Cacao

The Cacao tree (Theobroma cacao) is a small (4.5-7.5 m), evergreen tree in the Family Sterculiaceae, native to South America and Central America. Its seeds are used to make cocoa and chocolate.

The tree grows naturally at elevations of around 1,000 ft (300 m), requiring a humid climate with regular rainfall and good soil. The seeds, usually called "beans", come in a large fruit called a cacao pod that is ovoid, 15-30 cm long, and 8-10 cm wide. The pod contains 20 to 60 seeds in a white pulp. Some 300 seeds produce around 1 kg of cocoa paste. Each seed contains a significant amount of fat (40-50% as cacao butter).

Cacao beans were commonly used as currency in Pre-Columbian Mesoamerica. In some areas, such as Yucatan, they were still used in place of small coins as late as the 1840s.