BCCCA Research Projects 130


Funded by BCCCA (to 2008)/CRA and Bioversity, German Foundation, Mars,Mondelez, USDA
(1994 to 2020)
The INCOCOA groups are informal groups established to promote collaboration and communication within the cocoa research community. The groups include INGENIC, which is the informal group for cocoa breeders and geneticists. BCCCA provided in-kind support towards the INCOCOA groups, including INGENIC, for the development of the website and virtual library and occasional financial support towards events including workshops and activities such as publications to disseminate research findings to the cocoa community.

Funded by CRA* and LNV Sustainable Cocoa Subsidy Scheme (Dutch Buffer Stock), STCP
*(transferred from BCCCA in 2008)
» University of Reading, UK
» Cocoa Research Instute of Nigeria
» International Institute for Tropical Agriculture, Nigeria
(2008 to 2011)
Researchers: K. Agyeboyin (Supervisors: Dr. A. Daymond, Prof. P.Hadley)
A post-graduate research project co-funded by LNV (Sustainable Cocoa Subsidy Scheme) and STCP, and administered by BCCCA/CRA Ltd, to investigate the importance of factors such as rootstock x variety effects and physiological performance of the variety during establishment and early growth, especially under drought conditions.
2 Published Papers

Funded by CRA* and LNV Sustainable Cocoa Subsidy Scheme (Dutch Buffer Stock)
*(transferred from BCCCA in 2008)
» University of Reading, UK
» Cocoa Research Institute of Ghana
(2007 to 2011)
Researchers: M.A. Salifu (Supervisors: Prof. Paul Hadley, Dr. P. Tricker)
A post-graduate research project to investigate the effects of juvenility, reinvigoration and disruption to the flow of nutrients and water at the graft union on budding success and growth rates of budded plants with a view to understanding why seedling plants perform better than genetically identical plants derived from them.

Funded by BCCCA
» University of Reading, UK
(2008 to 2010)
Researchers: Prof. Paul Hadley, Dr. Chris Turnbull
The London cocoa trade, NYSE-LIFFE, continues to support this long standing project to collate and disseminate information on cocoa genetic resources which was initiated in 1988 in liaison with IPGRI (now Bioversity International). The ICGD is freely available through its website and is also distributed on CD-ROM to cocoa research institutes and others with an interest in cacao genetic resources, and has become a key resource for the cocoa research community. The project is currently funded by NYSE LIFFE and is administered by CRA Ltd. In this phase of the project, the ICGD was re-structured to a MYSQL/PHP platform to facilitate updating and improve data accessibility.Data on half-sibs and genetic groups has been added and the way the ICGD deals with synonyms has been improved to allow users to use the clone names that they are most familiar with. Development of a tool to allow ranking of accessions based on characteristics including genetic diversity has continued. The field guide "A Visual Aid to Identifying Widely Distributed Cacao Accessions’ was published using data from the ICGD as part of the CFC/Bioversity Cocoa Genetic Resources project.
3 Published Papers

Funded by CRA* and LNV Sustainable Cocoa Subsidy Scheme (Dutch Buffer Stock)
*(transferred from BCCCA in 2008)
» University of the West Indies
(2006 to 2010)
Researcher: Prof. P. Umaharan
A co-funded project with the Government of the Netherlands to carry out a major re-propagation programme and install reservoirs and an irrigation system to improve the security of germplasm held in the International Cocoa Genebank, Trinidad.
3 Published Papers

Funded by CRA* and CFC and other co-financiers
*(transferred from BCCCA in 2008)
» University of Reading, UK
» Cocoa Research Institute of Ghana
(2005 to 2010)
Researchers: K. Acheampong (Supervisors: Prof. P. Hadley, Dr. A.J. Daymond)
A PhD research project to evaluate the effects of shade, mulch and irrigation on the growth, development and physiology of different varieties of cocoa under field and controlled greenhouse conditions.
5 Published Papers

Funded by CRA* and Bioversity, Mars, USDA, WCF
*(transferred from BCCCA in 2008)
» Bioversity International
(2005 to 2010)
Support towards meetings and other activities associated with the development of a global strategy for the conservation and use of cacao genetic resources.

Funded by CRA* and CFC and other co-financiers
*(transferred from BCCCA in 2008)
» Bioversity International
(2004 to 2010)
Researcher: Dr. Bertus Eskes and regional coordinators from participating institutions
Co-financing and counterpart funding for activities at Cocoa Research Unit (Trinidad) and the Univ. of Reading which formed part of this global project which involved 14 institutions in West Africa, the Americas, SE Asia and Europe.
7 Published Papers

Funded by CRA* and LNV Sustainable Cocoa Subsidy Scheme (Dutch Buffer Stock)
*(transferred from BCCCA in 2008)
» University of Reading, UK
(2008 to 2009)
Researchers: Dr. A. Daymond, Prof. P.Hadley
A jointly funded project with the Government of the Netherlands (Sustainable Cocoa Subsidy Scheme) to install energy saving thermal screens and refurbish the quarantine facilities. These measures have resulted in an energy saving of some 40% compared to previous years. The thermal screens also permit better shade/humidity control and result in improved plant growth.

Funded by CRA* and GORTT
*(transferred from BCCCA in 2008)
» University of the West Indies
(2008 to 2008)
Researcher: Dr. David Butler
CRA Ltd took over the responsibility from BCCCA for support to CRU in September 2008 and continued to provide funding for the core activities at the Cocoa Research Unit in Trinidad together with the Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago (GORTT). Additional support was received for a visiting scientist from CIRAD (M. Boccara). In addition to this core support, CRU received funding from WCF for the project to evaluate accessions from ICG,T for their reaction to Witches' Broom disease and from USDA towards a collaborative activity also involving CIRAD to develop a DNA fingerprinting database for the cocoa collections of the Americas. CRU also received support from CFC and partner organisations for the CFC/ICCO/IPGRI project "Cocoa Productivity and Quality Improvement; a Participatory Approach" for activities including the germplasm enhancement programme for resistance to Black Pod and Witches' Broom disease. CRU and CRA's application for support from the Dutch Sustainable Cocoa Fund (Dutch Buffer Stock Fund) for the project "Safeguarding the ICG,T: a global resource for the cocoa industry" was successful and the work to repropagate "at risk" germplasm and install irrigation at the site was initiated towards the end of the year. Research at CRU continued to be organised under the following work programmes - Conservation; Characterisation; Evaluation and Utilisation. Activities in 2005 included further characterisation of ICG,T accessions for genetic diversity analysis and identification purposes using morphological, biochemical and molecular techniques, evaluation for characters including those of economic interest (e.g. bean characteristics, fat content, pod hardness and disease resistance),sensory evaluation studies, studies on the genetic basis of disease resistance and germplasm enhancement (pre-breeding) to develop a population with a high level of resistance to Black Pod and Witches’ Broom diseases.
16 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA
» University of Reading, UK
(2006 to 2008)
Researchers: Prof. Paul Hadley, Dr. Chris Turnbull
The London cocoa trade, through BCCCA/CRA Ltd., continues to support this long standing project to collate and disseminate information on cocoa genetic resources which was initiated in 1988 in liaison with IPGRI (now Bioversity International). The ICGD is freely available through its website and is also distributed on CD-ROM to cocoa research institutes and others with an interest in cacao genetic resources, and has become a key resource for the cocoa research community. The project is currently funded by NYSE LIFFE and is administered by CRA Ltd.
2 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA and Masterfoods/USDA
» University of Reading, UK
(2005 to 2008)
Researcher: Prof. P.Hadley
The UK industry, through BCCCA and CRA Ltd, have been supporting the safe distribution of cocoa germplasm via the quarantine facility at the University of Reading since 1982. Currently, CRA Ltd and USDA are jointly supporting the ICQC,R which provides the only international intermediate quarantine service for the safe movement of cocoa germplasm - one of the key ‘building block’ resources for the cocoa research community.
5 Published Papers

Funded by CRA* and GORTT
*(transferred from BCCCA in 2008)
» University of the West Indies
(2007 to 2007)
Researcher: Dr. David Butler
The UK chocolate industry, through its trade association BCCCA, and with support generated from the CRA trust fund, continued to support the core activities at the Cocoa Research Unit in Trinidad together with the Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago (GORTT). Additional support was` received for a visiting scientist from CIRAD (M. Boccara/P. Deberdt). In addition to this core support, CRU received funding from WCF for the project to evaluate accessions from ICG,T for their reaction to Witches' Broom disease and from USDA towards a collaborative activity also involving CIRAD to develop a DNA fingerprinting database for the cocoa collections of the Americas, and also from GORTT/USDA for association mapping studies of the ICG, T collection. CRU also received support from CFC and partner organisations for the CFC/ICCO/IPGRI project "Cocoa Productivity and Quality Improvement; a Participatory Approach" for activities including the germplasm enhancement programme for resistance to Black Pod and Witches' Broom disease. CRU received support from the Dutch Sustainable Cocoa Fund (Dutch Buffer Stock Fund) and CRA for the project "Safeguarding the ICG,T: a global resource for the cocoa industry" which invovled re-propagating "at risk" germplasm and constructing irrigation reservoirs at the genebank site. Research at CRU continued to be organised under the following work programmes - Conservation; Characterisation; Evaluation and Utilisation. Projects for research on quality/post-harvest factors were also continued thanks to support from the Dutch Buffer Stock Fund (quality attributes of the ICS clones), and links with the University of Hamburg, University of Towson and the Dept of Chemistry at UWI. Activities in 2007 included further characterisation of ICG,T accessions for genetic diversity analysis and identification purposes using morphological, biochemical and molecular techniques, evaluation for characters including those of economic interest (e.g. bean characteristics, fat content, pod hardness and disease resistance),sensory evaluation studies, studies on the genetic basis of disease resistance and germplasm enhancement (pre-breeding) to develop a population with a high level of resistance to Black Pod and Witches’ Broom diseases.
10 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA and GORTT
» University of the West Indies
(2000 to 2007)
Researcher: Dr. David Butler
This project set out to analyse the diversity of the extensive collection of cacao genotypes held in the International Cocoa Genebank, Trinidad (ICG,T) which is managed by the Cocoa Research Unit (CRU), Trinidad of the University of the West Indies (UWI). The project was funded by USDA through the Biscuit, Cake, Chocolate and Confectionery Association of the UK (BCCCA). Over 2400 DNA samples from accessions in the ICG,T were prepared and analysed using microsatellite markers in partnership with USDA-ARS Beltsville. Moreover, DNA samples from materials originally collected from the Ecuaodorian Amazon region in the 1970s and 1980s were also analysed thanks to collaboration with INIAP, Ecuador. The research resulted in several scientific publications on the genetic diversity of material in the ICG,T and contributed towards identity verification of the accessions in the genebank
5 Published Papers

Funded by CRA* and GORTT
*(transferred from BCCCA in 2008)
» University of the West Indies
(2006 to 2006)
Researcher: Dr. David Butler
The UK chocolate industry, through its trade association BCCCA, and with support generated from the CRA trust fund, continued to support the core activities at the Cocoa Research Unit in Trinidad together with the Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago (GORTT). Additional support was received for a visiting scientist from CIRAD (M. Boccara/P. Deberdt). In addition to this core support, CRU received funding from WCF for the project to evaluate accessions from ICG,T for their reaction to Witches' Broom disease and from USDA towards a collaborative activity also involving CIRAD to develop a DNA fingerprinting database for the cocoa collections of the Americas. CRU also received support from CFC and partner organisations for the CFC/ICCO/IPGRI project "Cocoa Productivity and Quality Improvement; a Participatory Approach" for activities including the germplasm enhancement programme for resistance to Black Pod and Witches' Broom disease. CRU received support from the Dutch Sustainable Cocoa Fund (Dutch Buffer Stock Fund) and CRA for the project "Safeguarding the ICG,T: a global resource for the cocoa industry" which invovled re-propagating "at risk" germplasm and constructing irrigation reservoirs at the genebank site. Research at CRU continued to be organised under the following work programmes - Conservation; Characterisation; Evaluation and Utilisation. New projects for research on quality/post-harvest factors were also initiated thanks to support from the Dutch Buffer Stock Fund and a link with the University of Hambury. Activities in 2006 included further characterisation of ICG,T accessions for genetic diversity analysis and identification purposes using morphological, biochemical and molecular techniques, evaluation for characters including those of economic interest (e.g. bean characteristics, fat content, pod hardness and disease resistance),sensory evaluation studies, studies on the genetic basis of disease resistance and germplasm enhancement (pre-breeding) to develop a population with a high level of resistance to Black Pod and Witches’ Broom diseases.
13 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA
» University of Reading, UK
(2004 to 2006)
Researchers: Prof. Paul Hadley/Dr. Michael Wadsworth, Dr. Caroline Ford, Dr. Chris Turnbull
The London cocoa trade, through BCCCA/CRA Ltd., continues to support this long standing project to collate and disseminate information on cocoa genetic resources which was initiated in 1988 in liaison with IPGRI (now Bioversity International). The ICGD is freely available through its website and is also distributed on CD-ROM to cocoa research institutes and others with an interest in cacao genetic resources, and has become a key resource for the cocoa research community. The project is currently funded by NYSE LIFFE and is administered by CRA Ltd.
5 Published Papers

