project logframe activity 2.1: Visit to Vietnam of Australian program leader for initiation of project logframe activities 2.2-2.6 This first visit was made in April 2006 Project logframe activity 2.2 Collection of baseline data re current industry and Institute capacities: This activity proved difficult to achieve especially in regard to smallholder practices It was not realised prior to this trip that a cocoa industry in Can Tho province, where the leading Vietnamese institute is based, is practically non-existent In the whole province there are possibly a dozen farmers who have small quantities of trees and not ferment and dry their own cocoa because there are insufficient quantities to so Only one farmer exists in Can Tho who grows sufficient cocoa to ferment and purchases pods from the remaining farmers Baseline information regarding prices paid for pods and prices received for fermented/dried cocoa were obtained from him This was also done at several sites in Ben Tre province where considerably more farmers exist However collection of this basic data was not sufficient to provide information regarding labour inputs, gender issues and incomes received It had been hoped that such data could be obtained from Success Alliance and MARD but this proved not to be the case Time constraints, distances involved and the need to initiate other activities meant that the collection of base line data on farmer practices had to be put on hold On return to Australia, the program leader organised the structuring of a detailed questionnaire to be distributed in Ben Tre During a second visit in August this questionnaire was taken to 50 smallholder sites in Ben Tre and data collected This analysed data (Project log frame activity 2.3) is presented as output of the contract Table of Milestones and is noted as having been delivered late It is asked that the results for Ben Tre province be considered typical of smallholder situations in Vietnam and the Ben Tre data be considered sufficient for fulfilment of output Project logframe activity 2.4: Each of the collaborating Vietnamese institutes was visited during the April visit and the laboratories of each of the three institutes noted to have the basic equipment necessary for the conduct of fermentation and drying trials However it was found that Can Tho University, where most of the fermentation and drying trials were to be conducted, did not have ready access to sufficient cocoa for these trials, nor it did it have any fermentation or drying facilities in existence Project logframe activity 2.5: Initiation of construction of fermentation boxes, solar dryers and hot houses: Four each of four sizes of fermentation boxes (100kg, 50kg, 25kg and 10kg) were constructed during this visit These were distributed as follows; one set for CTU for fermentation and drying trials and one set for the single major farmer in Can Tho province Two sets were sent to Department of Science and Technology in Ben Tre (DOST) for distribution to two smallholder sites in Ben Tre, selected in consultation with DOST and SA This activity was completed apart from the fact there was insufficient time for construction of a set at WASI Hot houses are meant for the conduction of fermentations in the cooler climate of Western Highlands so hot house construction was not initiated either A larger solar dryer and smaller one, of the size meant for farmers, were constructed at CTU The larger dryer at CTU was built to handle multiple samples of beans from various treatments in the fermentation trials Project logframe activity 2.6: Initiation of drying trials: This was conducted in conjunction with the fermentation trials and favourable drying rates of 4-5 days noted (This compares with 10-12 days, or longer, using current smallholder methods) Project logframe activity 2.7: Initiation of fermentation trials This was conducted at CTU but proved problematic for a number of reasons Firstly, pods can not be obtained in sufficient numbers in Can Tho province and a trip, costing fuel and time, had to be made to Ben Tre to purchase sufficient pods Secondly, during the breaking of pods, the beans usually receive an inoculation of microorganisms from fruit flies associated with the crop During breaking of the pods at CTU, this inoculation did not occur and all but one of fermentation treatments did not ferment properly This does not mean that future fermentation trials can’t be conducted at Can Tho More attention will need to be placed on braking pods in an area where natural inoculation, from fruit flies, will occur Also when pods are purchased, in Ben Tre, they are invariably at different stages of pod storage rather than fresh pods Pod storage trials, where fresh beans, as opposed to those already subjected to pod storage, will not be able to be carried out at CTU It is suggested that the most suitable site to conduct these trials is at WASI as they have substantial areas of land under cocoa cultivation It is proposed that this is done at WASI during the Australian collaborators third visit in December The trials, using hot houses to elevate temperatures, will also be conducted at WASI Hot house trials are not necessary for the Mekong region as ambient temperatures are sufficiently high Project logframe activity 2.8: Collection of samples of cocoa from local sources and fermentation trials for inclusion in training at QDPI&F This was done successfully with commercial samples from Can Tho, Ben Tre, WASI and the one fermentation which worked at CTU, collected and made into liquors at NLU Project logframe activity 2.9 Purchase in Australia and delivery of items not readily accessible in Vietnam This has been largely achieved with polycarbonate sheeting and data loggers