TOTAL CACAO FOCUS GROUPS
List of Focus Groups
Chambellan 1 (Grand Anse)
Chambellan 2 (Grand Anse)
Dame Marie (Grand Anse)
Anse d’Hainault (Grand Anse)
Grande Riviere de Nord (North)
Milot (North)
Bawon (North)
Cacao Focus Group Chambellan 1
Patisipants
#1.Michel Jean Daniel: M; 56yrs ;4em seconde; 4 kids ; farmer, taylor ; 30yrs in coop
#2.Leon Achille : M; 70yrs; Prime ; 7 kids ; farmer; 30yrs in coop
#3.Jems Magloire: M; 27yrs; University; no kids; accountant; 3months in coop
#4.Nel Daphenis: M; 68yrs; Prime; 6 kids; farmer; 15yrs in coop
#5.Florestal Hem: M; 28yrs Rheto; no kids; breeder; 1yr in coop
#6.Archange Jean Louis: Gason ; 53yrs ; 5em seconde; 9 kids ; agroculture agent; 30yrs in coop
#7.Joseph Vatil :M; 52yrs; 3em seconde ; 4 kids ; organization animator ; 18yrs in coop
#8.Joseph Amose: M; 52yrs; Preparatwa 2; 4 kids; farmer; 20yrs in coop
#9.Asord Sulface St. Louis: F; 72yrs ; Prime; 3 kids; farmer; 30yrs in coop
#10.Charles Maissance: M; 60yrs; None; 9 kids; farmer; 24yrs in coop
#11.Castilan Estavil: M; 35yrs; 7em sekonde; 4 kids; farmer; 1yr in coop
#12.Fouland Rene: M; 45yrs; 8em sekonde; 10 kids; farmer; 1yr in coop
#13.Cenatus Br.Precinord: F; 50yrs; 5em sekonde; 2 kids; farmer; 30yrs in coop
#14.Rosier Jn. Baptiste Fenel: M; 58yrs; 7em sekonde; 8 kids ; vet ; 30yrs in coop
#15.Domenncer Frantz: M; 27yrs; University; 2 kids; agronomist; 1yr in coop
For us not to lose or forgot all important information provided by you , the farmers of Chambellan, our team came up with an idea to recording all that is being said. Another part of our team will sit down and listen to every single word that has been said by you. All information provided by you is vital to our team. In order for us to do this process successfully we came up with a system. Lets say for example we have this lady over there who is answering one of the questions asked and her answer held very important imfomation; on the other hand you have me whose voice is very loud , I started talking and interrupt our lady over there. For us to avoid something like that from happening, each person is associated with a number and when he wanst to answer a question he wil raise his number and waited until the current person talking finish. We use this system because all of your answers are valuable to us.
According to you, why is cocoa a good product?
#4.Nel Daphenis: M; 68yrs; Prime; 6 kids; farmer; 15yrs in coop: Cocoa is a good product by the way its being manage; by its participating in the making of liqour drinks, and all other things that its envovled in. Cocoa is a very important thing. It’s always ready to be use at any time.
#9.Asord Sulface St. Louis: F; 72yrs; Prime; 3 kids; farmer; 30yrs in coop: Well, cocoa is good for everything. Liqour drinks are made out of cocoa, cocoa is sold and give us money, it puts our children in school, cocoa dresses us, and cocoa do all kinds of different things. There are some places, not here; if cocoa is well prepared people would eat it. They can make hot chocolate out of it and everything else.
Do people here eat cocoa?
#9.Asord Sulface St. Louis: F; 72yrs; Prime; 3 kids; farmer; 30yrs in coop: No, we don’t eat it here but we know that they make hot chocolate from it. We eat in hot chocolate. We drink it in hot chocolate.
Some people said that cocoa is cooked food.
#9.Asord Sulface St. Louis: F; 72yrs ; Prime; 3 kids; farmer; 30yrs in coop: Cookies are made out of it. Yes, cocoa is a cooked food because you can make cookies from it and you eat cookies; you made hot chocolate from it and you drink it. That is a cooked food.
Do you make any kind of remedies from it?
#9.Asord Sulface St. Louis: F; 72yrs ; Prime; 3 kids; farmer; 30yrs in coop: Cocoa? Well, I don’t know. I have not seen anyone used it for remedy. I can’t say yes they do.
#1.Michel Jean Daniel: M; 56yrs ;4em seconde; 4 kids ; farmer, taylor ; 30yrs in coop:The reason they said cocoa is a cooked food that is because it doesn’t take long time. As soon as you harvest it and with the new formantation project you take it to a fermantion center you get your money. All the other products take longer time to make money from them.
#7.Joseph Vatil :M; 52yrs; 3em seconde ; 4 kids ; organization animator ;18yrs in coop: Not to repeat what had been said by my fellow friend, cocoa protects the earth, it’s a tree.
How many different varities of cocoa there are?
#6.Archange Jean Louis: Gason ; 53yrs ; 5em seconde; 9 kids ; agroculture agent; 30yrs in coop: We know Criolo, Forastero and Trinitario.
Do the planters have different names for those type of cocoa?
#6.Archange Jean Louis: Gason ; 53yrs ; 5em seconde; 9 kids ; agroculture agent; 30yrs in coop: Yes, the farmers, the planters, some say local cocoa, cocoa caraf, foreign cocoa. They say white cocoa and some alse said cocoa violet.
The three main names you mentioned, Criolo, Forestero, Trinitario, are foreign, the farmers have different names for them, what other name they use for Criolo?
#1.Michel Jean Daniel: M; 56yrs ;4em seconde; 4 kids ; farmer, taylor ; 30yrs in coop: For the farmers, like number 6 said, they know the scientific names for this variaty or that variaty because of trainings they took. But for everyday language, for planters and the locals, its Local cocoa, Foreign cocoa, and sometimes they said White cocoa. That’s why you won’t hear a farmer says Criolo. Criolo is known as the Local cocoa, the old cocoa.When the farmers speak in their own language they said Local cocoa. There are white cocoa and foriegn cocoa_ another partisipant interrupted_ We have Cocoa Caraf_#1 continued_ No, Caraf is the color. To identify the different varieties we said White cocoa, Local cocoa, and Foreign cocoa.
What do you mean by White cocoa, let’s say for example we have foreign expert asking…_Partisipant started answering_.
#1.Michel Jean Daniel: M; 56yrs ;4em seconde; 4 kids ; farmer, taylor ; 30yrs in coop:Reason we said White cocoa was because in the old day, we had two big farms, Mafran and Bourdon Demas. At that time I was very young and didn’t know their nationality but they were foriegners; it was them who came with that variety. Well, hummmm let’s say 40 years ago when I was a young boy when my parents needed cocoa seeds you would either go to Mafran farm , Franklin farm or Bourdoun farm. You would need to go to one of these three places.We said White cocoa because its was white people who came with that variety. The original variety is what we call local cocoa; in technical language it’s called Criolo.
Did foriegners also come with forestero and trinitario?
#1.Michel Jean Daniel: M; 56yrs ;4em seconde; 4 kids ; farmer, taylor ; 30yrs in coop: At that time, those farmers did not get any trainings for that. That investigation came through the minister of agriculture. When I was a young boy, The Minister of Agriculture had nurseries and people who are interested would just took them to plant without knowing what varieties they were. We got to know the differences from trainings given by NGOs and other organizations.
What about cocoa caraf?
#1.Michel Jean Daniel: M; 56yrs ;4em seconde; 4 kids ; farmer, taylor ; 30yrs in coop:Caraf is the color. The 3 names #6 gave you are the 3 different varieties. You see , the farmers don’t really know the name Criolo and Trinitario. _Interviewer acknowledged _ The farmers know local cocoa_ # 1 continued _They know white cocoa and foreign cocoa. White cocoa was introduced during the time of Shadda with the Mafran farm and the two othe agriculture farms I mentioned before. That is why it’s called white cocoa or foreign cocoa.
What month is cocoa harvest in?
#2.Leon Achille : M; 70yrs; Prime ; 7 kids ; farmer; 30yrs in coop: Well, emhummmm, cocoa is harvest twice a year. The big harvest is in August, Septembert, October until November. The small harvest is in March and April_ Silence_ those two seasons.
Is there another one?
Several in audience: He said all.
As cocoa farmers, during the cocoa season how do you spend your days?
#10.Charles Maissance: M; 60yrs; None; 9 kids; farmer; 24yrs in coop: At time like that, you got up and say « I am going to pick cocoa ». Sometimes you take the children with you to farm. While you’ll be picking they gathered. Ones with sting you left them under the trees and the children later would take them for themselves and the good ones you set apart to break later. You can’t break them on same day because it was so much back then; now you don’t get that much any more.
Between the wife and the husband, who pickes cocoa?
#10.Charles Maissance: M; 60yrs; None; 9 kids; farmer; 24yrs in coop: Sorry?
If we have husband and wife_#10 starts talking_
#10.Charles Maissance: M; 60yrs; None; 9 kids; farmer; 24yrs in coop: Well, the husband picks and the wife and kids gathered.
_Several people in audiance are talking and chairs are moving_
Who carries it to sell?
#10.Charles Maissance: M; 60yrs; None; 9 kids; farmer; 24yrs in coop: Who carries it ? Well, after you break them you put in a makout[1] on an animal back to carry home. First you have to break them before you can them home.
Who does that in the family?
#10.Charles Maissance: M; 60yrs; None; 9 kids; farmer; 24yrs in coop: The man does that. The wife comes along to help, sometimes when tying the makout on the animal she helps with that.
Who dries the cocoa?