Funded by CRA* and GORTT
*(transferred from BCCCA in 2008)
» University of the West Indies
(2005 to 2005)
Researcher: Dr. David Butler
The UK chocolate industry, through its trade association BCCCA, and with support generated from the CRA trust fund, continued to support the core activities at the Cocoa Research Unit in Trinidad together with the Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago (GORTT). Additional support was received for a visiting scientist from CIRAD (M. Boccara). In addition to this core support, CRU received funding from WCF for the project to evaluate accessions from ICG,T for their reaction to Witches' Broom disease and from USDA towards a collaborative activity also involving CIRAD to develop a DNA fingerprinting database for the cocoa collections of the Americas. CRU also received support from CFC and partner organisations for the CFC/ICCO/IPGRI project "Cocoa Productivity and Quality Improvement; a Participatory Approach" for activities including the germplasm enhancement programme for resistance to Black Pod and Witches' Broom disease. CRU and CRA's application for support from the Dutch Sustainable Cocoa Fund (Dutch Buffer Stock Fund) for the project "Safeguarding the ICG,T: a global resource for the cocoa industry" was successful and the work to repropagate "at risk" germplasm and install irrigation at the site was initiated towards the end of the year. Research at CRU continued to be organised under the following work programmes - Conservation; Characterisation; Evaluation and Utilisation. Activities in 2005 included further characterisation of ICG,T accessions for genetic diversity analysis and identification purposes using morphological, biochemical and molecular techniques, evaluation for characters including those of economic interest (e.g. bean characteristics, fat content, pod hardness and disease resistance),sensory evaluation studies, studies on the genetic basis of disease resistance and germplasm enhancement (pre-breeding) to develop a population with a high level of resistance to Black Pod and Witches’ Broom diseases.
15 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA and Masterfoods
» University of Reading, UK
(2002 to 2005)
Researcher: Prof. P.Hadley
The UK industry, through BCCCA and CRA Ltd, have been supporting the safe distribution of cocoa germplasm via the quarantine facility at the University of Reading since 1982. Currently, CRA Ltd and USDA are jointly supporting the ICQC,R which provides the only international intermediate quarantine service for the safe movement of cocoa germplasm - one of the key ‘building block’ resources for the cocoa research community.
5 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA
» University of the West Indies
» University of Reading, UK
(2004 to 2004)
Researchers: Prof. M. Wilkinson, Dr. D. Butler, Prof. P. Umaharan, Dr. N. Cryer
A post-doctoral research project to investigate the genetic diversity of 17 georeferenced wild cocoa populations using a novel approach to select microsatellite markers.
1 Published Paper

Funded by CRA* and GORTT
*(transferred from BCCCA in 2008)
» University of the West Indies
(2004 to 2004)
Researcher: Dr. David Butler
The UK chocolate industry, through its trade association BCCCA, and with support generated from the CRA trust fund, continued to support the core activities at the Cocoa Research Unit in Trinidad together with the Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago (GORTT). Additional support was received for visiting scientists from CIRAD (M. Boccara and J-M Thevenin). The WCF (formerly ACRI) project to evaluate accessions from ICG,T for their reaction to Witches' Broom disease continued work to confirm the reactions of some promising clones from the previous phase of the work (1998-2003). CRU initiated activities as part of the CFC/ICCO/IPGRI project "Cocoa Productivity and Quality Improvement; a Participatory Approach" building on the research undertaken in the earlier CFC/ICCO/IPGRI project "Germplasm Conservation and Utilisation" but including germplasm enhancement for Witches' Broom resistance. CRU continued its invovlement in another CFC supported project "To establish the physical, chemical and organoleptic parameters differentiating fine and bulk cocoa". CRU also continued its invovlement in a project with USDA to develop a DNA fingerprinting database for all major cacao collections in the Americas. Initial results suggest that there is relatively little duplication of germplasm in the collection of original trees in Marper Farm,demonstating that this is a valuable reference for identification of cacao accessions. Research at CRU continued to be organised under the following work programmes - Conservation; Characterisation; Evaluation and Utilisation. Activities in 2004 included further characterisation of ICG,T accessions for genetic diversity analysis and identification purposes using morphological, biochemical and molecular techniques, evaluation for characters including those of economic interest (e.g. bean characteristics, fat content, pod hardness and disease resistance),sensory evaluation studies, studies on the genetic basis of disease resistance and germplasm enhancement (pre-breeding) to develop a population with a high level of resistance to Black Pod and Witches’ Broom diseases.
18 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA
» University of Reading, UK
(2002 to 2004)
Researchers: Prof. Paul Hadley/Dr. Michael Wadsworth, Dr. Caroline Ford/Dr Chris Turnbull
The London cocoa trade (NYSE-LIFFE), through BCCCA/CRA Ltd., continued to support this long standing project to collate and disseminate information on cocoa genetic resources which was initiated in 1988 in liaison with IPGRI (now Alliance Bioversity International-CIAT). The ICGD is freely available through its website and was distributed on CD-ROM in 2004 to over 50 cocoa research institutes and others with an interest in cacao genetic resources. New features included the ability to view data graphically (histogram or plot), to import clone lists from text files and improved methods for data output. ICGD Online (www.icgd.rdg.ac.uk) has been considerably improved with the inclusion of new links to view photographs, full references, research station addresses and information on the origins of group names. New pages have been added that allow microsatellite data to be viewed and compared (currently exact matches and possible parents). Collaborative work continued with CIRAD on the new genomic database, CocoaGenDB, which can be used to access genomic and characteristics data. Interactive sessions on using ICGD were held at the International Cocoa Research Conference and INGENIC workshop in Accra in October 2003. The ICGD project developed a ‘Field Guide of Widely Distributed Clones’ as part of the CFC/ICCO/Bioversity projects on cocoa germplasm conservation and utilisation.
2 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA
» University of Reading, UK
(2002 to 2004)
Researcher: Dr. M.Shaw
A research project following on from the Witches Broom ring-test activity of the CFC/ICCO/Bioversity Conservation and Utilisation of Cacao Germplasm project. Different cocoa varieties were tested against strains of Witches' Broom (WB) fungus from different regions in S. America under controlled greenhouse conditions in the UK. It was established that although a variety might be resistant to one strain of WB, it could be quite susceptible to another.
4 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA and CABI Publishing
(2001 to 2004)
Researcher: Dr. Basil G.D. Bartley
The BCCCA have had a long commitment to the improvement of the cocoa crop and the conservation and utilisation of cacao germplasm. It was therefore entirely appropriate that it should provide some financial support towards the publication of a book capturing the wealth of knowledge that Dr. Bartley had accumulated through his extensive research and personal participation in cacao collecting expeditions and germplasm management activities during a distinguished career lasting over 40 years.
1 Published Paper

Funded by BCCCA

» Cocoa Research Institute of Ghana
(2000 to 2004)
Researcher: L. Anglaare (Supervisor: Dr. M. McDonald)
A PhD research project to collate farmer knowledge and agronomic/physiological data on various native Ghanaian tree species and assess their potential as shade trees for cocoa.
4 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA
» University of Reading, UK
(1999 to 2004)
Researchers: C.S. Ford (Supervisors: Prof. M. Wilkinson, Prof. P. Hadley)
This PhD research project involved studies of the recognition and rejection reactions in cocoa's unusual late-acting self-incompatibility mechanism using a combination of microscopy and molecular techniques.
4 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA and CFC and other co-financiers
» Bioversity International
(1998 to 2004)
Co-financing and counterpart funding for activities at Cocoa Research Unit (Trinidad) and the Univ. of Reading, which formed part of this global project which involved 11 institutions from West Africa, the Americas, SE Asia and Europe.
10 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA
» University of Reading, UK
(1998 to 2004)
Researcher: Dr. M.Shaw
A research project following on from the Witches Broom ring-test activity of the CFC/ICCO/Bioversity Conservation and Utilisation of Cacao Germplasm project. Different cocoa varieties were tested against strains of Witches' Broom (WB) fungus from different regions in S. America under controlled greenhouse conditions in the UK. It was established that although a variety might be resistant to one strain of WB, it could be quite susceptible to another.
4 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA and Co-funding towards SUCCESS CPB management project involving ASKINDO, USDA, USAID and WCF
» Imperial College, UK
(1995 to 2004)
Researcher: Prof. John Mumford
BCCCA support enabled a consultant, Prof. John Mumford, to provide input on experimental design, management and data analysis to CPB projects to develop and implement integrated pest management control systems for this major pest in SE Asia. A media campaign (Agfax) to raise awareness of the techniques was undertaken in 2000
2 Published Papers

Funded by CRA* and GORTT
*(transferred from BCCCA in 2008)
» University of the West Indies
(2003 to 2003)
Researcher: Dr. David Butler
The UK chocolate industry, through its trade association BCCCA, and with support generated from the CRA trust fund, continued to support the core activities at the Cocoa Research Unit in Trinidad together with the Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago (GORTT). Additional support was received for visiting scientists from CIRAD (M. Boccara and J-M Thevenin). The American Cocoa Research Institute's five year project to evaluate accessions from ICG,T for their reaction to Witches' Broom disease was completed in July 2003 with the screening of over 1000 accessions, and was extended for a further year. The CFC/ICCO/IPGRI project "Cocoa Germplasm Conservation and Utilisation" came to an end in 2003 though activities on the germplasm enhancement trials and refinement of the CFC project collection continued. CRU continued its invovlement in another CFC supported project "To establish the physical, chemical and organoleptic parameters differentiating fine and bulk cocoa". CRU also participated in the project to develop a DNA fingerprinting database for all major cacao collections in the Americas by extracting DNA from ICG,T accessions for microsatellite analysis at USDA Beltsville. Research at CRU continued to be organised under the following work programmes - Conservation; Characterisation; Evaluation and Utilisation. Activities in 2003 included the transfer to Trinidad of the remaining clones from the Barbados Quarantine Station which was scheduled for closure, further characterisation of ICG,T accessions for genetic diversity analysis and identification purposes using morphological, biochemical and molecular techniques, evaluation for characters including those of economic interest (e.g. bean characteristics, fat content, pod hardness and disease resistance),sensory evaluation studies, studies on the genetic basis of disease resistance and germplasm enhancement (pre-breeding) to develop a population with a high level of resistance to Black Pod and Witches’ Broom diseases.
11 Published Papers

Funded by CRA* and GORTT
*(transferred from BCCCA in 2008)
» University of the West Indies
» lnstituto Nacional de Investigaciones AgroPecuarias, Ecuador
(1994 to 2003)
Researchers: Dr. David Butler, Dr. Vish Mooleedhar
The London Cocoa Trade Amazon Project (See LCTAP 1979-1985) undertaken with the full support of INIAP, Ecuador was successful in collecting over 1400 samples of wild and landrace germplasm and establishing them in a remote field collection in San Carlos, Napo Province, Ecuador. As part of the LCTAP project, some of this material was distributed, via quarantine, to genebanks for long term conservation and utilisation. However, many of the accesssions remained unduplicated outside of the San Carlos collection and were at risk of genetic erosion. BCCCA supported several missions to help ensure that these valuable genetic resources were duplicated in the INIAP Pichilingue genebank in Quevedo, Ecuador and distributed to other genebanks, particularly the International Cocoa Genebank, Trinidad via quarantine. In the latter phases of the project, efforts were made to reinvigorate the trees in the San Carlos field collection through fertiliser application, phytosanitation and pruning. This treatment was necessary to stimulate the trees into producing new growth suitable for propagation. Grafted plants were initially established in the INIAP genebank at Pichilingue and material propagated for onwards transfer to quarantine (usually Miami/Barbados and Reading). Missions in 1989/91 were successful in transferring 27 clones, and further missions in 1994/95 resulted in the establishment of 31 clones in Barbados Quarantine Facility. Following the 1999-2001 phase of the project, 85 LCT-EEN accessions had been established in Pichilingue, and plants of 70 of these clones had been established in the Barbados Quarantine Facility
8 Published Papers