purchased and delivered An oxygen probe has been purchased but not delivered to Vietnam at time of report (done since) A mortar and pestle has been ordered from a UK firm in April but we are still waiting delivery to QDPI&F at time of report (since arrived and delivered to Vietnam) A problem did occur with getting the polycarbonate sheeting past customs It was delivered directly from Israel and problems encountered with obtaining the correct invoices This resulted in it being held in customs for three weeks with a resultant USD1000 storage fee being applied A roasting oven for WASI was found not to be necessary to purchase Project logframe activity 3.1 and 3.2: Training in sensory, analytical and biometry procedures at QDPI&F for Vietnamese staff This took place in August, associated training notes can be provided if requested It took place month later than planned due to a need to install up to date analytical equipment at QDPI&F For this activity, Nong Lam University nominated a student already in Brisbane, thus saving an airfare This airfare was then used to bring a staff member from WASI This therefore negates the need for Project logframe activity 6.1 Project logframe activity 3.3 and 4.1 Establishment of taste panels and analytical procedures at CTU and NLU These have not happened at time of report, as the training was only completed at the end of August NLU however, does already have an established sensory section Project logframe activity 8.1: Visit to Vietnam of Australian collaborator and QDPI&F drying specialist This was undertaken in August and suggested changes to dryer design made These suggested changes, to optimise utilization of materials and therefore reduce costs for a given size dryer, are provided in an attachment 5.2 Smallholder Benefits Cocoa, properly fermented and dried, and therefore, of good flavor attributes, can fetch a premium between 100-200 USD/tonne extra, to the usual Southeast Asian bean price This means that, if this project were successful in establishing a high quality standard, Vietnamese smallholders would earn an additional 1-2 million USD per year once the foreseen target, of 10.000 in production by 2010, is reached For the Mekong Delta region, there is the potential of an additional amount of 1.8-3.6 million USD that would be earned by smallholder cocoa growers Due to similar rainfall, development of methodologies for the Mekong should be transferable to the Central Coast if cocoa production was initiated there A short survey of cocoa farmers at Ben Tre province, in 2004, demonstrated that cocoa trees, within years of planting, could give 50kg of cocoa bean per month/ha The yield increases to 200kg cocoa bean/month/ha for year old trees At the present price (21,000 VND/kg of fermented bean) farmers could earn 3.6 billion Vietnamese Dong/month/ha (or 235 USD/month/ha) for good quality cocoa 5.3 Capacity Building Each of the Vietnamese Institutes need to be able able to conduct fermentation and drying trials involving chemical and physical tests of the fermenting beans, the beans during drying and then the fully dried end product Testing of fully dried beans requires sensory evaluation as well To this properly requires the relevant equipment and trained staff The project will provide this capacity building follows: Training in conduct of fermentation and drying trials and measurement of relevant parameters This will then be applied to establish the processing procedures for cocoa in Vietnam Use of HPLC for organic acids and ethanol determinations Gas Chromatograph-Mass Spectrometer for aromatic compounds determinations Sensory evaluation Biometry regarding sensory and analytical results 5.4 Publicity The following would be applied to publicise AusAID & CARD involvement • Media and publicity releases; • References and signage at field demonstrations, workshops and training sessions (The dryer constructed at CTU has been sign posted as constructed by CARD/ AusAID) • References in training manuals • Labelling of equipment supplied • Joint GoV and Australian signage for office/laboratories supported by Australia 5.5 Project Management The Vietnamese Institutes would be responsible for the bulk of planning and conduction of fermentation and drying trials as well as sensory and analytical work post training The Vietnamese institutes would also be responsible for the monitoring of trials and impact on farmers work load and income and the quality attributes of cocoa from the farmer trials The Australian Institute would collaborate in the monitoring, analysis of data generated, production of extension materials and reporting of the project The Australian Institute also manages the project budget Report on Cross-Cutting Issues 6.1 Environment Cocoa growing can have fewer adverse effects on the environment than other forms of agriculture Production blocks are often small, with cocoa grown as a mixed crop with coconuts or a variety of subsistence food crops Research papers, including presentations at an ICCO conference (Brazil, 1996) report that species diversity, including mammals, birds, insects etc on cocoa blocks, may be similar to that of adjacent rainforest in cocoa growing areas Environmental risks involved in the program are therefore, regarded as minimal The project involves processing of existing and future plantings of cocoa Future plantings may impact on natural flora and fauna but the program is not related to any expansion of areas under cocoa cultivation Cocoa is also considered an environmentally benign crop In the Mekong Delta, cocoa is planted in mixed planting systems, mainly with coconut but also in very diversified systems with as much as up to 15 different species of fruit trees, nut trees, shrubs, vines and