What is BLACK POD DISEASE?
The black pod is caused by a fungus (Phytophthora) that spreads rapidly on the pods under conditions of excessive rain and humidity, insufficient sunshine. We live in the coastal region of India where we get heavy rainfall between June-September. We lose many cocoa yields due to black pod disease.

Infection and symptoms on fruit.
The infection spreads rapidly across the outer surface, covering the entire pod in a few days. Infected areas turn from brown to black. This disease can destroy all yields. Annually the BLACK POD DISEASE can cause a yield loss of up to 1/3 and up to 10% of total trees can be lost completely.

Infection of cocoa beans.
As visible symptoms progress, the disease moves deeper into the pod, infecting and destroying the beans. Infected beans quickly deteriorate and rot, rendering the pod useless. The pods then dry up and mummify on the tree, becoming a major source of carriers to nearby pods, leaves, and stems. An infected flower will have infected fruit, which will turn black and will be unable to be harvested and processed.

The disease has a spike shortly after rainfall. The humid weather that is associated with this rain is the main cause of the disease.

What do we do to prevent this?
We usually follow these 2 methods to reduce the disease as much as possible during the rainy season
1. Removal of Infected pods:
Pods should be removed from the area and destroyed. A single infected pod has the potential to destroy all others
2. Spacing and pruning.
Trees should be spaced and pruned to allow for increased airflow in and around the orchard. This will reduce the relative humidity and further reduce the spread of the disease.

These infected beans cannot be used to make chocolates, we just throw the pods and beans which are compromised