Funded by CRA* and GORTT
*(transferred from BCCCA in 2008)
» University of the West Indies
(2002 to 2002)
Researcher: Dr. David Butler
The UK chocolate industry, through its trade association BCCCA, and with support generated from the CRA trust fund, continued to support the core activities at the Cocoa Research Unit in Trinidad together with the Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago (GORTT). Additional support was received for visiting scientists from CIRAD (O. Sounigo and J-M Thevenin) and GORTT (V. Mooleedhar). Other projects include the American Cocoa Research Institute's project to evaluate accessions from ICG,T for their reaction to Witches' Broom disease and the Common Fund for Commodities/ICCO/IPGRI project "Cocoa germplasm conservation and utilisation: a global approach". A new collaborative project with USDA was initiated in 2001 to compile a genetic fingerprint database of germplasm in South American collections. CRU agreed to extract DNA from every accession in the ICG,T and send samples to USDA Beltsville for microsatellite analysis with an automatic sequencer. Other research at CRU continued to be organised under the following work programmes - Conservation; Characterisation; Evaluation and Utilisation. Activities in 2001 included the continuation of the CRU/INIAP initiative to conserve the LCT-EEN material by replicating materials held in the field genebank at San Carlos, Ecuador for dissemination to EETP and CRU (via Barbados Quarantine Station), further characterisation of ICG,T accessions for genetic diversity analysis and identification purposes using morphological, biochemical and molecular techniques, evaluation for characters including those of economic interest (e.g. bean characteristics, fat content, pod hardness and disease resistance),sensory evaluation studies, studies on the genetic basis of disease resistance and germplasm enhancement (pre-breeding) to develop a population with a high level of resistance to Black Pod and Witches’ Broom diseases.
13 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA and CATIE, CIRAD, USDA
» Cocoa and Coconut Research Institute, PNG
(2001 to 2002)
Researchers: Dr. Blaha, Dr. P. Hebbar, Dr. Konam, Dr. U. Krause
Black Pod disease is a major constraint for cocoa production in PNG and a biocontrol approach has been advocated. This short project enabled a staff member from the Cocoa and Coconut Research Institute of Papua New Guinea (CCRI-PNG) to undertake training in biocontrol techniques with scientists in the USDA Beltsville laboratories and also at CATIE, Costa Rica with a view to developing these techniques for use in PNG.

Funded by BCCCA
» University of Reading, UK
(2000 to 2002)
Researchers: Dr. Paul Hadley/Dr. Michael Wadsworth, Dr. Michelle End (to end Nov 2000)
The London cocoa trade (LIFFE), through BCCCA/CRA Ltd., continued to support this long standing project to collate and disseminate information on cocoa genetic resources which was initiated in 1988 in liaison with IPGRI (now Alliance Bioversity International-CIAT). The ICGD is freely available through its website and in 2001 was distributed on CD-ROM to over 50 cocoa research institutes and others with an interest in cacao genetic resources. During this phase of the project ICGD Online (www.icgd.rdg.ac.uk) has been considerably improved with the inclusion of new links to view photographs, full references, research station addresses and information on the origins of group names. New pages have been added that allow microsatellite data to be viewed and compared (currently exact matches and possible parents).
4 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA and Masterfoods (from 2001)
» University of Reading, UK
(1999 to 2002)
Researcher: Prof. P.Hadley
The UK industry, through BCCCA and CRA Ltd, have been supporting the safe distribution of cocoa germplasm via the quarantine facility at the University of Reading since 1982. Currently, CRA Ltd and USDA are jointly supporting the ICQC,R which provides the only international intermediate quarantine service for the safe movement of cocoa germplasm - one of the key ‘building block’ resources for the cocoa research community.

Funded by CRA* and GORTT
*(transferred from BCCCA in 2008)
» University of the West Indies
(2001 to 2001)
Researcher: Dr. David Butler
The UK chocolate industry, through its trade association BCCCA, and with support generated from the CRA trust fund, continued to support the core activities at the Cocoa Research Unit in Trinidad together with the Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago (GORTT). Additional support was received for visiting scientists from CIRAD (O. Sounigo and J-M Thevenin) and GORTT (V. Mooleedhar). Other projects include the American Cocoa Research Institute's project to evaluate accessions from ICG,T for their reaction to Witches' Broom disease and the Common Fund for Commodities/ICCO/IPGRI project "Cocoa germplasm conservation and utilisation: a global approach". A new collaborative project with USDA was initiated in 2001 to compile a genetic fingerprint database of germplasm in South American collections. CRU agreed to extract DNA from every accession in the ICG,T and send samples to USDA Beltsville for microsatellite analysis with an automatic sequencer. Other research at CRU continued to be organised under the following work programmes - Conservation; Characterisation; Evaluation and Utilisation. Activities in 2001 included the continuation of the CRU/INIAP initiative to conserve the LCT-EEN material by replicating materials held in the field genebank at San Carlos, Ecuador for dissemination to EETP and CRU (via Barbados Quarantine Station), further characterisation of ICG,T accessions for genetic diversity analysis and identification purposes using morphological, biochemical and molecular techniques, evaluation for characters including those of economic interest (e.g. bean characteristics, fat content, pod hardness and disease resistance),sensory evaluation studies, studies on the genetic basis of disease resistance and germplasm enhancement (pre-breeding) to develop a population with a high level of resistance to Black Pod and Witches’ Broom diseases.
12 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA and Global IPM Facility
» Centre for Agriculture and Biosciences
(1999 to 2001)
Researchers: Dr JGM Vos, Dr. JK Waage
Farmer participatory integrated crop management (ICM) programmes, incorporating Integrated Pest Management (IPM), have proven very successful in increasing productivity and reducing pesticide use in many crops through a programme of experiential learning by village groups in season-long “farmer field schools”. This project set out to conduct a thorough analysis of the national and regional potential for a programme of farmer-participatory ICM in cocoa cropping systems and develop a proposal for a pilot project which has the commitment of stakeholders and sponsors. Results from a farmer-survey, combined with information from previous studies, highlighted the key socio-economic, agronomic and pest/disease factors affecting cocoa production in Ghana and were used in the development of plans for a pilot ICM training project in consultation with stakeholders within the country. The development during the project of a new USAID initiative on cocoa in West Africa as part of the Sustainable Tree Crops Programme (STCP) provided an opportunity for further collaboration in the development of training modules. STCP and BCCCA supported a workshop held in Cotonou, Benin in 2001 which focussed on regional cocoa integrated pest management (IPM) in West Africa (Vos and Neuenschwander, 2003)

Funded by CRA* and GORTT
*(transferred from BCCCA in 2008)
» University of the West Indies
(2000 to 2000)
Researcher: Dr. David Butler
The UK chocolate industry, through its trade association BCCCA, and with support generated from the CRA trust fund, continued to support the core activities at the Cocoa Research Unit in Trinidad together with the Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago (GORTT). Additional support was received for visiting scientists from CIRAD (O. Sounigo and J-M Thevenin) and GORTT (V. Mooleedhar). Other projects include the American Cocoa Research Institute's project to evaluate accessions from ICG,T for their reaction to Witches' Broom disease, the CAOBISCO project "Use of molecular markers to identify the genetic basis of resistance to Black Pod disease (Phytophthora) and identify early screening markers (completed September 2000) and the Common Fund for Commodities/ICCO/IPGRI project "Cocoa germplasm conservation and utilisation: a global approach". Research at CRU continued to be organised under the following work programmes - Conservation; Characterisation; Evaluation and Utilisation. Activities in 2000 included the continuation of the CRU/INIAP initiative to conserve the LCT-EEN material by replicating materials held in the field genebank at San Carlos, Ecuador for dissemination to EETP and CRU (via Barbados Quarantine Station), further characterisation of ICG,T accessions for genetic diversity analysis and identification purposes using morphological, biochemical and molecular techniques, evaluation for characters including those of economic interest (e.g. bean characteristics, fat content, pod hardness and disease resistance),sensory evaluation studies, studies on the genetic basis of disease resistance and germplasm enhancement (pre-breeding) to develop a population with a high level of resistance to Black Pod and Witches’ Broom diseases.
7 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA
(2000 to 2000)
The BCCCA have had a long commitment to the improvement of the cocoa crop and undertook to hold a meeting of scientists involved in molecular characterisation of cocoa germplasm. The objectives of this colloquium were for interested scientists to share results, coordinate projects, and work towards a vision of a worldwide cocoa enhanced breeding programme. The colloquium was held at CIRAD on the 21st September 2000 and was attended by around 30 scientists. Presentations were made by BCCCA, CRU Trinidad, the University of Reading, USDA, CIRAD, and the ICGD, followed by open discussions on the future of germplasm characterisation using molecular tools. The participants agreed on the need for a coordinated effort to use molecular technology for the improved conservationa and utilisation of cocoa genetic resources. The outputs were presented to the wider cocoa community at the INGENIC workshop "New Technologies in Cocoa Breeding" held in 2000
1 Published Paper

Funded by BCCCA
» Imperial College, UK
» University of Reading, UK
(2000 to 2000)
Researchers: J. Mumford, P. Hadley, Dr. A.Leach, Dr. A.Daymond
A project to enhance a computer simulation model of the CPB for Indonesian cocoa production, which had been previously developed with BCCCA support, by incorporating elements to predict the pod development cycle, and estimate the net returns of management strategies. It is anticipated that the model can be used as a training tool to help extension workers to understand the dynamics of CPB infestation and how management options may shift to maintain optimal returns for farmers under different market conditions (labour costs/cocoa price).
2 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA and Contributors to CAOBISCO Cocoa Research and CIRAD
» CIRAD, France
» Cocoa Research Unit, Trinidad & Tobago (now CRC)
» Institut Recherche Agriculture Development, Cameroun
» Centre National Recherches Agriculture, Cote d'Ivoire
(1995 to 2000)
Researcher: Dr. D. Despreaux
(adapted from CAOBISCO) The CAOBISCO/CIRAD project on the genetic basis of resistance to Black Pod had three main objectives: (a) Phytopathology: develop a method for early screening of black pod resistance and evaluate reliability; b) Molecular biology: genetic mapping of black pod resistance (this was the central theme of the project); c) Pre-breeding activities: to demonstrate the accumulation of resistance genes by applying early screening. Four research institutes were involved in the project: CIRAD (France), CRU (Cocoa Research Unit Trinidad), CNRA (Centre National de Recherche Agronomique- Côte d'Ivoire); and IRAD-Cameroon). The project has set a benchmark for other projects on the genetics of resistance to cocoa pathogens. Techniques for screening for Black Pod disease resistance have been developed, including a protocol for a leaf test method for early screening. Mapping populations in Côte d'Ivoire, Cameroon, Trinidad and Montpellier have contributed to the identification of areas on the chromosomes (Quantitative Trait Loci or QTLs) for field, leaf, and pod resistance on a highly saturated genetic map for cocoa. Several of these QTLs co-locate (occupy the same position on the chromosome). Many resistance QTLs also co-locate with resistance candidate genes from other plant species, and with yield QTLs, underlining how important these will be in marker assisted selection schemes. Pre-breeding activities have created a legacy of useful crosses in the producing countries. The project resulted in over 30 publications in journals and conference proceedings and three PhD theses.
13 Published Papers

Funded by CRA* and GORTT
*(transferred from BCCCA in 2008)
» University of the West Indies
(1999 to 1999)
Researcher: Dr. David Butler
The UK chocolate industry, through its trade association BCCCA, and with support generated from the CRA trust fund, continued to support the core activities at the Cocoa Research Unit in Trinidad together with the Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago (GORTT). Additional support was received for visiting scientists from CIRAD (O. Sounigo and J-M Thevenin) and GORTT (V. Mooleedhar). Other projects include the American Cocoa Research Institute's project to evaluate accessions from ICG,T for their reaction to Witches' Broom disease, the CAOBISCO project "Use of molecular markers to identify the genetic basis of resistance to Black Pod disease (Phytophthora) and identify early screening markers and the Common Fund for Commodities/ICCO/IPGRI project "Cocoa germplasm conservation and utilisation: a global approach". Research at CRU continued to be organised under the following work programmes - Conservation; Characterisation; Evaluation and Utilisation. Activities in 1999 included a CRU/INIAP initiative to conserve the LCT-EEN material by replicating materials held in the field genebank at San Carlos, Ecuador for dissemination to EETP and CRU (via Barbados Quarantine Station), further characterisation of ICG,T accessions for genetic diversity analysis and identification purposes using morphological, biochemical and molecular techniques, evaluation for characters including those of economic interest (e.g. bean characteristics, fat content, pod hardness and disease resistance),sensory evaluation studies, studies on the genetic basis of disease resistance and germplasm enhancement (pre-breeding) to develop a population with a high level of resistance to Black Pod and Witches’ Broom diseases.
9 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA
» University of the West of England, Bristol, UK
» University of Reading, UK
(1999 to 1999)
Researcher: Prof.M.Wilkinson
A short project to study the levels of genetic diversity present in material collected by the Guyana Cocoa Initiative from uncultivated sources and also to genetically fingerprint the materials held in the Timehri Genebank.