#10.Charles Maissance: M; 60yrs; None; 9 kids; farmer; 24yrs in coop: Wife does it, she does it._ A partisipan asked_ And you?_#10 continued: Often you get up early go to the farm with the animals when the wife gets up she sets it out to dry on the floor.
Partisipant not identified: Drying is for women.
What is the most difficult task for you in the cocoa production?
#4.Nel Daphenis: M; 68yrs; Prime; 6 kids; farmer; 15yrs in coop: What is most difficult in the production is somtimes after you break the cocoa there are no place to set it out to dry.When it rains the danre[2] will get spoil ,if you don’t a have a place to dry the cocoa.
#11.Castilan Estavil: M; 35yrs; 7em sekonde; 4 kids; farmer; 1yr in coop: What is more difficult for the danre hummmmm is taking care of it. That’s the most difficult.
#8.Joseph Amose: M; 52yrs; Preparatwa 2; 4 kids; farmer; 20yrs in coop: We farmers can spend for 4 days picking the danre but there are problems for it to be dry. You cannot bring cocoa that’s not well dried to cooperative that would be a failure to the cooperative. It needs to be well dried. If we have floors to set them out to dry that would protect us.
Are there things that women cannot do in the cocoa production?
Partisipant(M): One thing women can’t do, some tree are very high, you know the cocoa we called Criolo can can be very tall , a woman can’t climb one to pick cocoa. Where the pods are in the branches a man can’t reach them and he needs a long stick to pick them.Sometimes he needs to climb the trees to do that, that is something a woman can’t do.
Are there things a man cannot do?
Partisipant(M): A man can do everything, I’m not saying in everything, but in term of farming. Cocoa is a hard work, to pick is one, breaking it is another, and if you don’t have animals you have to carry it home on your head and sometimes the kids would have to help you carry.
Explain the process of cocoa selling starting from you to whom else it might be sold too.
#4.Nel Daphenis: M; 68yrs; Prime; 6 kids; farmer; 15yrs in coop: Drying the danre is a step then it needs to be transported to the expotors from here to Dame Marie, from Dame Marie to Port au Prince, and from Port au Prince to abroad.When you know how much is sold for it would be better if we know what to do and what not to do with it. We all are here is because we are members in the cooperative, we would like to know the process of selling it abroad. Although we are not asking how much it its being sold abroad but we want a selling price that favorable to us farmers._a chair is moved_
#6.Archange Jean Louis: Gason ; 53yrs ; 5em seconde; 9 kids ; agroculture agent; 30yrs in coop: You talking about how the cocoa is sold, its can sold in several different ways. Depending on the planter, if he has any economic problem, or how the cocoa is prepared there can be sevral different buyers. It can be sold in the cooperative or we have what we called voltije[3]famously know as zombie who comes directly to planters house with a sack on his back and buys cocoa by a gode[4]. We also have speculators and expotors. Now the voltije takes the cocoa in town or in commune and sells it to the balancer also known as speculators. The balancer or the speculator has another buyer on top of him who is the expotor. The speculator then would take the cocoa to Dame Marie or Jeremy to the expotor. The expotor takes the cocoa to Port au Prince to be sold abroad. Cocoa has sevral stages when being sold, from the planter to voltije zombie to speculators then to expotors. Some planters are members in the cooperative they sell direckly to the cooperative.Some who are not members might sell to speculators or to zombies who buy it from them at their houses. That is how cocoa is sold in the Grand-Anse
Who else in Dame Marie buys cocoa?
#1.Michel Jean Daniel: M; 56yrs ;4em seconde; 4 kids ; farmer, taylor ; 30yrs in coop: Besides speculators and expotors there are other machann[5]who buys from balancers (speculators) who transforms it into chocolate and sells in Port au Prince. They are from other communes like Abrico, Moron and Dame Marie. They come here in Chambellan and buy using balances from speculators. They transform that cocoa to chocolate and go to Port au Prince with it.
Do they buy directly from the farmers?
#1.Michel Jean Daniel: M; 56yrs ;4em seconde; 4 kids ; farmer, taylor ; 30yrs in coop: No, from speculators. Farmers are not eager to sell their cocoa to a chocolate machann because they don’t buy from them all the time. They usually buy during market days or sometimes in the week. Machanns know which speculator has cocoa and buy from him.
As women, what do you find to be the most difficult thing in cocoa production?
_Music is playing_
#9.Asord Sulface St. Louis: F; 72yrs; Prime; 3 kids; farmer; 30yrs in coop: What is most difficult for us is there some transformation that is being done elsewhere with cocoa we’re not able to do them because there things we don’t have.If we had a cocoa mill around here we would grind the cocoa to make chocolate and sell it. There some places its bring a quite amount of money but we can’t do that here because we don’t have the equipments.
#13.Cenatus Br.Precinord: F; 50yrs; 5em sekonde; 2 kids; farmer; 30yrs in coop: For me the most difficult thing is when it rains and we don’t floors dry it. When it does not get enough sun it turns black. We have to buy nats[6]to set it on. During the northern rain we have a lot of difficulties to dry the cocoa.
Do you plant cocoa or do they just grow by themselves?
#9.Asord Sulface St. Louis: F; 72yrs; Prime; 3 kids; farmer; 30yrs in coop: We plant.
How the planting process is is done?
#14.Rosier Jn. Baptiste Fenel: M; 58yrs; 7em sekonde; 8 kids ; vet ; 30yrs in coop: First we do the nursery. We prepared the saplings after 2 or 3 months we took them to the farm for beddings.
Would someone else likes to add more on the planting process?
#14.Rosier Jn. Baptiste Fenel: M; 58yrs; 7em sekonde; 8 kids ; vet ; 30yrs in coop: What I also would like, although here we don’t use cocoa like some of the other places,_A child is crying_from what I see cocoa has , we want a better revenue. Through the cooperative some of us should learn how to make all the different goods that being made out of cocoa such as chocolate, tablet[7], rum and cremas[8]. We want to see all the potential of cocoa, everything that can be done with cocoa so tomorrow it can help us. But we have not get to the point where that can in done through the cooperative.
While we are talking about the most difficult thing in the production, after all the work is done such as cleaning are you left with a good profit? Do you get more money than what you spent?
#1.Michel Jean Daniel: M; 56yrs ;4em seconde; 4 kids ; farmer, taylor ; 30yrs in coop: Emmmmm , that depends on th farmer and also his level of economics. Some planters have an hectar or half hectar land of cocoa and maybe that was left to him through his father or mother; that planter might not have enough resources to care for that land regularly. When we say cleaning that means hoeing out all the bad grass, he controls ehummmmm, he assesses and removes all parisites. Well, that’s why he’s not making much profit. After all that work is done , in Haiti we say ehummmm broke, the farmer would say “ I am broke” because the profit he makes is used to care for the family , sents the kids to school, pays for tuition and uniforms,etc. Well, even after the harvest, depending on how much cocoa land he has, is still not enough resource for him to care for all his needs.
To clean an acre of cocoa land can a farmer does it by himself of does he need to buy a kove[9]_Respondant answed before question is finish_
#14.Rosier Jn. Baptiste Fenel: M; 58yrs; 7em sekonde; 8 kids ; vet ; 30yrs in coop: A kove esqward[10]as we say is very expensive around here. For a planter to clean an acre of cocoa land he needs quiet an amount of money. The rate for half a day is 200 gourdes[11] per person and you also need to feed them.Well , sometimes a planter does have enough money to pay for an esquad of 10 to 15 people; that’s a lot of money. We only get help from the cooperatives and oftentimes planters have to be contant with only the harvest because they are not able to care for the land. The majority of out planters are small farmers they don’t have that much, for one to say a lot of money is coming to them; they are small farmers. They always ask the cooperative to help them find a possibility or a way to care for their cocoa farm.
How days would you need that esquad for?
#14.Rosier Jn. Baptiste Fenel: M; 58yrs; 7em sekonde; 8 kids ; vet ; 30yrs in coop: It depends on the amout of land that is being clean up.
If it’s an acre?
Partisipant (M): If its one acre that depends, you understand me, it depends on how many workers he hires for the day. You see, that depends on how many workers you have. One acre can take a whole week to clean with a big esquad.
Several in the audience (M,F): Some esquad consisted of 10 to 15 workers. That is how you pay for a day of work.
How many manit[12] or pounds of cocoa can you make after harvesting an acre of cocoa land?
Partisipant (M): I told you that varies.That depends on what is planted on the land.
If he pays that much money for a kove, how much profit would that leaves him with?
Partisipant (M): Another planter would need to answer that.
#14.Rosier Jn. Baptiste Fenel: M; 58yrs; 7em sekonde; 8 kids ; vet ; 30yrs in coop: Once a year a farmer might make 4 or 5 sacks of cocoa; depending on the price at the time he wouldn’t be able to cover the price of cleaning. Maybe the next year he might gain that profit back but not the same year where he pays to have it clean. There are two stages of cleaning the cocoa; after the ground work the trees need grooming. You need to groom the trees. That is a total of two separate cleaning; that’s money being spent. You can’t let the trees die, you have to clean them. Some people have revenue coming from other places but selling 4 sacks of cocoa the way cocoa is being sold right now you won’t be able to make a profit the money you invested.
_ a participant is speaking on the phone_
How would you compare your day as cocoa producer compare to your parents, what is the diffirent?
#2.Leon Achille : M; 70yrs; Prime ; 7 kids ; farmer; 30yrs in coop: Some of the works that are being done today, elders back in the day didn’t do them. In the old day they would just harvest the farm and waited for the next year’s harvest. Nowadays we have more experiences; cocoa is considered now like our main harvest. Cocoa has done so much for us; it’s our relief, with it we are able to give our children an eduction and answer the needs for our family. Now we take better of it. Some farmers are part of an organization some don’t, those who are not part of an organization care for their farm vay ke vay[13] but those who are in organizations or in the cooperative find better way to care for their farms. We groomed our trees like we just said; we mowed our land in order for the land for to give us a better harvest. Well, I can say now we have a better caring system because we have a better understanding.
