If it hadn’t been for the squirrels, George Matthew’s attempt to become a cocoa bean producer might have failed.

His farming career began in the 1970s when he inherited a rubber plantation in the the southern Indian state of Kerala , which he managed alongside his career as a doctor.

It was a impoverished period to inherit a rubber plantation, falling rubber prices meant it kept losing money. So, 10 years ago Dr Matthew decided to experiment with cocoa trees, hoping they would generate some funds to back the rest of the farm.

He bought some saplings and planted them. It didn’t leave well.

“It was not that successful – most of the saplings died,” he says.

Squirrels appeared to be making the circumstance worse by grabbing cocoa bean pods and eating them.

But those raids had an unexpected advantage – cocoa seeds were spread all over the farm.

“All the scattered seeds soon grew in to plants and they were much healthier and stronger than the saplings I had planted,” says Dr Matthew.

“The trick was in sowing the seeds,” he realised.

Today Mr Matthews has 6,000 cocoa trees on his 50 acres of land.

“I ponder it was the best selection I have made,” he says.

Despite having several regions with weather conditions suitable for cocoa trees, India only accounts for 1% of the globe’s cocoa bean production.

Global production is currently dominated by West Africa, where Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana between them produce more than half of the globe’s annual output.

Indian growers can only supply a quarter of the beans needed by Indian makers of chocolate and other confectionary.

“The test is that it is grown in very fragmented tiny holdings, so it does not get the benevolent of attention cocoa should get,” says Renny Jacob, chairman of India Cocoa, a private business that has been growing and processing cocoa beans for more than 30 years.

In particular he says that Indian farmers are impoverished at handling beans after they have been harvested. Once removed from their pods, beans leave through a fermentation procedure at the farm, which can make a huge difference to their flavour.

“Cocoa fermentation is a critical procedure in the production of chocolate, transforming raw cocoa beans into a form suitable for chocolate making,” says Sarin Partrick, chief executive of India Cocoa.

“This complicated procedure involves several stages and the activity of various micro-organisms, which assist develop the beans’ flavour, aroma, and colour,” he says.

• From bean to bar: How chocolate is made

To raise the amount and standard of cocoa bean production, the government has introduced several initiatives.

It is investing in schemes to develop hybrid cocoa plants, that are more productive than existing varieties.

In addition there are schemes to train farmers on the latest techniques for growing and processing beans.

“There is a vast chance for Indian farmers to enter into cocoa cultivation and avail the benefits,” says Dr Femina, who works in the government department tasked with developing cocoa production.

Business is also investing in recent cocoa tree vareities.

Dr Minimol J.S., is the head of cocoa research at Kerala Agriculture University and is working with Cadbury to develop hybrid cocoa trees.

In the assignment’s orchard existing high-performing varieties are cross-bred with exotic species.

So far the programme has arrive up with 15 recent varieties.

“These are India’s first hybrid, disease-resistant seeds,” she says.

“The seeds are drought tolerant varieties, and have withstood temperatures of even 40C, which is usually not feasible,” she adds.

The hybrids are also much more productive than traditional varieties.

“The global average production is 0.25 kilogram per year per tree.

“In Kerala, we get 2.5 kilograms per year per tree. In Andhra and Telangana, we are even getting a profit of four or five kilograms per tree per year,” she says.

India’s production of cocoa beans has risen significantly. This year it hit 110,000 tonnes, up 40% from 2015. But it’s still not enough to meet demand from local chocolate and confectionary makers.

India’s Cocoa Board estimates the demand from industry is rising at 15% per year.

Founded in 2019, Kocoatrait is one of a recent creation of Indian chocolate makers.

Based in the east coast city of Chennai, the business only uses Indian cocoa beans.

One rationale for that is that locally sourced beans have a much smaller carbon footprint than beans that have been shipped from another continent.

In addition, says Kocoatrait founder Nitin Chordia, Indian beans are cheaper than imports and have a distinctive flavour.

Mr Chordia also runs an agricultural school, where farmers are shown the latest innovations in fermenting and drying beans.

“We are constantly focussing on improving the post-harvest practices for cocoa farmers in India,” he says.

He adds that Indian farmers require to be producing higher standard beans.

“We are not able to compete with international players in the bulk cocoa bean segment,” he says.

While there has been advancement, Indian producers have some way to leave.

“Over the last decade, in the fine-flavour cocoa bean segment, India has started to get noticed… but it will be several years before all Indian fine flavour cocoa beans reach a stage of large-scale international recognition.”

Back in Kerala, Dr Matthew reflects on his decade as a cocoa farmer.

“It’s a tricky plant,” he says. “Last year I had no profit. So no farmer can depend solely on cocoa – one has to plant other trees along with it.”

Despite the challenges, he’s optimistic. “The upcoming is luminous, with huge demand.”

“I have been approached by a multi-national business to sell my production to them, so I will be making a excellent boost.”

• pursue Technology of Business Editor Ben Morris on BlueSky