The impressive Hacienda sits


at the heart of the 870Ha plantation and is the home of Jorge Marún Ramírez and his family


“After many hours of driving we, myself, Leon Kennedy, and members from the Ecuador Government (whom organised our tour), arrive at this 100-year established, fifth generation family cocoa farm…”


AK: And that is sold at a fixed price, right? That’s not so exciting is it?


JMR: No, it’s definitely not, you are right! There is a fixed price for beans and not for finished products, so this is a big motivator for us, yes. As a producer in Ecuador this is a very unusual choice – normally, cocoa producers start cocoa farms, not the other way around.


AK: Fascinating, so what was the first product you made?


JMR: We started off with a simple 50g bar - I actually used to use it as a business card for promoting our company when we first started! A lot of people really liked the chocolate, so we made more bars with different percentages of cocoa. We also started producing couvertures for the industry as well.


AK: Why would a family of farmers wish to start in chocolate?


JMR: Well it makes sense, we are producing the main (and most expensive) ingredient to make chocolate, but there is actually another side to this story now you ask. It was the fifth generation, my son that asked me, ‘why don’t you make chocolate dad?’ and it was a very good question!


AK: Kids are the greatest teachers, Jorge. How old is your son and what’s his name?


JMR: [Smiling] His name is Juan, he is ten years old now and right on the ball!


AK: That’s wonderful, so where do you grind the beans? Is it here on the site?


JMR: Actually, we grind in Guayaquil, further South from here. My brother’s wife’s family are in the grinding business and they have a factory there. So, this is mainly due to our family connections and an Italian gentleman we know, Bruno Brevi,


14 Kennedy’s Confection January 2020


whom has spent his life in the chocolate industry - we work closely with them on the production side.


AK: What does it feel like making the switch from being a family of farmers to farmers and producers? It must be a different game with new competitors?


JMR: Yes, it’s a totally different business, I have been travelling a lot, to learn as much as I can about how the market works as well as consumer behaviour, trends, and how to achieve sustainability which is our main ethos.


AK: Where do you plan to sell your chocolates?


JMR: We are already present in seven countries including a great response from the USA and Japan, so we are very pleased with the developments in business.


AK: I see we have your father with us now - he must be very proud to see the next generations do so well and come forward with new ideas for the business.


KennedysConfection.com


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