#10.Charles Maissance: M; 60yrs; None; 9 kids; farmer; 24yrs in coop: Eeee, for the question that brother just asked , in the old day when I used to go with my grandfather to the farm ,I used to only see weeds here and there. Now, we have those annoying weeds although you cut them today god willing they are back the next day.You don’t know where they are from_A child is crying very loud_in the danre.You working suddenly you see a bunch of stupid vines, you cut them out next thing you know they are climbing the trees. The parents didn’t go through that misery in the past.
Do you have other problems, other difficulties_Partisipant replied before question is complete_?
#10.Charles Maissance: M; 60yrs; None; 9 kids; farmer; 24yrs in coop: Again we have the birds issue, all they do is wast cocoa. We have what you call rats._Big emphasis on that sentence _The trees would be bearing fruits and they climb up the trees and eat the fruits; when you go under the trees you just see white seeds. Now, the woodpeckers they are worst then the others, as soon as they pick on fruits they turn dark and refuse to grow bigger. Then we have the ants, those big ants come to the country like I said to put us in more misery.You have your tree and the next thing you know they built a nest on them preventing the trees from producing fruits. Like I said, that too much problem for us.
What type ants are they?
Partisipant (F): A bunch of big ants, not like small ants in the old days. They are the invaders._Several in the audience are talking at the same time.
Do you have a name for them?
Several in the audience (M,F): Minustah[14]
Partisipant (M): Minister of agriculture did some intervention to see what they could do, but we named them the invaders.
What is the name you call them?
Partisipant(G): Big ants, bigger than normal ants
I am sorry?
Several in the audience(F,M): We call them Minustah_ Audience laughing_
#14.Rosier Jn. Baptiste Fenel: M; 58yrs; 7em sekonde; 8 kids ; vet ; 30yrs in coop: We call them Minustah_Laughing_ As an ant technician, the reason we can’t get rid of the ants is because those ants are being populated underground.The medications given to get rid of them such as termidor, optigade,and huile desix , if we use them we will lost most all of our harvest. The ants that you see are ones taking food for the queen, she doesn’t go out. She populated underground, under straws or places that are cold. Now if she attacks a plant it has no way of surving. Here in Haiti the only thing she has not yet been attack are beans. She attacks corn, cocoa, and yam. As for yam she almost completely destroys it.
Do love working as a cocoa producer?
#14.Rosier Jn. Baptiste Fenel: M; 58yrs; 7em sekonde; 8 kids ; vet ; 30yrs in coop: Yes
Why?
#6.Archange Jean Louis: Gason ; 53yrs ; 5em seconde; 9 kids ; agroculture agent; 30yrs in coop: Because cocoa is a very important revenue for us. We have two season a year, big season and small season. Sometimes even after both seasons we harvest a few pods to make into chocolate for the house. Well, it’s a culture that we love
Even with all the difficulties?
#6.Archange Jean Louis: Gason ; 53yrs ; 5em seconde; 9 kids ; agroculture agent; 30yrs in coop: Yes, yes
#1.Michel Jean Daniel: M; 56yrs ;4em seconde; 4 kids ; farmer, taylor ; 30yrs in coop: One of the other reason that we love cocoa is that cocoa is a plant that can live for a very long time. It can live up to 70, 80 years. It survives through hurrican, even when a big storm throw the tree down, it produces new stem to produce new trees. Another advantage cocoa gives, the dead leaves fertilize the land. Some farmers use the leaves as fertilizer to plant yam and some other products. There are some insects such as Maroka[15] who would attack the yam. To prevent that from happening, farmers added cocoa straw or cocoa skin in the hole when planting yam. That in itself is a type of fertilizer and that insect can’t live in it and wouldn’t be able to attack the plant. The cocoa leaves are big help to us. Not only cocoa gives us money but the leaves are use as fertilizers to enrich and feed the land.
#6.Archange Jean Louis: Gason ; 53yrs ; 5em seconde; 9 kids ; agroculture agent; 30yrs in coop: I want to add something else. You don’t cut cocoa trees to make charcoal, that protects the environment.That is why wherever you have cocoa there are always many trees.
#14.Rosier Jn. Baptiste Fenel: M; 58yrs; 7em sekonde; 8 kids ; vet ; 30yrs in coop: Eummmmm, we cannot not like it no matter how it comes because we believe it’s only this product and coffee in our production that is been shipped abroad.
How the children are involve in the cocoa production?
#1.Michel Jean Daniel: M; 56yrs ;4em seconde; 4 kids ; farmer, taylor ; 30yrs in coop: What the children do, what the children do in the cocoa production ones that are old enough when you are going to the farm you bring them along . While you’ll be picking cocoa they gathered and pilled them. Then we transport it home.It only now that cocoa has great impotance. If cocoa was valued like it is now many mothers by now would be better off and many children would have had a better eduction too. I remember when I was a boy when we would picking cocoa and they treated cocoa vay ke vay.It was not being sold for a good price; prices were like 50 cent 60 cent. Now cocoa is not being sold for nothing; it’s a valuable product and a lot of people don’t know the importance like the elders before they died. Now when the children gathered cocoa and helped carry it home, thet dried it. You break some cocoa now and then take it home, tomorrow you put it out to dry on Sunday or Monday you can sell it. You don’t go to all that misery you went through in the old day. If cocoa was valued we would be better off. Because I remembered I did that
#13.Cenatus Br.Precinord: F; 50yrs; 5em sekonde; 2 kids; farmer; 30yrs in coop: Well, what I see in cocoa now , true it was not value but we were able to manage it. Now, we have the floor issue (drying system)[16]. Cocoa produces many several different resouces like liquor drinks cookies but we are not at the level where we could do all that; cocoa has many importance points.
#2.Leon Achille : M; 70yrs; Prime ; 7 kids ; farmer; 30yrs in coop: As we are talking about how children are in envlove in the cocoa production, the children provide many services. Sometimes when the parents are away from home, the children would take the cocoa inside after a drying in sun for that day. Some parents who live far away in the countryside and they don’t have an animal to help carry the cocoa the children help carry it to town (market). That’s how children are involved in the production.
Do the children also sell cocoa?
#2.Leon Achille : M; 70yrs; Prime ; 7 kids ; farmer; 30yrs in coop: They help their parents with carrying to town.
#12.Fouland Rene: M; 45yrs; 8em sekonde; 10 kids; farmer; 1yr in coop: Sometimes you bring the children along with you and the cocoas that are sting you give them to the children. They break and sell them and make some pocket money. You understand what that means, that means the children help all the time in the production. That’s why you would always need the children.
#6.Archange Jean Louis: Gason ; 53yrs ; 5em seconde; 9 kids ; agroculture agent; 30yrs in coop:When you talking about what the children do in the cocoa production , in general children are envolved . It depends on how old they are. When it comes to all the major work that’s the adult responsibility .Some of the children are in school. During harvest you sell cocoa and pay for their school. You sent them to school for education. There is some work that children should not be doing in the production. Children have their own roles, which is why some countries prevent some children from working in the cocoa production because of their ages. Those countries will not buy cocoa from you if they know you make your children work in the production. Some of the work in the production if you let your children do them that is like the slavery system. It depends on their age, some children are old enough to help in the harvest but you as a parent it’s your job to harvest the cocoa and send your kids to school. When we talking about children, no matter who they are either they are living with their parents or living with someone else, we should not get them envolve working in the production because they are too young. I would like to add something else. When we are talking about children, children, children ,everyone has a role in the family because there is a wife there is a husband, some work are not for the wife in the same way there things children should not be envolved in. Some people use children who live with them to carry a load of cocoa that is normaly carried by an adult. Especially in the cocoa production, in harvesting cocoa and in the selling some work is not for children depending on their age. Those are adult work. Your job to harvet cocoa and send the children to school.
#4.Nel Daphenis: M; 68yrs; Prime; 6 kids; farmer; 15yrs in coop: We are poor, we are talking about one hecter of land , one hecter of land is equal to one acre. If you propose a way to help us don’t you think that is a good thing? Well, some of us don’t have much if there could be a smalllll oportunity to help us with grooming that would be a good thing. We are left with both hands empty but if you get an orpotunity that would helpful. How could you work if you don’t have a machee or hoe, try to understand me?
I want to understand this process clearly, how many days you let the cocoa dries before taking it to the speculators?
#4.Nel Daphenis: M; 68yrs; Prime; 6 kids; farmer; 15yrs in coop: It can take up to 8 days to dry well. But if you are hungry after one day of drying you can sell it.If you don’t need the money to eat you let it dry for 8 days.
#8.Joseph Amose: M; 52yrs; Preparatwa 2; 4 kids; farmer; 20yrs in coop: That also depends on the weather because during the raining season the danre have a hard time to dry. For example, we’ve been having bad weather the whole week having the danre home not getting any sun changes the color. It is better for you to pick, break, and fermant; which means you spread it the ground and cover until all the water is out; when it’s sunny. Then you set it out to dry. After a week you can sell that cocoa.
Does the speculator pay you the same price if you take it to him next day after breaking as in waiting for it to dry for one week?
#4.Nel Daphenis: M; 68yrs; Prime; 6 kids; farmer; 15yrs in coop: Those are two different cases.If I take, if I take this, look at this .This is a clean sheet of paper compares to a dirty sheet paper they can’t be the same price. The clean one is more. The dirty one is less.
How much would you get for selling coffee that has been dried for 8 days?
