Cacao de Davao, a homegrown chocolate manufacturer, is leading efforts to strengthen the local cacao industry by prioritizing farmer partnerships. During the Habi at Kape Business Forum on June 3, 2026, founder and CEO Ethan Kyle Lim detailed initiatives to help growers improve productivity, quality, and income. The company sources cacao beans directly from partner farms in Calinan District, bypassing traders to ensure farmers capture more value.
Direct Sourcing and Farmer Support
Lim emphasized that the company's success is tied to its farmer partners. "Our focus is to work directly with farmers. We source our cacao beans from partner farms in Calinan and help them improve processing, quality control, and farm systems. Beyond buying their beans, we want to help them grow their businesses," he said. This model supports over 70 percent of the Philippines' cacao production, with Davao Region producing about 7,800 metric tons annually from nearly 20,000 hectares.
Expanding Market Access
To boost visibility, Cacao de Davao has partnered with restaurants, cafés, and lifestyle brands like Muni Mixology and Kitchen, Lamano, and Siempre. These collaborations create demand for local chocolate and introduce consumers to Davao-made products. Additional partnerships, including one with Hey Monday Davao, are expected soon.
Government Collaboration
In Davao Occidental, the municipality of Jose Abad Santos is exploring a partnership with Cacao de Davao to develop organized cacao farming. Mayor Jason John Joyce noted the potential for cacao as a livelihood program, leveraging the area's 70,000 hectares of agricultural land. Existing backyard cacao trees could be expanded into commercial plantations, intercropped with coconut trees.
These initiatives align with Republic Act No. 11547, which designates Davao City as the Chocolate Capital and Davao Region as the Cacao Capital of the Philippines. Despite challenges like inconsistent productivity and quality control, stakeholders believe that integrating farmers into the value chain is key to long-term growth.
