The Impact of Pollen Donor on Flavor in Cocoa

The flavor attributes of cacao ( Theobroma cacao ) is becoming an important consideration in trade specifically for fine or flavor cocoa. In this market segment, flavor along with other physical attributes, not only contributes to the quality of a cocoa lot but also the price premium obtained. Past studies have shown evidence of pollen parent effects on yield, bean size, and pod characteristics, but its effect on flavor attributes is not clearly understood. An incomplete diallel mating design involving five cacao cultivars [West African Amelonado (WAA), Imperial College Selection (ICS) 1, Iquitos Mixed Calabacillo (IMC) 67, and two Trinidad Selected Hybrids (TSH) coded as CCL 200 and CCL 201] with widely differing flavor attributes were used to investigate the magnitude of female and male parent effects on key intrinsic flavor attributes. The seeds derived from pods arising from these pollinations were fermented, dried, and made into cocoa liquor according to standardized methods. Flavor evaluations were carried out by a trained sensory panel for nine flavor attributes with five repetitions and hidden flavor reference controls. The study was conducted over two cocoa crop years. The results failed to detect dominant xenia effects for important ancillary flavor attributes (i.e., cocoa flavor, acidity, fruitiness, and floral flavors), but showed significant female parent effects for cocoa and floral flavors. Small but inconsistent male parent effects were seen for astringency. Lack of xenia effect for the major flavor attributes implies that the flavor quality of cocoa beans is determined principally by the genotype of the female parent.