#4.Nel Daphenis: M; 68yrs; Prime; 6 kids; farmer; 15yrs in coop: Those are two different cases. Some prices are not convenient for you. But if you bring it green there is a different price.
How much would a speculator pays for it today?
#4.Nel Daphenis: M; 68yrs; Prime; 6 kids; farmer; 15yrs in coop: Here in the Grand- Ans, both cocoa and coffee don’t have a fix price, whichever price they give ,you just take it. Now balancers are taking it 55[17] to 60[18] goudes either dried or green, dried is 60 goudes. You never know the real price for coffee.
How much is cocoa now when its well dried?
#4.Nel Daphenis: M; 68yrs; Prime; 6 kids; farmer; 15yrs in coop: The cocoa has the same price either well dried of half dried , they mix them together. The cooperative will only take it dried and well prepared.
Let’s talk about the cooperative system, I don’t know much about it. Can you tell about it works?
#14.Rosier Jn. Baptiste Fenel: M; 58yrs; 7em sekonde; 8 kids ; vet ; 30yrs in coop: What is the cooperative? We bring ourselves together with the same ideas and the same objectives to emprove our lives. The cooperative is finance through a partner and it buys the cocoa from the farmers and sells it to that partner. If you had sold the pound of cocoa for 25 goudes[19]and you sold a total of 100 pounds for the year, the cooperative pays you for all. Then the cooperative would calculate how much it spent for that year. When that revenue comes, it takes out money for saving and money for prevalences. The rest of that revenue is divided among all members who had sold their cocoa to the cooperative. We call that a ristoun[20],it’s a prize of ancouragement. For three years it has not give us a ristoun ; it doesn’t buy from us because it doesn’t have a partner to finance it. When you sell to the speculator you don’t get a ristoun.The cooperative gives you the reristoun at end of the year, in December.
_Every December_
Do all members receive the same amount of ristoun?
#14.Rosier Jn. Baptiste Fenel: M; 58yrs; 7em sekonde; 8 kids ; vet ; 30yrs in coop: No, that’s depend on how much you sell. If I sell 20 pounds I get a ristoun for 20 pounds and I sell 10 pounds I get for 10 pounds.
When you sell, do you know how much ristoun you will ge?
#14.Rosier Jn. Baptiste Fenel: M; 58yrs; 7em sekonde; 8 kids ; vet ; 30yrs in coop: No, you don’t know. I told you that there other several fees the cooperative needs to cover from that revenue. It needs to pay the manger who bought the cocoa; take out some fund for prevalences and also for savings. That means in case of accident, if the manager gets in a accident or if the cooperative needs something some of the profit will be used for that. Now, after you cover all that the rest will be use to be divided among all the members.
Who divided that money?
#14.Rosier Jn. Baptiste Fenel: M; 58yrs; 7em sekonde; 8 kids ; vet ; 30yrs in coop: The manager of cooporative does all the disturbution.
Is that process transparent, does all members are aware of how much the cooperative made and how much is been spending?
#14.Rosier Jn. Baptiste Fenel: M; 58yrs; 7em sekonde; 8 kids ; vet ; 30yrs in coop: Yes there is a receipt for everything the cooperative buys and each member gets a receipt for what they sell. At the end of the harvest we have a meeting with the members to report how much was bought, how much was spent and how much was made. It’s not done with only a few members, all members are aware of everything.
What other type of services does the cooperative provided?
#14.Rosier Jn. Baptiste Fenel: M; 58yrs; 7em sekonde; 8 kids ; vet ; 30yrs in coop: The cooperative provided many services. It is throught the cooperative that we have the grafting system for mango fransik[21]; that is why were able to plant so many and also regenerated. We had the Meda project, which came with the nursery system, provided us more trees to plant. That increased that volume of cocoa. Because they ended up leaving we didn’t get much farther. We want to continue with that work and hoping that cooperative will be able to help us.
Is there another thing that the cooperative does to help with the production?
#5.Florestal Hem: Gason; Rheto, pa gen timoun, elvaj, 1 ane nan kop: The cooperative teaches us how to better groomed the trees; how to do better seeding; how to take better care of the cocoa. It teaches us how pick the cocoa from the tree. Because there are some people who pick cocoa the wrong way that can peel the tree.Throught the cooperative we get other organizations that came here to teach us how to pick the cocoa , how not to cut the branches, how to treat another trees near the cocoa; how much sun and freshness the cocoa needs. With the cooperative we get better knowledge on how to care for the trees and with that we are go farther with the culture.
How do you plant a new cocoa tree?
#5.Florestal Hem: M; 28yrs Rheto; no kids; breeder; 1yr in coop: Now, you have the dirt that needs to be fertilize. You have dirt and sand. Then you need plastic bags to put them in. You need to prepare the pod. That pod needs to be taking from a tree that is not too tall and the branches the pod is taken from should not be small.The pod should not be green or have any sting on it. It needs to ripe. Now you break that pod, wash it and dry it with a clean clothe then you put in the plastic bag with the fertilizer in it.
Can you plant it anywhere?
#5.Florestal Hem: M; 28yrs Rheto; no kids; breeder; 1yr in coop; No, no. It needs to grow in that plastic bag first. It grows in that bag and you have a certain amount of time before you can start watering it. You water it and make sure it does not have any worms. Make sure it does have have worms, dirt or another tree growing along with it. After all that, the cocoa is old enough to be planted. You have to make sure you don’t plant it where animals are tied such as pigs. You plant the tree on land that has been mown which will cause the cocoa to grown into a danrezon.[22]
This morning I visited a farm and saw that someone planted a cocoa tree near a bannana tree, why is that?
#14.Rosier Jn. Baptiste Fenel: M; 58yrs; 7em sekonde; 8 kids ; vet ; 30yrs in coop: The reason that cocoa is planted along with another tree on an empty land is because during the dry season that tree shades it until its strong enough. The banana leaves when they are green provide shade and freshness, a temporary home.
We talk about all the benifits to be a member in the cooperative, can anyone become a member?
#14.Rosier Jn. Baptiste Fenel: M; 58yrs; 7em sekonde; 8 kids ; vet ; 30yrs in coop: According to the rules of the cooperative not everyon can be a member.If you are a trou nan manch[23]you cannot be a member. If you are not honest you can’t be a member. If you don’t have time you can’t be a member because you might be going somewhere and all of sudden they ask you to come because there is a problem. You cannot refuse to come. If you are a thief or a liar you can’t be a member because the cooperative can’t trust you.
Is there any other condition that might prevent you from becoming a member, do you have to pay a fee?
#14.Rosier Jn. Baptiste Fenel: M; 58yrs; 7em sekonde; 8 kids ; vet ; 30yrs in coop: To become a member you took trainings, you register and there is a fee you have to pay. Everyone is equal. After training you get the rules and regulations and the status. If you agree with the all the rules and status you become a member. To be a member in the cooperative, you need to have the same obejectives,the same right and the same responsibility.
Is there someone who decided who should register as member?
#14.Rosier Jn. Baptiste Fenel: M; 58yrs; 7em sekonde; 8 kids ; vet ; 30yrs in coop: According to the cooperative‘s law you can come whenever you want and leave whenever you want.
Is the community decided who will be a member or does everyone voted for that.
#14.Rosier Jn. Baptiste Fenel: M; 58yrs; 7em sekonde; 8 kids ; vet ; 30yrs in coop: If someone wants to become a member they can register through the general assembly. The general assembly would question him on his role as a member. Now if there is someone in neighborhood or in the community who knows he has a bad repution and that person denounces him, he can’t be a member.
#13.Cenatus Br.Precinord: F; 50yrs; 5em sekonde; 2 kids; farmer; 30yrs in coop: Well there is a status that will be read and written out to you at the very beginning . Everything that is in it will be read to you and if you agree you become a member, if you can’t follow all the rules you said cannot become a member.
You have to accept all the regulations.
I see here that we have more women then men, are many women in the cooperative?
Several in the audience (M, F): Yes, there are many
#9.Asord Sulface St. Louis: F; 72yrs; Prime; 3 kids; farmer; 30yrs in coop: Yes there are but.._respondant is talking low and the audience is being noisy_
Why don’t we have younger women at the cooperative?
#9.Asord Sulface St. Louis: F; 72yrs; Prime; 3 kids; farmer; 30yrs in coop: Some people only like food that is already cooked; they don’t like working hard to cooking there own meal. They want a cooked meal, if they hear that the cooperative have hummmmm money now, they will run to be a member because they know all that money will be divided among all members even if they didn’t do any hard work. Now they see there is no money for separation to be made, they all left.The people who would have hold the cooperative together had died.
#14.Rosier Jn. Baptiste Fenel: M; 58yrs; 7em sekonde; 8 kids ; vet ; 30yrs in coop: One reason that many youth are not intrested in the cooperative because they had to leave the commune for Port au Prince to go to school. Coming from a poor family they had to look for a better life. If some of the activities from the cooperative were working even not in the best way and they were able to make some kind of income, they could have stay and become members. There is not encouragement right now. The danre doesn’t have a good price. If it did there would have some oppurnities. Now there is this issue with the cooperative and the speculators. When the cooperative is able get some finance throught a partner it pays 50 gourdes for the cocoa, it needs to be dry for 8 days. When you go outside to a speculator they will pay the same price for a cocoa that has been dried for 2 or 3 days. They will sell it to the speculators because they do less work and get the same price. That lowers the standard of the cooperative. We would like for that to change. We want a better price to encourage the members and the farmers.When that happen the younger people would be more envolve.Some could have been more involve, there parents died and left land for them because they don’t see any activities going on , they had to leave.