Funded by BCCCA
» University of Reading, UK
(1999 to 1999)
Researchers: Dr. Paul Hadley/Dr. Michael Wadsworth, Dr. Michelle End
This long standing project to collate and disseminate information on cocoa genetic resources was initiated in 1988 in liaison with IPGRI (now Alliance Bioversity International-CIAT) and is supported by the London cocoa trade. The ICGD is freely available in computerised and printed formats to cocoa research institutes and others with an interest in cacao genetic resources. It has become a key resource for the cocoa research community and is currently funded by NYSE LIFFE and is administered by CRA Ltd.

Funded by BCCCA
» University of Reading, UK
(1996 to 1999)
Researcher: Prof. P.Hadley
The UK industry, through BCCCA and CRA Ltd, have been supporting the safe distribution of cocoa germplasm via the quarantine facility at the University of Reading since 1982. Currently, CRA Ltd and USDA are jointly supporting the ICQC,R which provides the only international intermediate quarantine service for the safe movement of cocoa germplasm - one of the key ‘building block’ resources for the cocoa research community.

Funded by BCCCA
» University of the West of England, Bristol, UK
(1995 to 1999)
Researcher: Dr. M. Johnston
Very little is known of the type or presence of wild cocoa found in Guyana, although studies of material collected in recent years from neighbouring French Guiana suggest that this germplasm is markedly different to other Lower Amazon types. Furthermore, the French Guiana material has shown some potential as a source of resistance to Witches’ broom disease. A series of short expeditions were undertaken in 1995, 1996 and 1998 to prospect for wild and landrace cocoa types in the forest areas of southern Guyana and to help re-establish the Guyana National Cocoa Genebank. BCCCA contributed to the expedition costs, allowing a number of students to participate. An associated genetic fingerprinting study showed that some of the material collected was very different to most other accessions held in international genebanks.
3 Published Papers

Funded by CRA* and GORTT
*(transferred from BCCCA in 2008)
» University of the West Indies
(1998 to 1998)
Researcher: Dr. David Butler
The UK chocolate industry, through its trade association BCCCA, and with support generated from the CRA trust fund, continued to support the core activities at the Cocoa Research Unit in Trinidad together with the Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago (GORTT). Additional support was received for visiting scientists from CIRAD (O. Sounigo and J-M Thevenin), GORTT (V. Mooleedhar), Nestle (J. Reneau) and CRIG (A. Karimu). The American Cocoa Research Institute's project to evaluate genotypic variation in cocoa butter content of seeds came to an end in 1998 and a new project was started to evaluate accessions from ICG,T for their reaction to Witches' Broom disease. Research at CRU continued to be organised under the following work programmes - Conservation; Characterisation; Evaluation and Utilisation. Activities in 1998 included further characterisation of ICG,T accessions for genetic diversity analysis and identification purposes using morphological, biochemical and molecular techniques, evaluation for characters including those of economic interest (e.g. bean characteristics, fat content, pod hardness and disease resistance),sensory evaluation studies, studies on the genetic basis of disease resistance and germplasm enhancement (pre-breeding) to develop a population with a high level of resistance to Black Pod and Witches’ Broom diseases.
13 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA
» Imperial College, UK
(1998 to 1998)
Researchers: Prof. J. Mumford, Dr. A.Leach
A short project to develop a model to estimate the effects of Complete, Frequent, Regular Harvesting (CFRH) and/or pesticide applications on the dry weight of the cocoa harvested. The model used data generated by the ACRI/ASKINDO/BCCCA Cocoa Pod Borer Management Project in Indonesia. The model shows how CPB can be effectively suppressed by the removal of ripe pods on a weekly basis to substantially increase yield compared to monthly harvest due to the effect on the CPB alone. However, the effects of CRFH are even greater when the losses due to rat and Black Pod damage are also taken into account. The model predicts that pesticide application would have to take place on a very frequent basis (weekly) in a monthly harvesting regime to produce yields comparable to those obtainable with a weekly harvesting regime.
2 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA
» University of Reading, UK
(1998 to 1998)
Researchers: Dr. Paul Hadley/Dr. Michael Wadsworth, Dr. Michelle End
This long standing project to collate and disseminate information on cocoa genetic resources was initiated in 1988 in liaison with IPGRI (now Bioversity International) and is supported by the London cocoa trade. The ICGD is freely available in computerised and printed formats to cocoa research institutes and others with an interest in cacao genetic resources. It has become a key resource for the cocoa research community and is currently funded by NYSE LIFFE and is administered by CRA Ltd.

Funded by BCCCA and CFC project partners including IPGRI, CIRAD,ACRI
» University of the West Indies
(1994 to 1998)
Researchers: David Butler, David Iwaro
Cacao accessions with a wide genetic base and useful traits are selected for inclusion in a germplasm enhancement programme. The priority trait in the current programme is resistance to Black Pod disease and accessions in the ICG,T are being systematically evaluated using a detached pod inoculation method to determine their disease reaction. Crosses are made by controlled pollination of parents and seedling progeny are raised in a greenhouse for evaluation. Seedlings are evaluated for Black Pod at an early stage using a leaf disc inoculation method and, by grafting the parental clones onto rootstocks, tests on young leaves from the parents can be compared with those from the progeny. Segregation in the progeny provides the possibility of selecting seedlings with more resistance to Black Pod than the parents.
20 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA
» University of the West Indies
(1980 to 1998)
BCCCA used to provide support for a greenhouse facility in Barbados to quarantine materials entering the ICG,T. Since 1998 this function has been undertaken by the International Cocoa Quarantine Centre, University of Reading.

Funded by BCCCA
» University of Aberystwyth, UK
(1997 to 1997)
Researcher: Dr. G.Griffiths
Black Pod rot can be caused by various pathogens and it is often difficult to distinguish them based on symptoms alone. In West Africa, two main species of Phytophthora cause crop losses, P. palmivora and P. megakarya. The latter is considered the more aggressive species, and continues to spread within the region. This project developed a fast, cheap PCR-based diagnostic test which can be used to determine the causal agent of Black Pod infections from fresh or dried samples of pod husk and thus be used to monitor the spread of P. megakarya.
1 Published Paper

Funded by CRA* and GORTT
*(transferred from BCCCA in 2008)
» University of the West Indies
(1997 to 1997)
Researchers: Prof. John Spence (to August 1997), Dr. David Butler (from September 1997)
The UK chocolate industry, through its trade association BCCCA, and with support generated from the CRA trust fund, continued to support the core activities at the Cocoa Research Unit in Trinidad together with the Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. Additional support was received from CIRAD for two visiting scientists (O. Sounigo and J-M Thevenin) and from the American Cocoa Research Institute for a project to evaluate genotypic variation in cocoa butter content of seeds. Research at CRU continued to be organised under the following work programmes - Conservation; Characterisation; Evaluation and Utilisation; Data management; Research and Training; Publications and International Collaboration. Activities in 1997 included a study of the morphological variation in the germplasm collected from the Maya mountains of Southern Belize, further characterisation of ICG,T accessions for genetic diversity analysis and evaluation for characters including those of economic interest (e.g. bean characteristics, fat content, pod hardness and disease resistance),sensory evaluation studies, studies on the genetic basis of disease resistance and germplasm enhancement (pre-breeding) to develop a population with a high level of resistance to Black Pod and Witches’ Broom diseases.
18 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA and Mars Confectionery UK
(1997 to 1997)
A video to highlight the threat to cocoa production was produced by Mars Confectionery UK. With the assistance of BCCCA, the video and an accompanying booklet was circulated by BCCCA in English and French versions. Over 100 copies of the video and booklet were distributed to research institutes and academic institutions, companies involved in the cocoa supply chain, trade associations and ICCO. The video was very well received and was publicized/shown at various meetings including those held by ICCO and the Second International Pest and Diseases Seminar January 1998.

Funded by BCCCA
» University of Reading, UK
(1997 to 1997)
Researchers: Dr. Paul Hadley/Dr. Michael Wadsworth, Dr. Michelle End
This long standing project to collate and disseminate information on cocoa genetic resources was initiated in 1988 in liaison with IPGRI (now Bioversity International) and is supported by the London cocoa trade. The ICGD is freely available in computerised and printed formats to cocoa research institutes and others with an interest in cacao genetic resources. It has become a key resource for the cocoa research community and is currently funded by NYSE LIFFE and is administered by CRA Ltd.
1 Published Paper

Funded by BCCCA
» Imperial College, UK
» University of Reading, UK
(1996 to 1997)
Researchers: Dr. B. Wheeler, Dr. Ann Parker
This was a short project to recover and re-culture the collection of over 1000 Moniliophthora (Crinipellis) perniciosa isolates established at Silwood Park, Imperial College by Dr. Bryan Wheeler thanks to BCCCA support over many years. Basidiocarps were produced from some of the cultures and the basidiospores collected from them were stored in liquid nitrogen. The project also recovered and re-cultured 25 isolates of Phytophthora megakarya and 15 isolates of P. palmivora. The duplicates of the collections were established at University of Reading and Silwood Park.

Funded by CRA* and Government of Belize, University of Cleveland
*(transferred from BCCCA in 2008)
» Cocoa Research Unit, Trinidad & Tobago (now CRC)
(1992 to 1997)
Researcher: Mr. V. Mooleedhar
BCCCA support enabled a scientist working at Cocoa Research Unit (CRU), University of the West Indies, Trinidad to participate in a series of expeditions to the Maya Mountain region of Belize to prospect for uncultivated cacao material. During the prospection criollo cocoa types were found as well established understorey plants in certain regions of the Maya Mountains. Along with the collection of both vegetative and seed samples substantial passport data and botanical observation were made in the field, confirming the material to possess classical criollo morphology. Samples were established in the germplasm collection managed by Cocoa Research Unit via quarantine in Barbados Quarantine Unit.
6 Published Papers

Funded by CRA* and GORTT
*(transferred from BCCCA in 2008)
» University of the West Indies
(1996 to 1996)
Researcher: Prof. John Spence
The UK chocolate industry, through its trade association BCCCA, and with support generated from the CRA trust fund, continued to support the work at the Cocoa Research Unit in Trinidad together with the Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago with additional support from CIRAD for visiting scientists and with funding from the American Cocoa Research Institute for a project to evaluate genotypic variation in cocoa butter content of seeds. The research continued to be centred around the International Cocoa Genebank, Trinidad (ICG,T). Agreement was reached to use the remaining part of the European Development Fund grant (which established the ICG,T) to support the "International Workshop on the Utilisation of the Genetic Resources of the International Cocoa Genebank, Trinidad" held in June 1996 . The event brought breeders and other researchers from many cocoa producing countries for discussions on pre-breeding, quarantine,data accessibility and training needs amongst other topics. It also provided an opportunity for discussions on the IPGRI proposal "Cocoa Germplasm Utilisation and Conservation- A Global Approach" which was being developed for submission to CFC via the ICCO. Research at CRU continued to be organised under the following work programmes - Conservation; Characterisation; Evaluation and Utilisation; Data management; Research and Training; Publications and International Collaboration. Activities in 1996 included participation in initiatives to collect germplasm from the Maya mountains of Southern Belize, further characterisation of ICG,T accessions for genetic diversity analysis and evaluation for characters including bean characteristics, fat content, pod hardness and disease resistance.
13 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA
» University of Reading, UK
(1996 to 1996)
Researchers: Dr. Paul Hadley/Dr. Michael Wadsworth, Michelle End
This long standing project to collate and disseminate information on cocoa genetic resources was initiated in 1988 in liaison with IPGRI (now Bioversity International) and is supported by the London cocoa trade. The ICGD is freely available in computerised and printed formats to cocoa research institutes and others with an interest in cacao genetic resources. It has become a key resource for the cocoa research community and is currently funded by NYSE LIFFE and is administered by CRA Ltd.

