5th Toledo Cacao Festival in Belize, 20-22 May 2011

Punta Gorda, Belize 
Tuesday, 10 May 2011 13:15 | Written by Rob Hirons 
EcoClub
It's time to stimulate your senses and head down to Belize's beautiful deep south for the 5th Toledo Cacao Festival. Grown by Maya farmers, the Criollo and Trinitario cacao speicies have over the years naturally crossed to produce new varieties. These new strains along with Toledo's rich soil and the organic methods used by the local farmers have produced a bean with a rich, pungent chocolate flavour which is much sought after by chocolatiers.

The dates for this year's event are the 20th-22nd May 2011. The full schedule of events appears in the May issue of the Toledo Howler (download here). Inside you will also find an article on Making Chocolate in Toledo, which focuses on the Cotton Tree Chocolate Factory in PG. They will be open over the festival weekend, offering demonstrations and chocolate goodies. The factory is open the rest of the year too so don't worry if you miss a visit this time.

The festival always launches with the Wine & Chocolate Evening on Friday. This year the event will be held at Coral House Inn at the south end of Front St. near the hospital. Another special event will be the Cacao Fest dinners being offered at The Lodge at Big Falls on Saturday & Sunday evenings. Space is limited so call in advance for reservations. With mouth watering food, live music, sea and jungle tours, art & archaeology exhibits and more, the Cacao Fest is not to be missed.