A guy named Tetteh Quarshie determined that Ghana would be a perfect climate for growing cocoa beans. He could not, however, obtain any cocoa beans. He ended up smuggling some beans out of Equitorial Guinea in order to start his cocoa farm here in Ghana, back in 1879. Cocoa beans eventually became Ghana's leading export for many years and they were the world's leading cocoa bean exporter. Today, Ghana is second in the world in cocoa bean exports.

This farm, today considered the Eco-museum of Cocoa, is one acre in size and managed by the Cocoa Research Institute of Ghana.

This post is for all you chocolate lovers out there!

I was surprised that this cocoa farm did not look like a farm to me. I'm used to orchards and vineyards that are in rows and organized.

We were told that other trees are allowed to grow to provide needed shade for the cocoa trees. To me, it looked more like a wild forest.

Below, you can see one of the original cocoa trees that was planted in 1879. There are only three original trees left. It seemed small to me for its age.

You can see the yellow cocoa fruits and the beans inside in the photos below. There are also some dried cocoa beans on the table.

Below you can see the cocoa beans, wrapped in their covering, inside the fruits.

My last photo is out of focus but it's the best I could do in a hurry. It's a cocoa bean after removing the cover. It turns brown after drying.