Funded by BCCCA
» BAL Plantations, Malaysia
(1996 to 1996)
A short project to photograph the accessions in the BAL Plantations collection for inclusion in the ICGD.

Funded by BCCCA
(1996 to 1996)
The revision of BCCCA’s booklet ‘Cocoa Beans: Chocolate Manufacturers’ Quality Requirements’ was undertaken by Dr. John Clapperton, a well known expert in cocoa flavour and other aspects of cocoa quality, in consultation with industry experts. The resulting Fourth Edition of the book was published in October 1996 and has continued to be a well regarded source of information on aspects of quality management including Good Agricultural Practice and Good Manufacturing Practice, incorporating new knowledge and understanding of factors affecting flavour, food hygiene and IPM.

Funded by BCCCA
» University of Reading, UK
(1994 to 1996)
Researchers: Dr. Paul Hadley/Dr. Michael Wadsworth, Dr. Michelle End
In 1994, the London cocoa trade agreed that its contributions to the BCCCA research programme should be used to support the International Cocoa Germplasm Database project which had been initiated in 1988 to collate and disseminate information on cocoa genetic resources in liaison with IPGRI (now Bioversity International). The ICGD was distributed in computerised form to cocoa research institutes and others with an interest in cacao genetic resources, and has become a key resource for the cocoa research community. [The project has continued and is currently funded by NYSE LIFFE and is administered by CRA Ltd].
2 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA and University of Reading
» Imperial College, UK
(1994 to 1996)
Researchers: Dr. B. Wheeler, Dr. Mark Luterbacher
Witches’ broom is a devastating disease of cocoa widespread in Latin America and with the potential to spread to other cocoa producing regions if it were to be accidentally introduced. Improved planting materials with natural resistance to the disease will be a key component of any integrated pest management system. This project set out to assist this process by screening different cocoa varieties using a range of isolates of Moniliophthora (Crinipellis) perniciosa in the laboratories/greenhouses at Silwood Park, Imperial College in the UK. A method, based on Griffith and Hedger's bran-vermiculite culture method, was established to produce basidiocarps from the extensive collection of over 100 isolates. Spores collected from the basiocarps were used in preliminary experiments to inoculate clonal cocoa material provided by University of Reading. Towards the end of the project, the isolate collection was duplicated so that it could be made available to other researchers (See B96_1 Recovery and re-culture WB collections) and a comprehensive guide to the methods used in the project produced.
1 Published Paper

Funded by BCCCA and Malaysian Cocoa Board
» University of Reading, UK
(1993 to 1996)
Researcher: Prof. P.Hadley
The UK industry, through BCCCA and CRA Ltd, have been supporting the safe distribution of cocoa germplasm via the quarantine facility at the University of Reading since 1982. Currently, CRA Ltd and USDA are jointly supporting the ICQC,R which provides the only international intermediate quarantine service for the safe movement of cocoa germplasm - one of the key ‘building block’ resources for the cocoa research community.
3 Published Papers

Funded by CRA* and GORTT
*(transferred from BCCCA in 2008)
» University of the West Indies
(1995 to 1995)
Researcher: Prof. John Spence
The UK chocolate industry, through its trade association BCCCA, and with support generated from the CRA trust fund, continued to support the work at the Cocoa Research Unit in Trinidad together with the Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago with additional support from CIRAD for two visiting scientists and with funding from the American Cocoa Research Institute for a project to evaluate genotypic variation in cocoa butter content of seeds. The research continued to be centred around the International Cocoa Genebank, Trinidad (ICG,T) which was established with support from the European Development Fund and which had been recognised as an international collection by IBPGR/IPGRI. The generous support from the European Union came to an end in 1994 on schedule but a number of students who had been supported by this grant completed their studies in 1995. Research at CRU continues to be organised under the work programmes are Conservation; Characterisation; Evaluation and Utilisation; Data management; Research and Training; Publications and International Collaboration. Activities in 1995 included participation in initiatives to collect/transfer germplasm from Ecuador and French Guiana, studies of environmental effects on phenotype expression, use of molecular markers to assess genetic diversity, confirm identity and in genome mapping, field and laboratory based evaluation of disease resistance, and the influence of fermentation on flavour and quality characteristics.
23 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA
» University of Reading, UK
(1995 to 1995)
Researchers: Dr. Paul Hadley/Dr. Michael Wadsworth, Dr. Michelle End
The London cocoa trade, through BCCCA/CRA Ltd., continued to support this long standing project to collate and disseminate information on cocoa genetic resources. In this phase of the project, a second MS-DOS version of the ICGD was distributed widely to cocoa research institutes and others with an interest in cacao genetic resources. The project has continued to develop and is now a key resource for the cocoa research community, funded by NYSE LIFFE and administered by CRA Ltd.
2 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA
» Imperial College, UK
(1995 to 1995)
Researcher: J.D. Mumford & B.J. Wood
BCCCA commissioned a review of potential research needs for the cocoa pod borer. The objectives were to 1.)outline previous research carried out on CPB in Southeast Asia 2.) to describe current and further research on CPB and 3.) to describe measures which have been, and are being, taken to contain the CPB problem or to live with it.

Funded by BCCCA and Mars/Nestle
» CIRAD, France
» Cocoa Research Unit, Trinidad & Tobago (now CRC)
» University of the West Indies
(1994 to 1995)
The technique of randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) analysis using PCR can be useful in genetically fingerprinting organisms and, especially when used together with information derived from other techniques, can be useful in creating genetic linkage maps. The use of RAPD analysis for cocoa was developed at SCRI (See BCCCA project B86 Molecular variation in cocoa using RAPD and other techniques). For the technique to be of maximum benefit to cocoa research, there must be a high degree of reproducibility both within a single laboratory and between laboratories. This project set out to investigate levels of reproducibility of the technique when used by laboratories at CIRAD (Montpellier), CRU (Trinidad), Francereco, M&M Mars and Almirante Center for Cocoa Studies. The study found that there was a high degree of reproducibility within each of the participating laboratories, but a low degree of reproducibility between laboratories. The technique has applications for in-house characterisation of germplasm (for example in eliminating duplicates) but was not yet suitable for uniquely identifying genotypes by the establishment of an unequivocal banding pattern
1 Published Paper

Funded by BCCCA
» University of Reading, UK
» BAL Plantations, Malaysia
(1994 to 1995)
Researchers: Prof. P. Hadley, Dr. M. End

Funded by BCCCA and BAL Plantations, Sabah, Malaysia
» BAL Plantations, Malaysia
(1990 to 1995)
Researcher: Dr. John Clapperton
The BCCCA Flavour project set out to gain a better understanding of the factors influencing cocoa flavour, and particularly the production of undesirable off-flavours, and explored ways in which these may be minimised or avoided. During the project, protocols were established for post-harvest processing and flavour/quality evaluation. These included small-scale fermentation techniques which could enable samples as small as 0.75kg beans to be fermented in a heap of mixed beans with highly satisfactory results. Protocols were also developed for tasting of standard liquor samples by trained panelists allowing flavour to be evaluated on a reproduceable basis. The research found a very clear flavour difference between families of genotypes and demonstrated that flavour was influenced strongly by the mother tree, irrespective of the pollen donor, and that flavour characteristics are heritable. The methods developed were included in the BCCCA publication "Cocoa Beans: Manufacturers' Quality Requirements and the findings disseminated through conference papers and articles in the Cocoa Growers' Bulletin as well through academic publications.
5 Published Papers

Funded by CRA* and GORTT
*(transferred from BCCCA in 2008)
» University of the West Indies
(1985 to 1995)
Researcher: Prof. John Spence
The UK chocolate industry, through its trade association BCCCA, and with support generated from the CRA trust fund, continued to support the work at the Cocoa Research Unit in Trinidad together with the Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. The research continued to be centred around the International Cocoa Genebank, Trinidad (ICG,T) which was established with support from the European Development Fund and which had been recognised as an international collection by IBPGR. The Genetic Resources programme (led by Dr. Kennedy and Mrs Gonsalves) included characterisation of the accessions in the ICG,T using isozymes in the 1980's and the introduction of new techniques based on RFLP and RAPD in the 1990s

Funded by CRA* and GORTT
*(transferred from BCCCA in 2008)
» University of the West Indies
(1994 to 1994)
Researcher: Prof. John Spence
The UK chocolate industry, through its trade association BCCCA, and with support generated from the CRA trust fund, continued to support the work at the Cocoa Research Unit in Trinidad together with the Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. The research continued to be centred around the International Cocoa Genebank, Trinidad (ICG,T) which was established with support from the European Development Fund and which had been recognised as an international collection by IBPGR/IPGRI. The generous support from the European Union came to an end in 1994 on schedule and a number of the post-graduate students that had been supported by this grant completed their studies. Mr. Mooleedhar's secondment from the Ministry also came to an end, though GORTT kindly permitted him to continue to carry out the duties of Agronomist with no charge to CRU. As the EU funding came to a close, it was agreed that an evaluation of the project should be conducted and this Evaluation Mission was carried out by Drs. Engels and Dyce. One of the recommendations made in the Evaluation report was that greater emphasis should be placed on CRU's work programmes and a new format for the Annual Report was adopted to reflect this. These work programmes are Conservation; Characterisation; Evaluation and Utilisation; Data management; Research and Training; Publications and International Collaboration. Activities in 1994 included the production of two CRU Newsletters, analysis of pod indices data and isozyme/RAPD data, development of a new propagation technique, and evaluation of germplasm for Black Pod and Witches' Broom diseases together with further research on the organisms causing these diseases.
20 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA and Cocoa Research Unit, UWI, Trinidad
» Scottish Crops Research Institute, Dundee, UK
» University of Reading, UK
(1989 to 1994)
Researchers: J. Russell (nee Wilde) (Supervisors:R. Waugh, W. Powell, Culham, A.)
A project to develop protein and DNA fingerprinting techniques as a collaboration between Scottish Crops Research Institute and University of Reading. Isozymes, RAPD and RFLP markers were investigated and the advantages and disadvantages of RAPDs relative to Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism (RFLP) and morphological markers were assessed as part of a PhD research project. RAPD markers were found to be useful in quantifying levels of genetic variation between and within cocoa populations and were also associated with the geographical origin of the material. The techniques developed will be useful in surveying gene pools and identifying areas of maximum diversity and contribute to a sound scientific basis for the collection, conservation and utilization of cocoa genetic resources.
6 Published Papers

Funded by CRA* and GORTT
*(transferred from BCCCA in 2008)
» University of the West Indies
(1993 to 1993)
Researcher: Prof. John Spence
The UK chocolate industry, through its trade association BCCCA, and with support generated from the CRA trust fund, continued to support the work at the Cocoa Research Unit in Trinidad together with the Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. The research continued to be centred around the International Cocoa Genebank, Trinidad (ICG,T) which was established with support from the European Development Fund and which had been recognised as an international collection by IBPGR/IPGRI. CRU had also benefitted from support from the European Economic Community towards a number of post-graduate students from the ACP countries and two visiting scientists from CIRAD (Dr. M. Ducamp and Mr. O. Sounigo). In 1993, research focussed on assessing phenotypic diversity within the ICG,T using morphological descriptors (led by F. Bekele) and its genetic diversity using isozymesand RAPD analysis (O. Sounigo, Y. Christopher, S. Misir). Research on aspects of cocoa physiology, including responses to drought and high light levels continued and the pathology section studied relationships between leaf and pod resistance to Black Pod infection and aspects of Witches' Broom infection. Dr. J. Warren (breeder/geneticist) left CRU in June 1993.
26 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA
» University of Reading, UK
(1993 to 1993)
Researchers: Dr Paul Hadley/Dr. Michael Wadsworth, Dr. Michelle End
The International Cocoa Germplasm Database project continued to collate and disseminate information on cocoa genetic resources and establish itself as a key resource for those interested in cocoa breeding and genetic resources. It continued to build links with the cocoa genebanks and research institutes who contributed the data on the characteristics of their accessions and developed software to help make this information more easily accessible. The project has continued and is currently funded by NYSE LIFFE and is administered by CRA Ltd.
2 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA
» Cocoa Research Institute of Ghana
» University of Reading, UK
(1992 to 1993)
Researchers: Prof. P. Hadley, Dr. Ann Parker

