Cocoa pod husks as potential sources of renewable high-value-added products: A review of current valorizations and future prospects

Abstract

Cocoa is among the most cultivated and important tropical crops in the world, and it is economically viable in the agro-pastoral systems of tropical Africa. Further, the amount of cocoa residue is steadily increasing due to the strong worldwide demand for chocolate products. This review of cocoa residue found that an average of 18 publications per year were published in the last 10 years. The most common type of publication on cocoa pod husks (CPH) was newspaper articles, which comprised 50% of the publications. This review examines the use of CHP in sustainable development, agrochemical materials, and agro-materials through their potential valorizations into high value-added products. Indeed, CPH is an abundant, accessible, and renewable resource of bioproducts, dietary fibers, nutraceuticals, functional foods, pectin, antioxidant compounds, theobromine, and minerals. Potential food applications of CPH include the production of flavor compounds, gums, texturing agents, and others. The production of biomaterials for food and non-food use, biofuels, and organic acids, such as lactic acid (the polymerization of which produces the PLA used in bioplastic production), are several potential areas for the biotechnological development of CPH and its fractions.

Organic Cocoa Value Chain Sustainability: The Perception of São Tomé and Príncipe’s Stakeholders

“…There was a common agreement among the stakeholders engaged in the study that organic cocoa is set to expand in the future due to not only increasing demand for chocolate but also STP's government project and plan for its increase (e.g., [34]). This perspective is also echoed in recent reports [35] and the academic literature [36][37][38][39][40], although the potential of organic cocoa as a solution to agricultural sustainability challenges is unclear [39].…”

Mass Balance and Compositional Analysis of Biomass Outputs from Cacao Fruits

“…Once harvested, the fruit is opened, the husk is discarded, and the seeds (covered by a white mucilage) are stored and fermented in heaps or wooden crates to produce cacao beans. Literature reports from 2000 to 2021 [ 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 ] show a steady increase in the number of publications related to the use of some residual biomass outputs from cacao bean production. The scientific interest in residual biomass usage is fueled by the need to increase the cacao crop’s circularity, strengthen the cacao value chain, increase the economic profitability of the crop for producers, and reduce the environmental impacts.…”

Versatile Green Processing for Recovery of Phenolic Compounds from Natural Product Extracts towards Bioeconomy and Cascade Utilization for Waste Valorization on the Example of Cocoa Bean Shell (CBS)

“…Every year, 675 kt of cocoa bean shell (CBS) accrues as a waste stream in the food processing industry worldwide [20] and has high research interest [20,[23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30][31]. As a lignocellulosic biomass, CBS is a potential resource for β-glucans which can be utilized, for example, as bonding or binding agents.…”