Is it easier for young man who is in the cocoa production to become a member then a young woman because the women….? _ Respondant started talking_
#14.Rosier Jn. Baptiste Fenel: M; 58yrs; 7em sekonde; 8 kids ; vet ; 30yrs in coop: Yes there are younger women who are intrested. Yes, in Dame Marie ; with Madam Patrick in Abrico. The young ladies in Abrico are being active. In Dame Marie they are in the cocoa transformation. That is something that worries me , it has been over a year since I’ve been to Dame Marie and seeing over there how active the younger ones are , I want the same thing here. I would like for the cooperative to be on its feet to help the young women and young men envolving in the cocoa transformation. When their parents don’t have anything to give them they could buy a pound of cocoa and transform into chocolate to make some money.
Do both men and women receive the same benefit from the cooperative; do they have the same rights?
#12.Fouland Rene: M; 45yrs; 8em sekonde; 10 kids; farmer; 1yr in coop: Yes, yes. All members are equal. The more cocoa you give the more bonus you will receive; if you give less you receive less. You understand, if the cooperative has more money more people would come. Our only competitors are speculators but if the cooperative had money more people would come here to sell their cocoa.
#9.Asord Sulface St. Louis: F; 72yrs ; Prime; 3 kids; farmer; 30yrs in coop: With speculators when you sell them that’s it; but when you sell in the cooperative you get your payment and later receive a ristoun._Car is passing by_ Speculators don’t have money to give a ristoun, you sell them because you want to. Th speculators will take the cocoa from you after 2 days of drying it’s like they are in a compition with the cooperative. The cooperative will not take it after 2 days of sun; it has to be 4 or five days. We are losing.
#8.Joseph Amose: M; 52yrs; Preparatwa 2; 4 kids; farmer; 20yrs in coop: Things are different , the reason we see that is you break the cocoa and dry it the speculator will take from even if it’s dirty_ Laughing_ with all its dirt he will take it as long as it is dry. The cooperative will only take clean cocoa from you and it needs to be dry. It will not take it in bad conditions. The voltije are exactly like the speculator. They are the majority and they always find cocoa. They sometimes pay the same price as the cooperative. 2 suns, 3 suns well you give it to them.
#14.Rosier Jn. Baptiste Fenel: M; 58yrs; 7em sekonde; 8 kids ; vet ; 30yrs in coop: Well, eummm I remember in 92 ,90,92 you see this big room , there was not enough space to put cocoa. They used to call us to come and take the cocoa away; now we can’t even make 10 sacks per year because the price to so bad. If as a cooperative we had a fixed and better price, the speculator would be selling to the cooperative to increase the amount.
Did the cooperative buy any cocoa last year?
#14.Rosier Jn. Baptiste Fenel: M; 58yrs; 7em sekonde; 8 kids ; vet ; 30yrs in coop: Yes.
Now there some problems and changes that need to be made, but last year how much did you make in ristoun?
#14.Rosier Jn. Baptiste Fenel: M; 58yrs; 7em sekonde; 8 kids ; vet ; 30yrs in coop: Well, it was me who was buying cocoa there was no ristoun.We did have sevral trainings here and whatever was sold was spend on that. There was a time that the cocoa stayed on the ground for 2 or 3 months we could not sell it. It couldn’t do what is supposed to do. As a member there was no way for me to get pay, I had to accept not to get pay. You see, the treasurer is over there, I didn’t even ask him for money. The cocoa turned into peanuts on the ground if we had a partner who had signed a contract with us that partner would have come to get the cocoa from us.
#8.Joseph Amose: M; 52yrs; Preparatwa 2; 4 kids; farmer; 20yrs in coop: We have another problem , the cocoa has been producing less lately. Now a day, it decreasing likes some type of epidemic. Now with the bird issue, the moment its producing fruits the woodpeckers and rats eat the fruits. When it’s time for harvest, the harvest is less. We don’t know what to do for that epidemic, for those animals .For me that is our biggest problem we facing in the danres.
What would like in the upcpmong project to satisfy you, to help you in the production?
#5.Florestal Hem: Gason; Rheto, pa gen timoun, elvaj, 1 ane nan kop: I want grooming to be done. _ Silence_ Meaning to cut off all the bad branches. We want a new regeneration. Some of the trees are too tall, we want to cut them and planted new ones._ Silence_ they are too tall.Well, we would like as members things to be better for us. Not only us members but also the other farmers.They are future members of cooperative. People are asking for more seeds, we want to plant more trees, a new regeneration. We need help to do all those things; the cooperative doesn’t have the means to do it on its own. With that we will have a better a better cooperatives because we will have more reaources._Chair is moving_. Ok
#14.Rosier Jn. Baptiste Fenel: M; 58yrs; 7em sekonde; 8 kids ; vet ; 30yrs in coop: On what that mister said, what I would like; we would like after the regeneration to be able to use those trees. The can be use for grafting; cut out all the old branches from the trees and graft them to produce new stems. We want training_emphasizes on training_ for the farmers. Educate them because some of those planters are not well educated. Cocoa is a danre that needs around 80% of sun I believe, some farmers refuse to cut out trees that is decreasing the volume of production. If the planters get train on where a tree needs to be planted to give shade or better shade to the danre_ talking loud_ the production will increases.
Are all the cooperative’s member always satisfied because they know they will receive all the infomation for everything that is going on?
Sevral in the audience(M,F): Yes, yes
How do you get informations?
#10.Charles Maissance: M; 60yrs; None; 9 kids; farmer; 24yrs in coop: Well, we have meeting and all the members would come; we get trainings on how to produce more cocoa, how to dry cocoa , and how to prepare it for the cooperative. That is how we get trainings.
#8.Joseph Amose: M; 52yrs; Preparatwa 2; 4 kids; farmer; 20yrs in coop: For me if we have a replanting system because many of our producers are facing many problems. Some of danre had died and we need to replace them. We want to replace what we had lost .If someone can come to help with replanting with a nursery I think that would be best.
Would someone else like to add more?
#12.Fouland Rene: M; 45yrs; 8em sekonde; 10 kids; farmer; 1yr in coop: For us to plant more, for us to get more trees to plant_ talking very low, can’t hear what’s been said_to give us more encouragement; then we will have a greater quantity ; if we had less we will have more. We want more trees to plant to replace those that died. We want to have more cocoa to give better result.
Does cooperative have a nursery?
Partisipant (M): Yes it used to, but…._talking very low_.
We talked abou all the difficulties you faced as a cocoa producer, what dreams you have for your children? Would you want them to get envolve in the production or do you want something else for them?
#11.Castilan Estavil: Gason; 7em sekonde; 4 tiomoun; kiltivate;1 ane nan kop: There are sevral eummmm children who works in the production too. I want the cooperative to give us a heritage to leave behind. Some children go to school to learn but there some who can’t learn. I would like to leave a dream my child. I want that child to say “My father left this for me, I have more advantages and I like what my father did’’. That’s why we want to work in the cooperative to leave footprints for them, to encourage them._ A lot noise can be heard.
Would someone like to add something more?
#13.Cenatus Br.Precinord: F; 50yrs; 5em sekonde; 2 kids; farmer; 30yrs in coop: As for me_a phone is ringing _ I have a son, I make him attends meetings so he can hear and learn. I want him to know if I die tomorrow he has a place in the cooperative. That is my decision.
Why do you want that?
#13.Cenatus Br.Precinord: F; 50yrs; 5em sekonde; 2 kids; farmer; 30yrs in coop: Why do I want that, because there is an advantage in cooperative for me. After you selling you get your money and when you don’t expect it during the Holidays at a time when you needed some oil, some meat and some rice, you get some more money and you are able to buy things you needed. No one will give you that money. That’s why I won’t ignore it.
Is there a difference between what you want for your sons and what you want for your daughters?
#13.Cenatus Br.Precinord: F; 50yrs; 5em sekonde; 2 kids; farmer; 30yrs in coop: For us? Well, we want someone to come and meet with us, teach us things, train us and give us informations.
Do you want the same thing for both your sons and daughters?
#9.Asord Sulface St. Louis: F; 72yrs ; Prime; 3 kids; farmer; 30yrs in coop: a day there no male or female, everything a man can do a woman can do it too. Now we see women designing houses; everything a man can do a woman can do it too. We have women who are engineers, women are doing everything now. In the past there were men and women, now women are presidents, ministers, senators, deputies and many other things. So, I don’t see any difference between men and women.
Is there a difference between women living in countryside and those living in town?
#9.Asord Sulface St. Louis: F; 72yrs ; Prime; 3 kids; farmer; 30yrs in coop: No, if if the woman have comprehension and an education I don’t see any differences.
Is having an eduction or not having an eduction the difference?
#9.Asord Sulface St. Louis: F; 72yrs ; Prime; 3 kids; farmer; 30yrs in coop: Yes, that it.
Would someone like to add something else, something we have not talk about that is important?
#9.Asord Sulface St. Louis: F; 72yrs ; Prime; 3 kids; farmer; 30yrs in coop: Well, what I would to add is that the cooperative has been weak, the weakness has to do with us a members becuase were not very active. Now, if we can find someone to help and guide us we would not have the problem of men and women anymore. Looking around here you would see several young women who had some type of trade but they are sitting here doing nothing and can’t go anywhere else. If the cooperative have an activity these young women could come here. A lot of people died the wrong way, they died while looking for a better life. If we have something here that is bringing resources in the community I don’t believe they will go to a different community. That is what we want because there things we don’t know how to do. They can come here and teach us. Some young men around here had said that Madam Patrick and the people of Abrico don’t know anything but these people had become masters in what they know even if they don’t know how to read. They are masters in what they know. Someone might ask you sow dress for her, make a sheet or if you know embroidery ask you to make something, bake a cake, or be a wedding planner all of that are good things if you learn how to do them. Those things are important we would like for the cooperative to help us with getting this things in the community.People are never too old to learn new things. We got together and created the cooperative and things were running well but now it has failed. If we can get another organization to embrace us that would make us very happy; it can help us to get what we don’t have.