Funded by BCCCA
» University of Liverpool, UK
(1990 to 1993)
Researcher: D. Penman (Supervisor:Dr. K. Hardwick)
A PhD project to investigate fungal biomass distribution in Witches' Broom Disease of Cocoa
5 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA and Malaysian Cocoa Board, ODA (for Ghana)
» University of Reading, UK
(1990 to 1993)
Researcher: Prof. P.Hadley
The UK industry, through BCCCA and CRA Ltd, have been supporting the safe distribution of cocoa germplasm via the quarantine facility at the University of Reading since 1982.In 1991, the virus indexing procedure was modified to extend the visual inspection period from 18 months to 24 months due to the detection of virus symptoms in a clone 20 months after its introduction. The project has continued for over 30 years and is currently supported by CRA Ltd and USDA (see CRA current projects for further details). The ICQC,R continues to provide the only international intermediate quarantine service for the safe movement of cocoa germplasm - one of the key ‘building block’ resources for the cocoa research community.
3 Published Papers

Funded by CRA* and GORTT
*(transferred from BCCCA in 2008)
» University of the West Indies
(1992 to 1992)
Researcher: Prof. John Spence
The UK chocolate industry, through its trade association BCCCA, and with support generated from the CRA trust fund, continued to support the work at the Cocoa Research Unit in Trinidad together with the Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. The research continued to be centred around the International Cocoa Genebank, Trinidad (ICG,T) which was established with support from the European Development Fund and which had been recognised as an international collection by IBPGR. CRU had also benefitted from support from the European Economic Community towards a number of post-graduate students from the ACP countries and a visiting scientist from CIRAD. In 1992, research focussed on characterising the accessions in the ICG,T using morphological descriptors (led by F. Bekele) and isozymes (Y. Christopher, E. Johnson, F. Hosein, J. Warren) and evaluating their resistance to rodents (D. Emamdie, J. Warren) and studies of the breeding system (K.Kalai, J.Warren). Aspects of pathology research included fungicide application methods (T. Sreenivasan) and further studies of the biology of Phytophthora spp. (Black Pod Rot) and Crinipellis (now Moniliophthora) perniciosa. CRU organised a Workshop entitled "Conservation, Characterisation and Utilisation of Cocoa Genetic Resources in the 21st Century" which was attended by over 50 delegates from 22 different countries.
28 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA
» University of Reading, UK
(1992 to 1992)
Researchers: Dr. Paul Hadley, Dr. Michelle End
The International Cocoa Germplasm Database project continued to collate and disseminate information on cocoa genetic resources and establish itself as a key resource for those interested in cocoa breeding and genetic resources. It continued to build links with the cocoa genebanks and research institutes who contributed the data on the characteristics of their accessions and developed software to help make this information more easily accessible. The project has continued and is currently funded by NYSE LIFFE and is administered by CRA Ltd.
3 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA and Bogor Research Institute, Indonesia
» Indonesian Centre for Estate Crops Research & Development/Biotechnology Research Institute for Estate Crops, Indonesia
(1991 to 1992)
Researcher: Dr. John Clapperton
BCCCA provided support for the equipment needed at Bogor Research Institute to prepare and evaluate cocoa samples for flavour quality. Dr. Clapperton provided training in the techniques and assistance in preparing the initial batches of samples.

Funded by BCCCA
» University of Reading, UK
» BAL Plantations, Malaysia
» University of the West Indies
(1989 to 1992)
Researcher: J.H.H. Yapp (SUpervisor: Prof. P. Hadley)
This was a post-graduate student project to investigate the physiological determinants of growth in juvenile cocoa and also yield development in immature and mature cocoa through a combination of greenhouse studies at the University of Reading, UK and field studies in Trinidad and Malaysia in partnership with CRU and BAL Plantations Sdn Bhd respectively. Genotypic variation in response to environmental factors was noted and the importance of light interception and distribution within the canopy in limiting productivity in cocoa germplasm was highlighted. Results from simulation developed in this study confirmed the importance of incoming solar radiation, light extinction coefficient and leaf nitrogen content in influencing radiation use efficiency nitrogen use efficiency and dry matter production.
7 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA
» University of the West Indies
(1989 to 1992)
Researcher: Prof. John Spence
The objective of this project was to collect germplasm from Trinidad & Tobago, and the wider Caribbean and Latin American region, to augment the collection in the International Cocoa Genebank, Trinidad (ICG,T)
8 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA
» Imperial College, UK
(1989 to 1992)
Researcher: Dr. B. Wheeler
A research project to develop methods to screen genotypes for their reaction to different strains of Moniliophthora perniciosa (formerly Crinipellis perniciosa), the fungus which causes Witches' broom disease. The project was continued in a second phase in 1994

Funded by BCCCA and University of Birmingham, UK
(1988 to 1992)
Researcher: Dr Michael T Jackson
Preliminary work to assess feasibility of collecting and conserving wild cocoa in Peru.Dr.M.T. Jackson of University of Birmingham visited Peru and held preliminary discussions with INIAA to assess the possibility of organising a collecting expedition to the Loreto and Madre de Dios regions of Peru. Unfortunately the project was not implemented since the security situation deteriorated in Peru in 1990.

Funded by CRA* and GORTT
*(transferred from BCCCA in 2008)
» University of the West Indies
(1991 to 1991)
Researcher: Prof. John Spence
The UK chocolate industry, through its trade association BCCCA, and with support generated from the CRA trust fund, continued to support the work at the Cocoa Research Unit in Trinidad together with the Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. The research continued to be centred around the International Cocoa Genebank, Trinidad (ICG,T) which was established with support from the European Development Fund and which had been recognised as an international collection by IBPGR. CRU had also benefitted from support from the European Economic Community towards a number of post-graduate students from the ACP countries. The research group at CRU was complemented by the appointment of a new breeder/geneticist, Dr. John Warren, and visiting scientists from CIRAD (Dr. M. Ducamp) and the University of Reading (Dr. T. Pettitt). BCCCA provided support for two staff members, Felicia Hosein and Elizabeth Johnson, to spend 3 months at the Scottish Crop Research Institute gaining knowledge on the use of RAPD (Random Amplification of Polymorphic DNA) technology. During 1991 CRU staff and students continued to focus their research on the accessions of the ICG,T including morphological and biochemical characterisation, inheritance of bean size characteristics and resistance to Phytophthora in leaf tissue. Pathology research included epidemiology of Phytophthora spp. and the identification of a new pod disease (Ceratocystis paradoxa). Students also carried out research on aspects of cocoa physiololgy including the effects of shade on growth.
20 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA
» University of Reading, UK
(1991 to 1991)
Researchers: Dr P. Hadley, Dr RM Wadsworth, Michelle End
In the third year of this long standing project to collate and disseminate information on cocoa genetic resources, a printed version of the database was released to cocoa research institutes and others with an interest in cacao genetic resources. The database became known as the International Cocoa Germplasm Database and further information on the origins, current locations and characteristics of cocoa clones was collated into a computerised database in collaboration with cocoa research institutes, universities and individuals working in the area of cocoa genetic resources. The project has continued and is currently funded by ICE Cocoa Futures Europe and is administered by CRA Ltd.
2 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA and United Plantations, Malaysia
(1991 to 1991)
Researcher: Dr. John Clapperton
BCCCA provided support for the equipment needed to undertake some studies on in vitro axillary bud culture, using the techniques developed by W Flynn and colleagues at Penn State University

Funded by BCCCA
(1991 to 1991)

Funded by BCCCA
» La Trobe University, Bundoora, Victoria, Australia
» Cocoa and Coconut Research Institute, PNG
(1988 to 1991)
Researcher: J. Dennis (Supervisor:Dr. P. Keane)
2 Published Papers

Funded by CRA*
*(transferred from BCCCA in 2008)
» University of the West Indies
» lnstituto Nacional de Investigaciones AgroPecuarias, Ecuador
(1988 to 1991)
Researcher: Dr. Alan Maddison
Chalmers collected cocoa germplasm from the Eastern Region of Ecuador in the 1970s and material was established in a field genebank set up by INIAP. However, many of the accesssions remained unduplicated outside of this genebank and were at risk of genetic erosion. This project set out to replant the collection at a new site in INIAP and eventually transfer material to the ICG,T in Trinidad.

Funded by CRA* and IBPGR
*(transferred from BCCCA in 2008)
» Cocoa Research Unit, Trinidad & Tobago (now CRC)
» University of Reading, UK
(1988 to 1991)
Researchers: Dr. A J Kennedy, Dr B Pickersgill
Isozyme characterization of cocoa (Theobroma cacao) germplasm (continuation of a project initiated by CRA Ltd)
9 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA
» University of the West Indies
» University of Reading, UK
(1988 to 1991)
Researchers: Dr. Steven Rudgard, Dr. Tim Pettitt
Strategies incorporating chemical control to reduce cocoa pod losses due to Witches' broom and Frosty Pod diseases rely on keeping the fungicide on pods in adequate concentrations and avoiding loss or redistribution. This project studied the effect of simulated rain on fungicides applied to young pods. An adjuvant such as Hyvis slowed the loss of copper and may improve disease control for these pathogens, but may be less effective for Phytophthora control where the distribution of the active ingredient, copper, in water is an important factor in control. A colorimetric flow analytical method for copper determinations was developed for field use in the project, adapted from the 'Heliflow' system developed at Reading University by Brown and Smith.
6 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA and GORTT
» University of the West Indies
(1990 to 1990)
Researcher: Prof. John Spence
The UK chocolate industry, through its trade association BCCCA, and with support generated from the CRA trust fund, continued to support the work at the Cocoa Research Unit in Trinidad together with the Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. The research continued to be centred around the International Cocoa Genebank, Trinidad (ICG,T) which was established with support from the European Development Fund and which had been recognised as an international collection by IBPGR. During this period, the Genetic Resources programme (led by Dr. Kennedy and Mrs Gonsalves) continued to focus on the morphological and isozyme characterisation of the accessions in the ICG,T. Some work was undertaken on cocoa physiology including an MPhil study of drought resistance and research by J.H.H. Yapp, a visiting scientist from University of Reading. The Pathology programme (led by Dr. Sreenivasan) continued to investigate the biology of Black Pod and Witches Broom diseases. Dr. T. Pettitt, another visiting scientist from the University of Reading, undertook research on copper-impregnated collars as a potential way to control black pod disease. BCCCA also provided additional support for work on isozymes and to support a Botanist/Collector who was appointed in late 1989 to acquire new accessions for the ICG,T.
3 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA
» University of Reading, UK
(1989 to 1990)
Researchers: Paul Hadley, Michelle End
This was an extension to a pilot project to collate and disseminate information on cocoa genetic resources in liaison with IPGRI (now Bioversity International). The database of Primitive Cocoa Germplasm was expanded to include selected material and data on clone characteristics. The project has continued to develop and is currently funded by NYSE LIFFE and is administered by CRA Ltd.
1 Published Paper

Funded by BCCCA
» University of Reading, UK
(1989 to 1990)
Researcher: Prof. P.Hadley
The UK industry, through BCCCA and CRA Ltd, have been supporting the safe distribution of cocoa germplasm via the quarantine facility at the University of Reading since 1982. Currently, CRA Ltd and USDA are jointly supporting the ICQC,R which provides the only international intermediate quarantine service for the safe movement of cocoa germplasm - one of the key ‘building block’ resources for the cocoa research community.
1 Published Paper

Funded by CRA*
*(transferred from BCCCA in 2008)
» lnstituto Nacional de Investigaciones AgroPecuarias, Ecuador
(1988 to 1990)
Researcher: Ing. J Vera B
BCCCA provided support to INIAP EETP Pichilingue to conserve the materials collected as part of the Expedition to the Oriente region of Ecuador led by Chalmers and INIAP staff in 1969 and 1973 (and some of the material collected during the LCTAP expedition). The objective was to re-propagate material held in the field genebank, and at high risk of loss, so that they could be established in the genebank at Pichilingue, and managed so that they could be eventually be used by the scientific community.

