Visiting a Cocoa Farm in Ilhéus, Bahia
Visiting a Cocoa Farm in Ilhéus, Bahia
Nov.19, 2012
It's easy to perceive Ilhéus, on Bahia's Cocoa Coast, as a land of recovery and promise when one enters the gates of Fazenda Provisão. The lush farm with an area of nearly 988 acres on the banks of the Almada River is an active cocoa producer and a symbol of resilience in a region where a massive witch's broom infestation in 1989 devastated a culture which had thrived since the late 18th century.
While some enterprises in Ilhéus and nearby towns focus on the production and processing of sustainablecacau cabruca - cocoa grown under the canopy of native Atlantic rainforest - other farms, like Provisão, though maintaining some production, have turned to tourism as a source of revenue.
Such farms play an important role in Bahia's budding Chocolate Route, whose attractions include an incredibly beautiful string of beaches, charming places to stay, from upscale resorts to affordable pousadas, great culinary and historic landmarks. For many travelers, there's the added appeal of Jorge Amado literature, strongly rooted in his native region and known worldwide for works such as Gabriela, Clove and Cinnamon.
Fazenda Provisão has always belonged to the family of patriarch Domingos Adami de Sá, who started the farm in 1885 and was the first to grow cocoa on its lands. The hospitality of his descendant Albino Eduardo Novaes and his wife, Maria Adelina, is one of the reasons to visit, whether on day use or overnight stays.
Next page: Things to Do
The writer visited Fazenda Provisão while on a press trip by invitation of Bahiatursa and Festival Internacional do Chocolate e Cacau.
Things to Do at Fazenda Provisão
Experiencing the cocoa culture first hand is one of the best things you can do on the farm, from the roça (pronounced HOH-ssa), or the area where the trees grow, to watching the farm workers cut the fruit and remove the pulp, through the processing - the platforms where workers spread the beans to dry and the fermenting area (where the pungent smell can be a bit too intense for some) - to eating sweets made from the farm's cocoa.
Today, Provisão yields half to one-third of the production before witch's broom, but the plants you see tell a story of careful recovery. When the infestation hit, the Novaes family realized that some strong, old plants had survived it in a very healthy condition. "We have trees which are at least 100 years old", said Maria Adelina during our visit. "We have started new plants from cuttings off those resilient ones."
Guests at the farm can also go for boat rides or go hiking with guides. There is a trail across two hills covered with native trees, some of which it takes six to eight men to hug, as well as myriad orchids and a grotto. It takes about one hour and a half to reach the top of the trail.
The main farmhouse and the guest house are just about 40 years old. An original adobe construction dating back to the late 18th century, on farmland across the river, had structural damage after the road was built across the property and could not be inhabited anymore. However, period pieces are used in the decoration of the farmhouse and are on display in the chapel.
Next page: Culinary
Food at the farm is outstanding. Meals are served in a large gazebo by the guest house, surrounded by mature trees and well-kept gardens. Stews, fish, fresh vegetables from the garden, homemade desserts and juice and liqueur made from fruit which grows on the property make up the feast.
Next page: Accommodations
A lovely guest house originally built to accommodate relatives and friends of the Novaes family can be booked for overnight stays at Fazenda Provisão.
The house with simply and pleasantly decorated rooms fits up to six guests, and packages include a hearty breakfast.
Fazenda Provisão
Rodovia Ilhéus-Uruçuca KM 27
Ilhéus - BA
fazendaprovisao.com.br
Nov.19, 2012
It's easy to perceive Ilhéus, on Bahia's Cocoa Coast, as a land of recovery and promise when one enters the gates of Fazenda Provisão. The lush farm with an area of nearly 988 acres on the banks of the Almada River is an active cocoa producer and a symbol of resilience in a region where a massive witch's broom infestation in 1989 devastated a culture which had thrived since the late 18th century.
While some enterprises in Ilhéus and nearby towns focus on the production and processing of sustainablecacau cabruca - cocoa grown under the canopy of native Atlantic rainforest - other farms, like Provisão, though maintaining some production, have turned to tourism as a source of revenue.
Such farms play an important role in Bahia's budding Chocolate Route, whose attractions include an incredibly beautiful string of beaches, charming places to stay, from upscale resorts to affordable pousadas, great culinary and historic landmarks. For many travelers, there's the added appeal of Jorge Amado literature, strongly rooted in his native region and known worldwide for works such as Gabriela, Clove and Cinnamon.
Fazenda Provisão has always belonged to the family of patriarch Domingos Adami de Sá, who started the farm in 1885 and was the first to grow cocoa on its lands. The hospitality of his descendant Albino Eduardo Novaes and his wife, Maria Adelina, is one of the reasons to visit, whether on day use or overnight stays.
Next page: Things to Do
The writer visited Fazenda Provisão while on a press trip by invitation of Bahiatursa and Festival Internacional do Chocolate e Cacau.
- Also in Ilhéus: Fazenda Almada
Things to Do at Fazenda Provisão
Experiencing the cocoa culture first hand is one of the best things you can do on the farm, from the roça (pronounced HOH-ssa), or the area where the trees grow, to watching the farm workers cut the fruit and remove the pulp, through the processing - the platforms where workers spread the beans to dry and the fermenting area (where the pungent smell can be a bit too intense for some) - to eating sweets made from the farm's cocoa.
Today, Provisão yields half to one-third of the production before witch's broom, but the plants you see tell a story of careful recovery. When the infestation hit, the Novaes family realized that some strong, old plants had survived it in a very healthy condition. "We have trees which are at least 100 years old", said Maria Adelina during our visit. "We have started new plants from cuttings off those resilient ones."
Guests at the farm can also go for boat rides or go hiking with guides. There is a trail across two hills covered with native trees, some of which it takes six to eight men to hug, as well as myriad orchids and a grotto. It takes about one hour and a half to reach the top of the trail.
The main farmhouse and the guest house are just about 40 years old. An original adobe construction dating back to the late 18th century, on farmland across the river, had structural damage after the road was built across the property and could not be inhabited anymore. However, period pieces are used in the decoration of the farmhouse and are on display in the chapel.
Next page: Culinary
Food at the farm is outstanding. Meals are served in a large gazebo by the guest house, surrounded by mature trees and well-kept gardens. Stews, fish, fresh vegetables from the garden, homemade desserts and juice and liqueur made from fruit which grows on the property make up the feast.
Next page: Accommodations
A lovely guest house originally built to accommodate relatives and friends of the Novaes family can be booked for overnight stays at Fazenda Provisão.
The house with simply and pleasantly decorated rooms fits up to six guests, and packages include a hearty breakfast.
Address & Contact:
Fazenda Provisão
Rodovia Ilhéus-Uruçuca KM 27
Ilhéus - BA
fazendaprovisao.com.br
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