#8.Joseph Amose: M; 52yrs; Preparatwa 2; 4 kids; farmer; 20yrs in coop: We farmers are poor and we are looking to go forward not to go backward. We who are in the cocoa production several years ago when cocoa was selling our partner would always give us a receipts when he buy from us and count how much cocoa we sell; when the time comes each one of us would get a ristoun. During the Holiday season we would always get some money. That ristoun is like check for us. A few years had passed and we did not get that ristoun. Now if we can get a boss who would help us farmers; who would buy from us and sell for us we would see that as a great thing. That would be a great opportunity for us. We have children in school; we don’t have animals; and we don’t have anything else besides the cocoa. The cocoa is our only resource. It is our life. If we can get a partner who will buy from us and sell for us and give us what we deserve that would be very helpful. We have children in school and that is expensive. The children are in school we don’t know what to do with them. So you are the one who can find a way to help us. Things are difficult we don’t where to go.
#11.Castilan Estavil: M; 35yrs; 7em sekonde; 4 kids; farmer; 1yr in coop: What I see in the production, if the younger people do not see a good example they will not get involve in the production. Because in far isolated place in the countryside, when you look in here can only see 1 or 2 young members, young people don’t work any more we are the one that is holding things together because there is nothing in the countryside. When a young person is finish with his education and can’t find anything to do in the countryside he will have to leave and move to the city. If you need one or you need someone with enough knowledge to do something for you, you will have to go to Port au Prince to find one. You will not find one here because there is nothing for him to do here._Patisipant is talking very low_ If we don’t take charge or change things to get things better, all the production we have here will disappear. They will be in the same situation we are in right now, we didn’t get anything they won’t get anything too. We are working the land but land is not producing. If there is a way, I would ask those who are with us to help us get work so we can push some of our young people in order for this town not to be completely vanish.
#15.Domenncer Frantz: M; 27yrs; University; 2 kids; agronomist; 1yr in coop: We really want to thank CRS who is financing this project. That is a very good decision. What we would like after the regeneration of cocoa is completed is to find a market where the price for a pound of cocoa is reasonable. Cocoa is selling for 20 gourdes per pound and life from time to time is becoming more expensive. We want a better market when that happens we would take better care of cocoa. More people would be interested in planting cocoa, more young men and young women will be involve in the production. We would give a better cocoa on the international market.
. If you don’t have anything else to say, i won’t make let you suffer more. Thank you for all the information you had provided, all will help us give a great report to CRS.
#12.Fouland Rene: M; 45yrs; 8em sekonde; 10 kids; farmer; 1yr in coop: What I would like is to get your phone number.Just like you took our numbers we would like to have yours as well, because sometimes we might have a problem regarding cocoa we would like to contact you and meet with you to discuss it.
Well, I can give you my number, we are a group of surveyers we not in charge of the coming project. We are doing the survey to help those who are in charge of the project to better understand the situation and to better understand you in order for them to better help you. Everything you have said in this meeting regarding cocoa will be giving to them; I can give you my mumber that will not be a problem.
#12.Fouland Rene: M; 45yrs; 8em sekonde; 10 kids; farmer; 1yr in coop: Yeah, we were talking about the younger people on how to support them,get them envolve in helping the members, and to encourage them to become members in the cooperative. When you look at the cooperative if it provides job they would make a living. If cooperative could have a branch that is associate with them, that would be more incouraging. The younger one don’t see anything working, instead of staying here not doing anything they moved to Port au Prince. If there were any activities in community they would not had moved to Port au Prince. They would find a way to organize themselves. We here are farmers, we are working the land; that kind of work doesn’t give any result. We work; we planted a lot; but we harvest less. There is no life. If you could do something for us we would be happy.
#14.Rosier Jn. Baptiste Fenel: M; 58yrs; 7em sekonde; 8 kids ; vet ; 30yrs in coop: What I would like to say to CRS is thank you. We will continue to say thank you. Depending on the project that is coming if it works, we would like for CRS to become a partner also a helper. If CRS is a project that is passing through, I want to take whatever they will give us, for tomorrow when they leave the cooperative is not trouble. I want to say that again, I want CRS to help us find a market for our merchandise.
#10.Charles Maissance: M; 60yrs; None; 9 kids; farmer; 24yrs in coop: The last question I would like to add has to do with rats and birds who wasting the cocoa, if we could get something from them to kill the rats in the danre , find a solution with the woodpeckers and also the ants. We need to find a solution if we don’t we will only be known as farmers with the danre but we will never get the harvest.
#15.Domenncer Frantz: M; 27yrs; University; 2 kids; agronomist; 1yr in coop:In the project there should have a campaign on deratisation
True ?
#15.Domenncer Frantz: M; 27yrs; University; 2 kids; agronomist; 1yr in coop:Yes, a campaign of deratisation it important along with trainings
#8.Joseph Amose: M; 52yrs; Preparatwa 2; 4 kids; farmer; 20yrs in coop: Yes , to support what that citizen said, man, I would be happy if we could have a survey on the rats and woodpeckers issue. I can tell you that I have a danre I used to get aroud 12 pods from it now I look under the tree there are 2,3,4 pods on the ground. I only find them on the ground.
#15.Domenncer Frantz: M; 27yrs; University; 2 kids; agronomist; 1yr in coop: Within the project there should be a deratisation campaign.Because cocoa grows very close together it has a lot of shade, ther rats live in them. Its like they eat the cocoa night and day.They don’t know when it’s day light or when it’s dark but if clean and groom it and do sanitation work they won’t find a place to hide they will decrease. That is already in the the project.
#9.Asord Sulface St. Louis: F; 72yrs ; Prime; 3 kids; farmer; 30yrs in coop: As for me ,I already like this project.
#8.Joseph Amose: M; 52yrs; Preparatwa 2; 4 kids; farmer; 20yrs in coop: Well, I would like to say thank for the time we pass together because I was in street and was not aware of the meeting. I was passing through when I saw Brother Daniel and he told there is a meeting going on right now and I came to participate with you. I want to say thank you for this moment we had together where we sat down and talked. I am hoping this will continue. Seminars and meetings are very good.
One more time I want to thank all of you for all the information you had provided and we hoping we will continue to communicate to really understand the situation, all the problems and all the good things in the production.
Several in the audience (M.F): Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you very much.
_They applaud_
#8.Joseph Amose: M; 52yrs; Preparatwa 2; 4 kids; farmer; 20yrs in coop: Yes, you said you can give us your number, I don’t know if i can get it now from you.
I need to look at my phone for that number, I don’t live in Haiti.
Patisipant (M): Yes, CRS is in partnership CAUD, I don’t know if the project they have will start now. With my experiences as a cocoa planter, we have two cocoa harvest here_Several in the audience are talking_ which means big harvest and the little harvest. Each cocoa has a season to be groomed because when they are in the stages of maturity, in full , or blooming you cannot groom them. For the foreign cocoa the grooming should be doing right now November and December. In January, Febuary, and March it’s blooming and you cannot groom it. That is cocoa you will harvest in Febuary, March, January, Febuary. November and December you can start grooming, grooming them make the stronger.
After harvesting do you that’s when you do the cleaming
Partisipant continued (M): Do the pruning
If you have an acre how many workers would you need in a kove?
Partisipant continued (M): That depends because not are farmers work the same way. If you have 1 acre of cocoa at least you need an esquad of 20 people maybe you might finish in 1 or 2 weeks if they know who to throw a machetee. Depending the type of weed it has, if it has good weed like vines it will take 11/2 or 2 weeks to clean it.
Do you do that once a year?
Partisipant continued (M): That is the problem we are having here. Cocoa is supposed to be harvest twice a year but because of our economic problem we harvest only once. Well, that is the problem. Cocoa should be harvest 2 times a year because of our economic problem we do 1 time a year. By that time the cocoa is already reforested. According to the law of cocoa it should be done 2 times a year, every 6 months; but it’s not done like that.
#15.Domenncer Frantz: M; 27yrs; University; 2 kids; agronomist; 1yr in coop:We will start working this month, we have November, December, and January.
Thank you very much.
Audience(M,F). Thank you, thank you, and thank you.
Cacao Focus Group Anse D’Hainault English
(conducted on 12th August 2011)
Below is a list of the participants, their name, age, education and (if the data is available), occupation. For education, the potential categories are,
| kindergarten | Kindergarten |
| 1st_grade | 1eme ane fondamantal |
| 2nd_grade | 2eme ane fondamantal |
| 3rd_grade | 3eme ane fondamantal |
| 4th_grade | 4eme ane fondamantal |
| 5th_grade | 5eme ane fondamantal |
| 6th_grade | 6eme ane fondamantal |
| 7th_grade | 7eme Seconde |
| 8th_grade | 8eme Sekonde |
| 9th_grade | 9eme Sekonde |
| 10_grade | 3eme Sekonde |
| 11_grade | Segonn |
| 12th_grade | Reto |
| 13th_grade | Filo |
| university | Inivesite |
| professional_school | Lekol pwofesyonel |
| no_school | Okenn |
#1 Rosanie Jean Jacques , 60, None, Market woman
#2 Rochelin Dilien , Zombi
#3 Jona Lauror , 31, 3e AF, Market woman
#4 Rosemirtha Ardouin , 42, None, Market woman
#5 Rosena Simond , 20 , 4e AF, Market woman
#6 Louisaint Lucia , 50, None, Market woman
#7 Rosemitha Noël, 42, None, Market woman
#8 Public:
#9 Catherine Leger, 50, None, Market woman
#10 Filisiara Filistin , 59, None, Market woman
#11 Salomond Paulette, 52, None, Market woman
#12 Camiler Louisia, 30, 2e AF Market woman
1- How important is the production of cocoa to you?