Funded by BCCCA
» University of Reading, UK
(1988 to 1989)
Researchers: Dr. Paul Hadley/Dr. Michael Wadsworth, Michelle End
This was a pilot project to collate information on cocoa genetic resources with a view to making the information more widely available to the cocoa research community. The first output from the project, released as ‘The Catalogue of Primitive Cocoa Germplasm’ in 1989, was distributed in computerised form to cocoa research institutes and others with an interest in cacao genetic resources. It contained information on the origins and current distribution of cocoa germplasm collected from the wild since 1938.
1 Published Paper

Funded by BCCCA and MCGC, CDC,
» University of Reading, UK
(1988 to 1989)
Researcher: Prof. P.Hadley
The UK industry, through BCCCA and CRA Ltd, have been supporting the safe distribution of cocoa germplasm via the quarantine facility at the University of Reading since 1982. In 1989, 147 accessions were held including clones transferred from Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and new introductions from ICG,T (Trinidad), CIRAD (France) and USDA (Miami). An additional polythene tunnel at the Shinfield Grange site of the University was constructed to accomodate the materials. The project has continued for over 30 years and is currently supported by CRA Ltd and USDA (see CRA Current Projects). It continues to provide an international intermediate quarantine service for the safe movement of cocoa germplasm - one of the key ‘building block’ resources for the cocoa research community.
1 Published Paper

Funded by BCCCA
(1988 to 1989)

Funded by BCCCA
(1988 to 1989)
Researcher: Dr.L.J. Petithuguenin
Black Pod disease caused by Phytophthora palmivora is a major cause of pod losses in Cote d'Ivoire and elsewhere in West Africa, In order to study the importance of living roots in the survival of P.palmivora throughout the year, a sample of adult cocoa trees was chosen and followed for 17 months for the presence of P.palmivora in the feeder roots, superficial root growth, black pod incidence and production. These observations were made in order to have an estimation of the extent of infection in cocoa roots of different ages throughout the year and the importance of this infection on the number of pods produced or lost due to black pod. The results suggest that living roots and soil are conservation sites of minor importance to P.palmivora and are not sites of proliferation. An unidentified homothallic species of Phytophthora has been isolated from roots and soil which is more common in these sites than is P.palmivora. The effect, if any, of this fungus on the yield of cocoa is not known. Root growth was found to be highly variable in time and between individuals. The dominance of the leaf production system over root growth was confirmed. An effect of soil texture on superficial root growth was detected. The greatest root activity was observed shortly after the return of the rains. This may have implications for the use of fertiliser on cocoa.

Funded by CRA* and GORTT
*(transferred from BCCCA in 2008)
» University of the West Indies
(1987 to 1989)
Researchers: Dr. A.J. Kennedy (Head to Nov. 1988), Prof. L.A. Wilson (acting Head Dec. 1988-July 1989), Prof. J.A. Spence (from August 1989).
The UK chocolate industry, through its trade association BCCCA, and with support generated from the CRA trust fund, continued to support the work at the Cocoa Research Unit in Trinidad together with the Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. The research continued to be centred around the International Cocoa Genebank, Trinidad (ICG,T) which was established with support from the European Development Fund and which had been recognised as an international collection by IBPGR. During this period, the Genetic Resources programme (led by Dr. Kennedy and Mrs Gonsalves) continued to focus on the morphological and isozyme characterisation of the accessions in the ICG,T. Some work was undertaken on cocoa physiology including an MPhil study of drought resistance and research by J.H.H. Yapp, a visiting scientist from University of Reading. The Pathology programme (led by Dr. Sreenivasan) continued to investigate the biology of Black Pod and Witches Broom diseases. Dr. T. Pettitt, another visiting scientist from the University of Reading, undertook research on copper-impregnated collars as a potential way to control black pod disease. BCCCA also provided additional support for work on isozymes and to support a Botanist/Collector who was appointed in late 1989 to acquire new accessions for the ICG,T.
16 Published Papers

Funded by CRA*
*(transferred from BCCCA in 2008)
» University of the West Indies
(1987 to 1989)
Researchers: Dr. A.J. Kennedy, H E Laker
1 Published Paper

Funded by BCCCA
» Imperial College, UK
(1987 to 1989)
Researcher: M. Luterbacher
A survey of isolates obtained from Black Pod infected pods was carried out in Equatorial Guinea and Ghana. All of the 17 isolates from Equatorial Guinea were identified as Phytophthora megakarya (A1 mating strain), and 11 of the 19 Ghanaian isolates were also diagnosed as P. megakarya - this was a new find for cocoa in Ghana. The remaining Ghanaian isolates were identified as P. palmivora (mating strain A2). The P. megakarya isolates grew more quickly and sporulated much faster than the P. palmvora isolates, accounting for the more virulent nature of P. megakarya in the field. P. megakarya was able to infect leaf tissue more effectively than P. palmivora, and it was suggested that a screening test based on leaf tissue could be developed though more research on this was necessary.
2 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA
» University of Liverpool, UK
(1986 to 1989)
Researchers: JE Orchard, K Hardwick
This project set out to investigate the role of plant growth regulators and changes in morphology in tissues infected by the fungus that causes Witches' Broom disease, Crinipellis (now Moniliophthora) perniciosa. The terminal part of the stem of cocoa plants, both healthy and infected with M. perniciosa were examined for changes in anatomy, cytokinin and auxin levels and oxidative enzyme capacity. The main conclusions concerning the changes in the stem of diseased plants were as follows: 1. Swelling of the stem was caused by expansion of cells in the pith and cortex. No increase in cell numbers occurred. 2. Vascular tissue in the stem showed less cell differentiation, particularly the xylem tissue. The phloem contained many more occluded cells. 3. Starch levels were much reduced. 4. No significant differences were detected in the cytokinins, during disease development. 5. Although auxin levels showed variability, the overall trend was for the auxin to decline during the progress of the disease. 6. Oxidative enzymes capable of destroying IAA were produced by the primary stage mycelium and also detected in diseased stem tissue.
1 Published Paper

Funded by BCCCA
» University of Aberystwyth, UK
(1985 to 1989)
Researchers: Dr. John Hedger, Dr/ A R McEuen
6 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA and IOCC contributors and international partners
(1985 to 1989)
Researcher: Dr. Steve Rudgard
The objective of the Project is "to develop an economic management system to control witches' broom disease of cocoa in a number of cocoa growing environments". The project adopted two approaches: 1) a series of comparative epidemiological experiments to determine critical relationships between environmental parameters, host growth and developments of Witches' Broom in different environments and 2) an evaluation of the effect of biocides on the pathogen potentially useful in controlling the disease.
15 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA
» University of Reading, UK
(1987 to 1988)
Researcher: Prof. P.Hadley
The UK industry, through BCCCA and CRA Ltd, have been supporting the safe distribution of cocoa germplasm via the quarantine facility at the University of Reading since 1982. In 1987/88, a double-skinned polythene tunnel greenhouse was constructed to accomodate the quarantine operation and the first consignments of material were received from ICG,T Trinidad to add to the existing collection of materials received from Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. The project has continued to provide an international intermediate quarantine service for over 30 years and is currently supported by CRA Ltd and USDA (2022) (see CRA current projects for further details).
1 Published Paper

Funded by BCCCA and Imperial
» Imperial College, UK
(1987 to 1988)
Researcher: Dr. B.E.J. Wheeler
A short project to develop techniques to cross isolates of Witches' broom fungus using a dual in vitro culture system. The work is a continuation of Witches' Broom studies conducted at Silwood Park using single-spore cultures of isolates from various sources in the Americas. Basidiocarps were produced in pure culture and dual cultures and also from seedlings inoculated with two different cultures. The growth rates, compatibility reactions, and abilities to induce colour changes on indicator media was compared between cultures derived from single-basidiospores produced in dual cultures with the parental types and it was concluded that in vitro cultures provide a method of crossing isolates.
1 Published Paper

Funded by BCCCA
» University of Liverpool, UK
(1986 to 1988)
Researchers: K Hardwick, JE Orchard
This was a short project to investigate the physiology of the relationship between cacao and the fungal pathogen causing Witches' Broom disease (Crinipellis perniciosa, now known as Moniliophthora perniciosa). The fungus is a hemibiotroph with a life cycle divided into parasitic and saprophytic stages. The mycelium of the biotrophic, parasitic phase is dependent nutritionally on the living host tissues to sustain its growth and development, and it has been proposed that specific carbohydrates are involved in the changeover to the saprophytic stage. The objective of the present investigation was to gain a greater understanding of the nutritional dependence of the fungus during its development on both the living green broom and the healthy part of the plant. This was achieved by studying the photosynthetic capacity of the diseased tissues, the pattern of translocation of carbohydrates between diseased and non-diseased parts of the plant, and the nature of the carbohydrates associated with infection. Inoculation of seedlings with spores from a Colombian isolate provoked broom formation which varied in severity from the typical broom with swollen stem, petioles, and leaf axils, to only mild infection with minimal, isolated swellings. The photosynthetic capacity of leaves produced on the broom depended on the severity of infection. The maximum photosynthetic rate of leaves from mild infections did not differ from that of non-infected plants, but was reduced by up to 40% with severe infections. This reduced rate was associated with a lower level of chlorophyll in the broom leaves. The photosynthetic activity of leaves from brooms with severe infections remained consistently lower than control plants throughout broom growth until a precipitous decline occurred four or five days prior to rapid and premature leaf senescence. Radioactive tracer studies revealed that the fungus did not cause a preferential movement of carbohydrates from the healthy part of the plant into the broom. However, severe broom infections caused a decline in carbohydrate translocation from the older leaves of both the broom and the healthy stem into the newly developing flush leaves of the broom. Carbohydrate analysis of the green broom showed that M. perniciosa altered the carbohydrate profile of the stem, with the appearance of the fungal polyols arabitol and mannitol, and the disaccharide trehalose in the diseased stems. The early stages of the disease does not constitute a major drain of nutrients from the healthy part of the plant into the developing broom. However, lower photosynthetic capacity of the broom flush leaves results in an increasing dependence of the developing broom on the rest of the plant.
1 Published Paper

Funded by BCCCA and London Cocoa Trade, INIAP
» lnstituto Nacional de Investigaciones AgroPecuarias, Ecuador
(1984 to 1987)
Researcher: John Allen
The objectives of the LCTAP project were: 1. To make a thorough and systematic collection of wild cocoa from the Amazon region of Ecuador with the aim of bringing into cultivation as much as possible of the genetic variation present in the wild cocoa population of this region. 2. To establish a permanent collection - a 'gene bank' - of this wild cocoa at a research station being developed in the region by INIAP, the national agricultural research institute in Ecuador. Land would be freely available at this station and because it is only a few days' journey to any part of the region, problems of transport of collected material would be minimized. The establishment of the collections in their country of origin, before distribution to other countries, would reduce the risk of loss and would also make possible an early evaluation of the collections. 3. To establish the collections in quarantine is the first step in distributing the material to breeders. Using quarantine facilities at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, UK and also at the USDA Subtropical Horticulture Research Station, Miami, Florida, material would then be sent to cocoa breeders at the Cocoa Research Unit, Trinidad and elsewhere.
5 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA and BCCCA member companies, CSSPPA, IRCC, SATMACI, SIFCA/Unicafe, BCCCA/CAOBISCO/ACRI
(1982 to 1987)
This co-operative project set out to improve the quality of Ivorian cocoa through training farmers and those involved in transporting and storing cocoa to ensure it meets Grade 1 standard. The BCCCA team worked in collaboration with SATMACI extension and CSSPPA quality control to survey farmer practices, carry out fermentation trials and develop the necessary training materials to enable farmers to produce good quality cocoa. For the latter part of the project, efforts were focussed in the Zone Traditionelle, Ouragahia sous-prefecture, Dept. of Gagnoa

Funded by BCCCA
» University of Reading, UK
(1985 to 1986)
Researcher: Prof. P.Hadley
The initial project to transfer the Kew Cocoa Quarantine Collection to the University of Reading and establish a new quarantine service to ensure the safe movement of cocoa germplasm around the world - one of the key ‘building block’ resources for the cocoa research community.

