El Zorzal Private Reserve
In May 2022, after several delicious tests of the "Zorzal" bean, we travelled to the Dominican Republic to visit the reserve, thanks to Cacao Latitudes. An exceptional trip, for an exceptional farm.
Established in 2012, the Zorzal Reserve is the first private reserve in the Dominican Republic. Spanning 412 hectares, it is located in the Duarte province, in the Cordillera Septentrional mountains. Several investors came together to purchase the land with a common goal: its protection. The Zorzal Reserve was approved by the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources of the Dominican Republic to encourage other landowners to participate in biodiversity conservation. Formerly a site of extensive cattle farming, the Reserve has gradually become a haven for birds.
The project's origin: a bird, forging connections between people
The Zorzal Reserve was co-founded by an American: Dr. Charles Kerchner. His thesis, focusing on the decline of Bicknell's thrush populations, led him to the Caribbean. Locally known as "Zorzal," the Bicknell's thrush is an endangered species of migratory bird that stays in the forests of the Dominican Republic from mid-November for 6 to 7 months. The rest of the time, it is found in North America. There, it is one of the rarest bird species. Dominicans and North Americans are working hand in hand for the protection of its habitat.
The Vermont Center for EcoStudies has implemented a monitoring program for Bicknell's thrush at 107 points within the Zorzal Reserve. In 2014, only 19 of these 107 points harbored the flagship species. Two years later, they counted 53 areas. This monitoring program brings together local community members and forest rangers trained by ornithologists to carry out these annual activities. 32 members have been trained in bird and forest monitoring protocols. This approach provides an opportunity for local communities to increase their income and receive environmental education.
Governments, NGOs, the private sector, international organizations, scientists, locals and foreigners... many stakeholders have mobilized around this project to conserve the Zorzal and its habitat. The Reserve thus takes on a strong environmental and social dimension, based on an essential economic component: cocoa production.
Zorzal Cacao: a private enterprise model, committed to environmental conservation and economically viable
The acquisition of 412 hectares of land required a significant sum of money. Furthermore, it was vital to find a funding system to promote a sustainable and autonomous Zorzal Reserve. As the Dominican Republic is the leading producer of organic cocoa, the ideal solution was to combine the protection of endangered species habitats with the production of specialty cocoa. This is how, under the impetus of Charles Kerchner, Zorzal Cacao was born.
The Zorzal Reserve has found a harmonious balance between cultivated land and the preservation of endemic flora. It has not lost sight of its main objective: 70% of the Reserve is intended to remain forever wild. 52 hectares, divided into 10 plots, are dedicated to sustainable production activities: cocoa, macadamia, and agroforestry. This fraction generates the necessary resources to maintain the entire system. Vanilla, pepper, and organic honey productions are planned.
Zorzal Cacao has planted cocoa trees whose grafts have been selected for their excellent organoleptic properties. These cocoa trees, living in the shade of large trees, provide habitat areas for birds. Zorzal Cacao markets two types of cocoa: "Zorzal Estate," produced at the Zorzal farm, and "Zorzal Comunitario," cultivated on 16 neighboring farms, the majority of which are certified "organic farming." These partner farms share the same values of quality and biodiversity protection.
The mission of Zorzal Cacao's founder, Charles Kerchner, is to work with local cocoa farmers, help them obtain organic certification, and encourage them to produce higher quality fermented beans. With higher and fairer incomes, the pressure on these biodiversity hotspots is significantly reduced. Zorzal Cacao provides technical assistance to community farms, purchases freshly harvested beans from them, then handles their post-harvest processing before reselling them to artisanal chocolate makers. One of these partner farms, the Reserva Privada Camilo, has dedicated over 350 hectares to establish the second private reserve in the Dominican Republic, thus expanding the network of private reserves in Duarte province to 809 hectares!
