The Grenada Cocoa Association (GCA) opened its Solar Wall project designed to provide alternative drying for our cocoa, in a cleaner more sustainable manner, compared to the use of diesel fuel.
This system, based in the village of Mt Horne, has the potential to change how cocoa is dried throughout the world. It eliminates the use of diesel as a fuel for drying and replaces it with clean renewable energy from the sun to further reduce our carbon footprint. The device will produce the same heat as was made by the burning of diesel. The only difference is that it will not produce the number of pollutants associated with the burning of diesel.
The economic importance of cocoa has long overshadowed its environmental importance. It is a well-established fact that cocoa, being an “agroforest crop”, contributes significantly to the preservation of Grenada’s ecosystem, soil erosion, and the reduction of Grenada’s carbon footprint. Considering that Grenada has 4,000 acres with a total count of 1.2 million trees, there is the real chance that cocoa trees can capture as much as 60,000,000 pounds of carbon dioxide from the air each year. According to Chairman of the GCA, Christopher Williams, this project has taught us that contrary to popular beliefs, “going green” can have direct financial benefits.
At full capacity, this facility is capable of drying 30,000 pounds of wet cocoa per week. Volume, coupled with reduced risk of spoilage, decreased operational cost and accelerated drying, means the GCA can export its cocoa at a faster rate, potentially improving its cash flow and profitability, and ultimately putting more money in the pockets of you the farmers. The new equipment was made possible through support from Global Environment Facility (GEF) Small Grants Programme. This news was also welcomed by Minister of Agriculture and Lands, Hon. Yolande Bain Horsford, who also was on hand to cut the ribbon to unveil the new system on Thursday, 30 January 2020.
GCA