Funded by CRA* and GORTT
*(transferred from BCCCA in 2008)
» University of the West Indies
(1984 to 1986)
Researcher: Dr. A.J. Kennedy (Head)
The UK chocolate industry, through its trade association CCCA and later the BCCCA, and with support generated from the CRA trust fund, continued to support the work at the Cocoa Research Unit in Trinidad together with the Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. The research effort was organised under three major programmes: Agronomy, Disease Management and Genetic Resources. The main focus for the research was on the extensive collections of germplasm which were distributed across several sites within Trinidad. The International Board for Plant Genetic Resources (IBPGR) recognised the global importance of this material and with the approval of an application for support to the European Development Fund, the process of bringing together all of this germplasm at a single site was initiated to create the International Cocoa Genebank, Trinidad (ICG,T). During this period, the Genetic Resources programme (led by Dr. A.J. Kennedy with Mr. Yidana working on an IBPGR internship) focussed on the description of pod and bean morphology of accessions in the ICG,T and isozyme variation in cocoa accessions. The Agronomy programme (led by Mr Muttschneller to August 1985 and then by Mrs C. Gonsalves, with Dr. Fagan leading the Jamaica station until July 1986) focussed on propagating and planting materials at the University Cocoa Research Station (UCRS) following the closure of the Las Hermanas Field Station. The Pathology programme (led by Dr. Sreenivasan) continued to investigate the biology of Black Pod and Witches Broom diseases.
7 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA/GCGRA and Govt of Ghana
» Imperial College, UK
(1983 to 1986)
Researcher: O A Danquah (Supervisor: Dr. B.E.J. Wheeler)
Danquah, O-A (1986) Growth of Crinipellis perniciosa in cocoa resistant and susceptible to witches' broom. PhD Thesis, Imperial College, University of London The growth of two isolates representative of the two pathotype populations on cultivated cocoa of Crinipellis perniciosa, the causal agent of witches’ broom was studied in seedlings with Scavine 6 as one parent. One isolate from Pichilingue in Ecuador (pathotype A) induced significantly more hypertrophy, grew more rapidly up the plant and colonised the tuees at any one level more extensively than did the other isolate from Trinidad (pathotype 8). For both isolates·there were highly significant correlations between amounts of fungus in the tissues and the hypertrophy produced but no indication that they differed in their ability to induce hypertrophy. In seedlings infected with the Trinidad isolate, groups of necrotic cells associated with the intercellular hyphae of C. perniciosa were found 5 weeks after inoculation. Similar sites of necrosis developed more slowly and less frequently in seedlings infected with the Pichilingue isolate. Thus at 9 to 12 weeks after inoculation, there were significantly more sites of necrosis and more necrotic cells per site in seedlings infected with the Trinidad isolate and more unaffected hyphae in seedlings infected with the Pichilingue isolate. When basidiospores of the two isolates were germinated in water extracts from Scavina 6 seedlings, the germ-tubes of the Pichilingue isolate were significantly longer than those of the Trinidad isolate. This different in germ-tube growth appeared to be associated with the phenolic and alkaloid components. However, no significant correlation was obtained between the numbers of hyphal fragments in Scavina 6 seedlings and germ-tube length in extracts of tissue from the same seedlings. Similar studies of the two isolates in seedling of other cocoa cultivars further indicated the ability of the Pichilingue isolate to grown in those with Scavina parentage though in others eg Amelonado, both isolats grew equally well. Further tests with extracts of other cocoa cultivars were inconsistent and inconclusive. An attempt was made to study the significance of cell death in the C.perniciosa/ccoa relationship by preparing cocoa callus and cell suspensions, but the techniques used were not entirely successful.
1 Published Paper

Funded by BCCCA and IICA, CEPLAC
» CEPLAC, Brazil
(1983 to 1985)
Researcher: Dr. Steve Rudgard
5 Published Papers

Funded by CRA* and GORTT
*(transferred from BCCCA in 2008)
» University of the West Indies
(1983 to 1984)
Researcher: Dr. A.J. Kennedy (Head)
The UK chocolate industry, through its trade association CCCA and later the BCCCA, and with support generated from the CRA trust fund, continued to support the work at the Cocoa Research Unit in Trinidad together with the Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. The research effort was organised under three major programmes: Agronomy, Disease Management and Genetic Resources. The main focus for the research was on the extensive collections of germplasm which were distributed across several sites within Trinidad. The International Board for Plant Genetic Resources (IBPGR) recognised the global importance of this material and with the approval of an application for support to the European Development Fund, the process of bringing together all of this germplasm at a single site was initiated to create the International Cocoa Genebank, Trinidad (ICG,T). During this period, the Genetic Resources programme (led by Dr. A.J. Kennedy with Mr. Yidana working on an IBPGR internship) focussed on the description of pod and bean morphology of accessions in the ICG,T and isozyme variation in cocoa accessions. The Agronomy programme (led by Mr Muttschneller to August 1985 and then by Mrs C. Gonsalves, with Dr. Fagan leading the Jamaica station until July 1986) focussed on propagating and planting materials at the University Cocoa Research Station (UCRS) following the closure of the Las Hermanas Field Station. The Pathology programme (led by Dr. Sreenivasan) continued to investigate the biology of Black Pod and Witches Broom diseases.

Funded by BCCCA
» Wye College, University of London, UK
(1983 to 1984)
Researcher: P. Maxwell (Supervisor:Dr. Jennet Blake)
A feasibility study to discover the optimum conditions for continuous growth and proliferation of cacao shootlets in culture. This included precise definition of the sterilisation technique to introduce greenhouse-grown material into culture, and the optimum culture medium, inorganic and organic constituents, growth factor requirements and environmental conditions as well as requirements for the maintenance of stock plants as a source of high quality explant material. Reliable shoot growth of axillary buds from single-node explants was obtained on a simple basal medium supplemented with growth regulators and organic substances. Growth equivalent to a single flush was obtained in culture and evidence found for the beginning of a second flush with the terminal bud opening and producing a number of small leaves. One to four basal buds and some lateral buds developed on shootlets in culture. Rooting of shoots produced from axillary buds was observed following an auxin treatment.
1 Published Paper

Funded by BCCCA and CASE Award (UK Govt)
» University of Liverpool, UK
(1982 to 1984)
Researcher: Dr. K Hardwick
CCCA provided support towards a CASE PhD project to investigate factors controlling the flush cycle in cocoa (rhythmical production of leaves).
1 Published Paper

Funded by CRA*
*(transferred from BCCCA in 2008)
» Imperial College, UK
(1979 to 1984)
Researchers: Dr. BEJ Wheeler, R. Mepstead
A project to examine the pathogenic variability of isolates of Moniliophthora perniciosa (known at the time as Crinipellis perniciosa) collected from various countries in South America and the Caribbean. Dry witches broom samples were induced to produce basidiocarps and using the basidiospores to inoculate a range of cocoa material under greenhouse conditions.
3 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA
(1981 to 1983)
The BCCCA’s booklet ‘Cocoa Beans: Chocolate Manufacturers’ Quality Requirements’ was revised in 1981 and 1983

Funded by CRA* and GORTT
*(transferred from BCCCA in 2008)
» University of the West Indies
(1980 to 1983)
Researcher: Dr. E.F. Iton/Dr. A.J. Kennedy
The UK chocolate industry, through its trade association CCCA and later the BCCCA, and with support generated from the CRA trust fund, continued to support the work at the Cocoa Research Unit in Trinidad together with the Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. The research effort was organised under three major programmes: Agronomy, Disease Management and Genetic Resources. The main focus for the research was on the extensive collections of germplasm which were distributed across several sites within Trinidad. The International Board for Plant Genetic Resources (IBPGR) recognised the global importance of this material and with the approval of an application for support to the European Development Fund, the process of bringing together all of this germplasm at a single site was initiated to create the International Cocoa Genebank, Trinidad.
3 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA and London Cocoa Trade, INIAP
» lnstituto Nacional de Investigaciones AgroPecuarias, Ecuador
(1979 to 1983)
Researcher: John Allen
The objectives of the LCTAP project were: 1. To make a thorough and systematic collection of wild cocoa from the Amazon region of Ecuador with the aim of bringing into cultivation as much as possible of the genetic variation present in the wild cocoa population of this region. 2. To establish a permanent collection - a 'gene bank' - of this wild cocoa at a research station being developed in the region by INIAP, the national agricultural research institute in Ecuador. Land would be freely available at this station and because it is only a few days' journey to any part of the region, problems of transport of collected material would be minimized. The establishment of the collections in their country of origin, before distribution to other countries, would reduce the risk of loss and would also make possible an early evaluation of the collections. 3. To establish the collections in quarantine is the first step in distributing the material to breeders. Using quarantine facilities at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, UK and also at the USDA Subtropical Horticulture Research Station, Miami, Florida, material would then be sent to cocoa breeders at the Cocoa Research Unit, Trinidad and elsewhere.
9 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA
(1982 to 1982)
Researchers: Jordan, M
BCCCA made a modest contribution towards camera equipment for an expedition to the Mapuera and Trombetas rivers in Para, Brazil but unfortunately no wild cocoa was observed.

Funded by BCCCA and UK Overseas Development Administration
(1980 to 1982)

Funded by BCCCA and CEPLAC
» University of Aberystwyth, UK
(1979 to 1982)
Researcher: Dr. Peter Saunders

Funded by BCCCA
» East Malling Research Institute, UK
(1980 to 1981)
Researcher: O.P. Jones and A.J. Passey
A short project to investigate ways to propagate cocoa in vitro for the purposes of rapid multiplication of selected clones, simplified quarantine procedures, improved germplasm storage and use in research. This project was focussed on the use of axillary shoot proliferation and rooting from shoot tip and nodal bud explants from 1-3 year old seedling materials. The best results were obtained during the summer months from materials grown in greenhouses in the UK with 2-6 plantlets generated from per explant in about two months. Further research to increase the efficiency of the technique was recommended, particularly on plant growth substances or the potential of sequential grafting onto very young seedlings to rejuvenate the material was recommended. Callus culture was also undertaken but no indications of shoot or embryoid formation was detected.
1 Published Paper

Funded by BCCCA and CASE Award (UK Govt)
» University of Liverpool, UK
(1978 to 1981)
Researcher: P. Sleigh (supervisor: Dr. K Hardwick)
CCCA provided support towards a CASE PhD project to investigate interactions between shoot and root growth in cocoa seedlings with the aim of providing information on the control of rhythmic growth patterns. Plants grown in root observation boxes had a clear rhythm of root growth, the rate of growth increasing shortly before, and during, the emergence of each flush of leaves, and falling to a very low level during the rapid expansion and later development of these leaves. Removal both of very young and recently expanded flush leaves resulted in increased root growth, demonstrating that root growth was inhibited by the presence of these leaves. Removal of part of the root system delayed the following leaf flush of plants grown in soil, but had no effect on the leaf growth of plants grown in nutrient solution culture. The developing flush leaves were shown to be very strong sinks for carbohydrate during their most rapid expansion the export of assimilated 14carbon from older (mature) leaves greatly increased, the levels of soluble and storage carbohydrate in the stem/tap root and mature leaves fell, and the import to the lateral roots of assimilate from leaves near the apex was reduced. However, there was evidence that the supply of carbohydrate to these roots was at least partially maintained by an increased import of assimilate from the older leaves near the base of the plant.
5 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA and IOCC (BCCCA and other member associations), Cocoa Research Institute of Nigeria (CRIN), UK Forestry Commission, Institut Francais du Cafe et du Cacao
(1973 to 1979)
Researchers: Dr. P H Gregory, Dr. A C Maddison, Dr. M J Griffin, Dr. B Taylor and Dr. M J Ward
A project to study the aetiology of black pod disease (caused by Phytophthora species) with the initial focus in Nigeria where the disease was particularly severe. The project was initially for three years but a second three year phase was initiated in 1976. Key findings from the research included the differentiation of two species of Phytophthora causing black pod rot in West Africa (P. palmivora and the previously undescribed P. megakarya). Results from the first phase were reported at an international workshop in 1976 which led to a world survey of Phytophthora species undertaken by IFCC. The full results of the project, including the findings on epidemiology, and control measures, were published in book and in a number of scientific papers and articles.
14 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA
(1975 to 1975)
CCCA provided modest support to enable Dr Room to write up some of his research on Mistletoes and associated fauna in Ghana for publication
2 Published Papers

Funded by BCCCA and IOCC (BCCCA and other member associations)
» Cocoa Research Instute of Nigeria
» Cocoa Research Institute of Ghana
(1965 to 1971)
Researcher: Dr. A D Pickett and C A Collingwood
This research group, sponsored and finances by the International Office of Cocoa and Chocolate, was placed in West Africa in response to the need for further research on capsid (mirid) control, with particular reference to the development of resistance to the cyclodiene insecticides in both Ghana and Nigeria by Distantiella theobroma and Sahlbergella singularis respectively. Members of the team were stationed at the Cocoa Research Institutes in these countries and also worked with IFCC staff in Ivory Coast and Cameroun. Key research findings included improved knowledge of capsid population dynamics including the decline during the dry season due to the effects of water stress/humidity on feeding, and identification of parasites, pathogens and predators that could be useful in controlling the pests. Work was also undertaken on spraying technologies and insecticides that could be part of control strategies. The research resulted in a number of scientific papers and articles.
18 Published Papers

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