#9 Catherine Leger, 50, None, Market woman: You see here, the cocoa ripe on its tree. As soon as it is rek it will be ripe. On the same day we pick it, we break it, and set it up to be kive. The next day we open it. After 3 or 4 weeks it should be dry. It has to be ripe before picking it otherwise it is not good. You can put it in a container to be kive for at least two days then set it out to dry in the sun. It becomes beautiful and yellowish, which means it was well prepared. Now after 3 or 4 days in the sun, the cocoa can be conserved.
Rek: Nearly ripe
Kivet: When the cocoa is put into a sack for several days right after the seeds were removed from the pods in order to remove the grease from the seeds.
#2 Rochelin Dilien , Zombi : Well, the importance of cocoa to us is, for example, you might not have the possibility and you need to send your kids to school. You prepared the cocoa and dried it for the moment, and later you can sell it to pay for your kids’ school. Cocoa is a prepared food. That is the importance it has for us. In the same way, your kids might be hungry but the cocoa is not picked. You might go to a market woman and say” I have some cocoa and my kids are hungry I need to feed them”. She will sell you food. Instead..muffle…muffle.. you have the cocoa. It has great importance to us because our kids are not left hungry and they get to go to school.
#9 Catherine Leger, 50, None, Market woman: Cocoa is important for those who own it. If you don’t have it and you are only buying, and if you are only a zombie. Once you buy you have to resell it. You don’t own any cocoa, it’s important too. But if they don’t have it for you to buy, you will not find it to use for yourself.
2 Do you like working as a cocoa producer?
#8 Public:Yes
#11 Salomond Paulette, 52, None, Market woman: Yes, we love working as cocoa producers. It is what feeds us and is our source of life.
#2 Rochelin Dilien , Zombi : Yes, we love working in cocoa production. It is like a cooked meal for us. It is very useful to us for sleeping, school, food, clothes and shoes for our kids. You need to have land in order for you to produce cocoa.
- How do you spend your days during the cocoa harvest?
#11 Salomond Paulette, 52, None, Market woman: During cocoa season we are always active. You know we are women. Actually I went all the way to Malala and I am already back. Malala is a place far away.
4 – Do you pay other people to help with the picking or you do all the work within the family?
#12 Camiler Louisia, 30, 2e AF Market woman: We do not pay other people because what we have is not enough to pay workers. Sometimes as women we would use a long stick to pick the cocoa from its tree, but has to be ripe first. When we finish picking, we carry it home in a washbasin or a bucket. But first we need to remove the cocoa from its pod. When we get home we would kive it. The next day, God willing, we set it out to dry. We weigh the cocoa after it is dried.
- Are your daily activities during cocoa season different from your mother’s?
#11 Salomond Paulette, 52, None, Market woman: When my mother was raising me, she raised me with the cocoa. At any time she would be selling cocoa and she made money. Now they take the cocoa from us for nothing.
#4 Rosemirtha Ardouin , 42, None, Market woman: The price changed. It was more expensive in the past.
#9 Catherine Leger, 50, None, Market woman: The country was better. I was raised well by my mother. Now the country is tough. Schools are expensive. Food for the kids is expensive. We don’t have money to raise our kids. They are not raised well. They suffer more. There was more food and money in the past.
Selling cocoa does not answer your needs?
#9 Catherine Leger, 50, None, Market woman: No, and you need to have it. Now if you don’t have it you have some money and buy cocoa to resell you only make 2 pyes as bonus. It’s just enough to buy food for the kids. We don’t have cocoa trees. You need money to buy then sell it.
(Pyes: Another name for Haitian gourdes)
6- What do you find is the most difficult thing in the cocoa production?
#2 Rochelin Dilien , Zombi: I would not say there is anything too difficult in the production to us because if we don’t, cocoa life will be hard for us. The production is our pride because we know where we will get it to sell.
#5 Rosena Simond , 20 , 4e AF, Market woman: What is most difficult for us is when we don’t have a plantation yet; when we are growing the cocoa. Before we prepared the cocoa for planting, if it does not rain we have to carry water for us to water the plants all day long.
#4 Rosemirtha Ardouin , 42, None, Market woman: It’s difficult for us when it does not rain.
#9 Catherine Leger, 50, None, Market woman: The problem is water for us to water the plants. If you have buckets to carry water and you water the plants, they start growing in an instance. You set it out in the sun and water it.
#5 Rosena Simond , 20 , 4e AF, Market woman: It will grow in an instant.
7- What is the easiest thing for you in the cocoa production?
#6 Louisaint Lucia , 50, None, Market woman: For them to buy the cocoa from us and pay us well.
#2 Rochelin Dilien , Zombi: Only carrying it to sell it.
#9 Catherine Leger, 50, None, Market woman:It is not far to carry it for selling. I don’t know about the others who are not from here, or those who live far, but for those of us living in town it is not hard to carry it to sell.
#3 Jona Lauror , 31, 3e AF, Market woman: Drying is easy as long there is no rain.
8 – Besides cocoa, what other agriculture production are you involved in?
#9 Catherine Leger, 50, None, Market woman: We plant corn and rice. If the harvest is good when we harvest, we share with our children. When we have a good spring.
#1 Rosanie Jean Jacques , 60, None, Market woman : We don’t plant all the time, there is a special time for that.
9- Does cocoa have a specific date to start producing fruit?
#2 Rochelin Dilien , Zombi: We always have cocoa. It might not be same quantity all the time.
#11 Salomond Paulette, 52, None, Market woman: Sometimes you have more. Sometimes you have less. Even if it is not a lot you always get some.
#12 Camiler Louisia, 30, 2e AF Market woman: For example, right now it’s August. We have a lot It has a harvest time. In September and October we have a lot of cocoa. In November and December the quantity goes down.
10 Who in the family sells cocoa the most?
#8 Public:The women
#7 Rosemitha Noël, 42, None, Market woman: The women do that. Not all men will take the chance to pick cocoa. The women like picking cocoa more than the men. They carry it to market for selling.
11- Can you give an explanation of the cocoa process?
#10 Filisiara Filistin , 59, None, Market woman: We hoe the land first, then water it.
#2 Rochelin Dilien , Zombi: You have the cocoa. You hoe the farm and if anything tries to cover the cocoa, you simply remove it.
#9 Catherine Leger, 50, None, Market woman: After working the land we plant banana on the land. You break the pods of the cocoa while it is green and take out the seeds. You plant the cocoa seeds behind each banana tree and add some manure to it. You mow the land when it’s needed and water the plants. Your cocoa trees will grow and start producing; you will be picking your cocoa soon.
12 – Is anyone here in a cooperative?
#6 Louisaint Lucia , 50, None, Market woman: We heard about them, but none of us are involved.
What have you heard about cooperatives?
#3 Jona Lauror , 31, 3e AF, Market woman: Cooperatives are with people who are involved in cocoa; with people who are planting. Because there are some trees-I heard about people only receiving them from the cooperatives. They plant those trees and if they have time they water the plants. The young ladies water the plants every day and work in the fields then go to meetings in the cooperative.
13 – Is there a cooperative in this area?
#9 Catherine Leger, 50, None, Market woman: Yes but we are not involved. ….Why? We can, For example, other places have it, but here we don’t have any.
#5 Rosena Simond , 20 , 4e AF, Market woman: For example, you come here and meet with us. But them, if they don’t invite us we cannot go.
Do you know the advantages you can have in the cooperative?
#9 Catherine Leger, 50, None, Market woman: If we had it we would know but we don’t have it.
#8 Public: We don’t have one; we don’t know.
14-Are you interested in joining a cooperative?
#1 Rosanie Jean Jacques , 60, None, Market woman: They haven’t invited us. Somebody there would have to send us an invitation. … There would have to be a leader. … In this area, they would have to invite us for us to do it. But it’s something that interests us.
15 – What do you think a cooperative could do for you?
#9 Catherine Leger, 50, None, Market woman: For cocoa to bring a better price, for us to rise up to get a better price for our cocoa, for our children to have a future, for us to have prosperity, for us to have one too; that’s what we need from a cooperative.
#3 Jona Lauror , 31, 3e AF, Market woman: And a lot of them will buy. If you have one you aren’t going to buy.
That means if a cooperative comes you will participate?
#8 Public: Yes
16 – When you produce cocoa who do you sell it to?
#8 Public:We sell to speculators, anybody.
#9 Catherine Leger, 50, None, Market woman: We sell it to speculators in Anse d’Hainault, people who buy cocoa. We dry our cocoa. We make it dry and then we sell it.
17-Does cocoa have one price, that is, just one price?
#9 Catherine Leger, 50, None, Market woman: No you sell the “pot”, just like the marmite.
#6 Louisaint Lucia , 50, None, Market woman: A “pot” of cocoa sells for 12 gourdes, which means the marmite sells for 18 Haitian dollars, 20 dollars when you buy it on the ground. But when you go weigh it on the scale they weigh it at 100 gourdes
#3 Jona Lauror , 31, 3e AF, Market woman: You make four (Haitian) dollars on it.
18 –What work in cocoa production is there that men don’t do?
#6 Louisaint Lucia , 50, None, Market woman: Men don’t plant yams. In cocoa work they hoe, they cut dead branches so it can thrive, but if you leave it alone, it’s not good, and women can’t do it.
19 –What do women do that men don’t?