medicinal plants with a resultant, very high biodiversity 6.2 Gender and Social Issues Many cocoa farmers in Vietnam already ferment and dry their own cocoa and therefore have some experience with these practices During the field trials on optimisation of fermentation techniques, an attempt would be made to incorporate the better aspects of what is currently done into our recommended methods This incorporation would take into account materials currently used and environmental, work practice, and social factors A Success Alliance study has demonstrated the following: SA has four participating provinces of Binh Phuoc (1095 households), Ba Ria Vung Tau (1560), Tien Giang (1600) and Ben Tre (1679) In these provinces, female participation varied from 9% in Binh Phuoc to 20% in Ben Tre Tien Giang had 16% and Ba Ria Ving, 13% Virtually all of these participants had farming as their sole income The bulk of participants are in the age range of 26-55 which is considered an experienced labour age The bulk of participants had a median family size of 3-5 members The percentage of farmers with an education level of secondary to high school varied from 69-77% across the provinces, therefore with this level of education, a high percentage of uptake of knowledge could be expected In Binh Phuoc province 90% of farmers had an income between 12-100 million VND per annum for all crops grown The median figure was 40 million VND In Ba Ria Vung Tau the figures were 90% having income between 1-45 Million VND, with a median level of 17 million VND In Ben Tre 90% of participants had incomes between 1-10 million VND and a median income of MVD In Tian Giang 90% had an income between 2-10 MVND and median income of MVND In Can Tho province the only substantial cocoa grower had an annual income of 16MVD from cocoa alone The baseline survey, conducted for this project, has been completed post the reporting period and has been presented in a separate document Implementation & Sustainability Issues 7.1 Issues and Constraints The following assessment of issues, risks and constraints was reported in the project document: Much of the risk assessment was done during the Australian Team member site visit for last year’s application Factors identified were as follows: One concern was that the solar driers it would not suit smallholders due to price and complexity issues However it is regarded that simple units can be built to suit smallholder purposes Proponents indicated that drying tables constructed of bamboo, on which fermented cocoa is thinly layered and exposed to the sun is a good example of the type of drying system that is likely to result in smallholder acceptance Smallholder’s currently sundry cocoa in various ways such as layered on bare earth, bamboo, concrete and other surfaces but it is considered that this will lead to mould contamination in wet weather The solar dryers are still considered a viable option by the Australian collaborators especially for small fermentaries that are already established in several locations in the Mekong Delta region They should also serve to dry cocoa for farmers during the wet season In the period between harvest flushes, when there is much less cocoa available for fermenting and drying by individuals, a cooperative approach could be considered as well as the practice of selling wet, unfermented beans to a fermentary The proponents indicated that driers should be no more than USD 100.00 for smallholder acceptance Experience with building dryers at Can Tho have indicated that local materials and labor costs were more than expected Methods of achieving price reduction were identified during the drying specialists visit It is now considered that small units for farmers will cost more in the vicinity of USD200 The proponents indicated that small holders would be inclined to cooperate in drying of cocoa An example of this might be the sharing of a centrally located solar dryer amongst a number of households Coconut tree timber, which is available and very cheap, was suggested as a substitute timber for construction of drying equipment Its lifespan is approx years Bamboo was also suggested and lasts longer than coconut wood Small holder fermentation of cocoa is usually undertaken in a bamboo basket covered with banana leaves Work done by the proponents has shown that a fermentation mass below 20Kg requires insulation to maintain temperature His group has found that quantities of around 13 Kg can be fermented in Styrofoam fruit boxes where temperatures reach 50oC Sensory evaluation of cocoa from these trials was conducted by Smilja Lambert in Indonesia and reported a styrene like off-flavor The group is investigating ways of lining the containers to prevent the taint occurring Less than 5Kg fermentations need to be conducted in direct sunlight These findings are in line with those encountered in PNG and it is still considered that fermentation and drying methods developed there will be applicable in Vietnam Work conducted has shown that pod storage can improve cocoa quality and this can be easily incorporated into the trials It is considered that as all of the developmental methodology has already been tested and is in place, risks to the implementation of the proposal are minimal Since implementation of the project and the first two visits by the Australian collaborator the following unforeseen issues and constraints have occurred • Solar dryer, fermentation boxes and hot house construction The first major factor was that the polycarbonate sheeting, shipped directly from Israel, was held in customs for three weeks This incurred a storage fee of USD1000 Secondly materials and labour for the dryers was found to be in excess of what was required in previous