The Zorzal Reserve is also a national pioneer in experimenting with payments for environmental services. Indeed, Zorzal Cacao participates in reforestation in the Dominican Republic and thus in the restoration of biodiversity. A program called "Plan Vivo" has been set up for carbon sequestration. What does it consist of? Chocolate makers who source Zorzal cocoa give a few hundred extra dollars, "carbon credits," for each ton of cocoa purchased. This sum is then paid annually to local farmers so that they can dedicate a portion of their land to planting and maintaining various typical trees of the region, refuges for many species. Thanks to the implementation of this Plan Vivo, 15 landowners have planted 80 hectares of trees in the Dominican Republic, including in the Zorzal Reserve itself.
In total, since 2012, Zorzal and its many partners have protected 1238 hectares of threatened tropical forests in the Northeast of the Dominican Republic. This has mainly been achieved through reforestation efforts and the privatization of land to create a protected reserve.
Zorzal Cacao and post-harvest processing
Zorzal Cacao places paramount importance on the quality of its beans. It primarily uses the old Amelonado variety, which tends to provide a pronounced chocolate taste as well as fruity and acidic notes. Exporting quality mainly involves careful sorting of the beans. These are harvested at optimal ripeness (between February and May) for a harvest volume of 50 to 100 MT. Fresh, clean, and defect-free beans are then transported to the fermentation center. To meet their quality requirements, optimal and rigorous post-harvest processing is essential.
The infrastructure for bean fermentation has continuously improved over the years and through experience. In 2018, the new "Fermentorium" was inaugurated in Los Arroyos, about ten minutes from the epicenter of Dominican cocoa production and 45 minutes from the Zorzal Reserve. Wooden boxes are arranged in a cascade over 4 levels to facilitate human labor. The beans are placed in the wooden boxes on the upper level to ferment naturally. To turn them, they are moved down one level of boxes after 48 hours, then another 48 hours, followed by two 24-hour periods. This represents a total of 6 days of fermentation. The fermented beans are then dried in solar drying tunnels with transparent roofs. They are left on the beds for 4 days in a thick layer, then 3 days in a thinner layer. When their water content reaches 7%, the beans are packaged in 70 kg bags for export to artisanal chocolate makers worldwide.
In conclusion
Thanks to the preservation and restoration of its habitat, the Bicknell's thrush and other species are thriving. It is thanks to an entire community, as diverse as it is connected, that the project has been a success. This success is also largely due to chocolate makers who use Zorzal cocoa to make fine quality chocolate. It is also thanks to consumers who, by purchasing a product that may seem insignificant, support an entire cause. Buying Zorzal chocolate means not only supporting responsible organic farming but also supporting local communities more fairly. It means conserving an endangered species, participating in biodiversity protection, reforestation, and the fight against climate change. The success of this project is a source of hope for the future. If we can address the decline of the Bicknell's thrush, we can do it for other species. We are capable of uniting to face global problems that concern us all.
Sources
In addition to our on-site visit and the abundant information shared by Zorzal Cacao and Cacao Latitudes, here are the sources used for writing this article.
BIODIVERSIDAD REPUBLICA DOMINICANA. Reserva Privada El Zorzal. Red de conservación de la Biodiversidad en República Dominicana [online]. Available at: https://biodiversidad-rd.net/reserva-privada-el-zorzal/
CACAO LATITUDES, 2023. Zorzal | Cacao Latitudes. Cacao Latitudes [online]. December 14, 2023. Available at: https://cacaolatitudes.com/fr/product/zorzal/
WARREN, Pete, 2024. The birds & the beans [online]. Video. February 2023. Available at: https://vimeo.com/693792408
ZORZAL CACAO. Beans – Zorzal Cacao. [online]. Available at: https://zorzalcacao.com/specialty-cacao/beans/
ZORZAL CACAO. Conservation – Zorzal cacao. [online]. Available at: https://zorzalcacao.com/conservation/
ZORZAL CACAO. Zorzal cacao – fine flavored cacao. [online]. Available at: https://zorzalcacao.com/