Cocoa and Chocolate Cluster - The Food of Gods

Upon entering the Cocoa and Chocolate Cluster, visitors will feel as if they are walking into the jungle. The Cluster is based on the concept of recreating the environment in which cacao trees grow, on tropical and subtropical plantations. The external parts of the buildings are made of very light materials, which open slightly to reveal the internal canopy. This design symbolizes the need to protect such a valuable and aromatic product as cocoa.

The Cocoa and Chocolate Cluster contains a large number of poles of differing sizes, which represent the large and varying species of trees under which cacao trees grows. The atmosphere is dense and warm as in a real jungle, where sunlight penetrates the trees’ crowns and casts its rays down through the pavilions.

Cluster card
EXHIBITION CONTENT: Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Italy
SCIENTIFIC RESPONSIBLE AND PROJECT COORDINATOR: Pier Sandro Cocconcelli
CONCEPT AND EXHIBITION LAYOUT: Fabrizio Leoni, Mauricio Cardenas, Cesare Ventura
TOTAL AREA: 3.546 sqm
EXHIBITION AREA: 875 sqm
COMMON AREA: 2.541 sqm
EVENTS AREA: 696 sqm

The Cluster structure
Pre-Colombians had been growing cacao for millions of years and it played a fundamental role in the Maya and Aztecs’ nutrition and culture. The Aztecs used cocoa in a variety of ways and it served as a key ingredient in many of their recipes. One popular use for cocoa was to mix it with other ingredients into a bitter drink known as ‘Xocolatl’, while another involved mixing chili with cocoa. Whatever it was used for, whether food, drink or in exchange for other goods, cocoa soon became the symbol of energy, fertility and life.

Cocoa still has a wide appeal today and is the main ingredient of one of the world’s most loved foods, chocolate. The cocoa that is found in the chocolate that we eat today comes from the very small cacao fruit, which is supplied by more than 30 emerging countries from around the world that not only grow it, but also rely on it to sustain their economy.

COUNTRIES IN THE CLUSTER
Cameroon
Côte D'Ivoire
Cuba
Gabon
Ghana
Sao Tome and Principe