countries Thirdly Can Tho University did not have any existing fermenting and drying equipment and this necessitated the construction of a large solar dryer to handle samples generated from the fermentation trials Fourthly the cost of timber for fermentation box construction was in excess of that encountered in previous countries These factors resulted in cost blow outs for dryer, hot house and fermentation box construction The total budget for them for experimentation and on-farm trials has now been exceeded in the vicinity of $6,0000 A reallocation of funds from within the project or even extra funding may be needed for construction of dryers and hot houses at WASI and for dryers, hot houses and fermentation boxes at smallholder sites The cost situation has been rectified to some extent by the work of the project engineer in minimizing the materials required in his updated design for dryers However, it’s estimated an amount of approximately $6,0000 will have to be found to complete 10 construction at WASI and smallholder sites This issue will be mentioned/addressed in a request for a contract amendment to be made shortly It was not realised that cocoa production in Can Tho province was minimal This meant the farmer survey (contract milestone 2) had to be delayed until the second visit of the Australian collaborator in August This has now been achieved by conducting the survey in Ben Tre and adjacent provinces/districts and should allow the release of the second tranche of money The lack of cocoa in Can Tho meant that pods had to be obtained from Ben Tre province which meant additional costs for fuel and resulted in trial delays A delay of months has already occurred in the delivery to QDPI&F of the mortar and pestle for WASI The unit has now been delivered Overall most of the activities for this first six months have been achieved either on time or ahead of schedule The main exceptions are contract milestone 2, the farmer survey, which has been completed in August and the project activity 2.7 “fermentation trials” because of a lack of natural Inoculum during fermentations conducted at CTU 7.2 Options Options are as mentioned above I.E • Reallocation of funds to allow completion of solar dryers, hot houses and fermentation boxes WASI and smallholder sites • Shifting to WASI of the remaining fermentation, pod storage and drying trials • Suggested increase in Australian collaborators time in Vietnam for All of these factors will be taken into consideration in a contract amendment being currently drawn up 7.3 Sustainability The trials already conducted at Can Tho plus the extensive training in dry bean analysis by permanent staff from CTU, NLU and WASI means that the project has a high degree of sustainability Next Critical Steps The next crucial steps are as per the project document activity schedule: Project logframe activity 6.1: Training of staff from WASI in sensory and analytical work at Can Tho and NLU This activity now no longer needs to take place The NLU candidate was already studying in Brisbane, so her airfare was used to bring a WASI staff member to QDPI&F for training The WASI staff member can now organise sensory evaluation at WASI This will be completed during the Australian partner’s next visit in December 2006 Costs budgeted for this activity can now be requested to be reallocated in a contract variation Project log frame activity 2.7: Initiation of fermentation trials As stated above fermentation treatments conducted at Can Tho were atypical However it’s considered the problem can be overcome by breaking pods in a location where natural inoculation is likely to occur Conduct of pod storage trials and use of hot houses, to elevate ambient temperatures, need to be conducted at WASI This will be performed during the Australian partner’s visit in December Project logframe activity 7.1: Smallholder cocoa quality improvement through optimization of fermentation practices: This activity should be achievable by February 2007 11 Project logframe activity 7.2: Evaluation of fermentation trial data: This will be dependant on establishing trials at WASI If they are, the activity should be achievable by February 2007 Project logframe activity 7.3: Evaluation of drying trial data: This has largely been completed already at CTU but needs confirmation in the cooler climate of Dak Lak Project logframe activity 7.4: Construction of solar dryers at Can Tho, NLU and WASI This has already been achieved at CTU It is probably unnecessary for NLU but needs to be done at WASI Project logframe activity 7.5 Drying trial evaluation This has been completed at CTU but needs completion at WASI Project logframe activity 8.1: Visit of Australian partner and QDPI&F drying specialist This has already been completed Project logframe activity 8.2: Adjustments if any to solar dryer design made: The suggested changes can be done on units constructed at WASI Project logframe activity 8.3: Testing of updated dryer design: This can be conducted at WASI Project logframe activity 10.1: Visit of Australian partner to Vietnam This is planned for December, with most activities being conducted at WASI 12 ...1 Institute Information Project Name 013VIE05 Cocoa Fermentation and Drying and Quality Assessment in Vietnam Vietnamese Institution Can Tho University Vietnamese Project Team... arrangements for this training since his return from Vietnam Samples to be employed in this training were generated during fermentation and drying trials at Can Tho University and by obtaining local commercial... of cocoa processing and quality assessment in these Institutions The project aims include studies of methods of optimising the processing of cocoa, especially in regard to harvesting and fermentation