#9 Catherine Leger, 50, None, Market woman: Women harvest cocoa and dry it. You don’t dry it on the ground, you dry it if you have a cement pad. Then you measure it and go sell it.
20-Do you ever cut down cocoa trees?
#8 Public: No
#1 Rosanie Jean Jacques , 60, None, Market woman: No. They clean them up. They get rid of the sick branches’’
#9 Catherine Leger, 50, None, Market woman: If the cocoa is not cared for it won’t produce. For a sickly cocoa tree, its branches need to be trimmed, but we never cut down a cocoa tree unless it’s dead.
21-The cocoa you are growing now, is it cocoa that was already there or did you plant it?
#8 Public: No, we plant little trees. When you find others, ones that were already there on your grandparents’ land, if you acquire a plantation you need to cultivate it. Now you need to plant.
22-How long does it take for a cocoa tree to produce?
#9 Catherine Leger, 50, None, Market woman: 3 to 4 years
#4 Rosemirtha Ardouin , 42, None, Market woman: It depends on the land. You can plant a cocoa tree and it doesn’t take 1 year to produce, but if the land isn’t good it can grow for 3 or 4 years and still not produce.
23- What are the days like for men during the cocoa season? What do they do?
#11 Salomond Paulette, 52, None, Market woman: In the cocoa season, men work pruning and trimming the cocoa trees. They pick it and put it on the ground for women to set it out to dry. They go to work after that, and you might do something or carry something for him; go meet him. We carry the cocoa, break it, lay it out to be kive, and then dry it.
24-Who divides up the jobs, men or women?
#3 Jona Lauror , 31, 3e AF, Market woman: We both do. The man can say “ wife, let’s do this”. The wife says, “lets do this instead”. We know school is about to be open and we have to buy materials for school. We both decide.
25-Who decides when the cocoa is ready to be picked?
#4 Rosemirtha Ardouin , 42, None, Market woman: Everybody lives off cocoa. Men aren’t really as on top of the cocoa. It’s women who are always involved in cocoa. We are the ones who are always on it, looking to see if we have 2 or 3 pods that are ripe.
26-When do you know cocoa is ready to be harvested?
#9 Catherine Leger, 50, None, Market woman: When it’s ripe. When it’s ripe it’s yellow, it’s pink.
#2 Rochelin Dilien , Zombi: When it’s not ripe yet it’s blue, it’s green.
26 –Do children participate in cocoa production?
#8 Public: They pick. They pick it to make a little money. Children pick cocoa so they can make some pocket money because when the parents don’t go, the kids go. They pick a little cocoa when they see it’s ripe.
#9 Catherine Leger, 50, None, Market woman: Children don’t help with cocoa production, with the cutting and trimming. They might help us pick. When we’re harvesting they help us.
27-How do you consume cocoa, what do you make with cocoa to drink, to eat?
#5 Rosena Simond , 20 , 4e AF, Market woman: When the cocoa is dry, we make chocolate with it. We grill it. When it’s done grilling you grind it, you mash it with a pestle, you soften it, you make into balls, and you put it into banana leaves.
28-Is chocolate (to drink) the only thing you make with cocoa?
#5 Rosena Simond , 20 , 4e AF, Market woman: Well, chocolate (to drink) is the only thing I make with it myself…’’
#9 Catherine Leger, 50, None, Market woman: We know they can make hair dressing with it and another things, but we don’t do it. We only make hot chocolate and candy. We know they make liqueur with it. If it weren’t something people valued they wouldn’t buy it.
29 –What medicines do people make with cocoa?
#9 Catherine Leger, 50, None, Market woman: With cocoa, if you have a cold you can boil the bud. I have seen people take it and wash their head. We take some little ones and we slice them and wash the head with it.
#11 Salomond Paulette, 52, None, Market woman: And sometimes people can be so short on vegetables, they watch the little ones (laughter). We take three or four and make a vegetable dish. I’m not sorry to say that we eat it. We boil it, and it’s slippery like okra.
#7 Rosemitha Noël, 42, None, Market woman: The cocoa’s skin is a powerful medicine. If you have a sick person you burn it and put it on the sick person. … I didn’t know that … That’s something from long ago, not now … That is something I thought was for if you have an animal with a cut.
30 –Would you want the same thing for your daughters as for your sons?
#8 Public: Yes
#7 Rosemitha Noël, 42, None, Market woman: If you don’t have means, if one is ahead of the other and I don’t have the means, I push the one that’s ahead, whether it’s a girl or a boy. I push the one that’s ahead, and then that one can help the younger one. I push the one that’s in front, and halt the one that’s not.
#9 Catherine Leger, 50, None, Market woman: Me, I wouldn’t want one to break away from the other. I have to be happy for the two of them to be as one.
#6 Louisaint Lucia , 50, None, Market woman: I would not one to be more successful than the other. I want them both to be equal.
#6 Louisaint Lucia , 50, None, Market woman: Both of them have to want to be successful. If you have a daughter, nowadays the girls are not making wise decisions. You can put both of them in school. The younger one wants to learn and leave the girl behind because she only cares about being beautiful or goes and gets pregnant. I will stop her and push the other one.
#2 Rochelin Dilien , Zombi: Hummmmm, Jesus!!
#2 Rochelin Dilien , Zombi :But it’s not the parent who stopped her.
31-If you have money are you the ones who decides how to spend it?
#2 Rochelin Dilien , Zombi: It depends on how much money you have in your hands. If it’s enough for what you have to do and you have the same idea as your husband, you get along. Before you do what you have to do, you call your husband. You take the path on the right. He says, “I don’t want you to go right, go left.” Or if he tells you what path to take, he is with you, but you must follow.
What else do you spend your money on besides food?
#12 Camiler Louisia, 30, 2e AF Market woman: We spend money on our children. For example your kids might want to have some pretty clothes, participate in a youth group, and school days dress up. Sometimes your husband does not have the means to take the kids shopping. You can do that. You want to look good yourself and don’t have to wait on your husband to give you money for that. You can buy nice things for your house. Yes, we buy animals: chicken, pigs, and goats.
#11 Salomond Paulette, 52, None, Market woman: Depends on the amount you have.
#4 Rosemirtha Ardouin , 42, None, Market woman: It depends on the amount of money you have.
What about the big expenses? Who decides on them?
#9 Catherine Leger, 50, None, Market woman: For small expenses we don’t tell our husbands. He does not need to know about everything…Laughing……But for big expenses he is involved. For health care and education both of us make the decision. For example, he might want to send the kids to public school this year because he wants to invest the money on the farm, and I can say, “if we take them out they will need new uniforms, let’s leave them where they are.”
32- Do you take a loan on the cocoa before it is ripe ?
#2 Rochelin Dilien , Zombi: You can’t just borrow money on the cocoa because you see there is cocoa on the tree. You wait until the fruit is ripe. For myself, I already know that the cocoa is mine. If I can see I will make one or two mamit of cocoa, I will not stay starving if I am hungry. I will go to someone and say “lend me 50 gourdes. I will go pick some cocoa. When it is dry I will sell it and pay you back.” But if the cocoa is green you can’t just go borrow money on it.
#9 Catherine Leger, 50, None, Market woman: If you cannot buy cocoa during harvest, you can go to someone and borrow 1000 gourdes. After selling the cocoa you pay them back and keep the extra you made.
33 – Can cocoa be sold like mango, meaning selling the whole harvest at once?
#8 Public: No, only if you sell the land.
#6 Louisaint Lucia , 50, None, Market woman: If you have a problem paying for school for children, you can rent the land with all the cocoa on it. If you rent it for 2500 gourdes, when the cocoa is good all of the harvest is for that person. You will not get any extra money and the person doesn’t owe you anything extra. Even if you are hungry you cannot touch that cocoa..Laughing.
#6 Louisaint Lucia , 50, None, Market woman: You rent the land to someone.
Are there women as leaders in the community?
#6 Louisaint Lucia , 50, None, Market woman: In Anse d’Hainault there is a woman who is senator and some are teachers. None of us here are in any position, but there are women who are active in the community.
#9 Catherine Leger, 50, None, Market woman: Well, what do we do? If we have kids at a school where the principal is a woman and the teacher is female and we have some problem and cannot pay school, we would ask them if they can wait for 2 or 3 days to pay and not send the kids home.
#9 Catherine Leger, 50, None, Market woman: Between us here, we are not in those levels. We are not doing anything because they don’t give us anything. No one is looking for anything for us. There are several women in church but none of them are leaders.
#11 Salomond Paulette, 52, None, Market woman: There are women who are leaders in some associations, but they are not from Anse D’Hainault.
34 – Is there an organization for women in the community? Are you involved in it?
#8 Public: No. We don’t have anything here.
In my opinion, the women in this area don’t have a leader. We don’t have any help. God is our only help.
#1 Rosanie Jean Jacques , 60, None, Market woman: We could make the decision to do something, but we don’t have a leader. We need someone who will look out for us and help us. We will take care of that person. Sometimes we have great ideas and we don’t where to go. If we have a leader, that person will lead and we will follow.
#11 Salomond Paulette, 52, None, Market woman: For example if you are going out, you don’t know where to go.
#1 Rosanie Jean Jacques , 60, None, Market woman: There is a group in Nan Bouchi. A leader came and invited them to a meeting. Now all the women over there are involved.
#3 Jona Lauror , 31, 3e AF, Market woman: But we don’t have anyone here.
#3 Jona Lauror , 31, 3e AF, Market woman: Can’t we just create a group by ourselves ?
#6 Louisaint Lucia , 50, None, Market woman: We can create one, but we need a leader who will look out for us.
35- Do you think men and women have the same rights in the community?
#5 Rosena Simond , 20 , 4e AF, Market woman: I think women have their rights and men have theirs. I think there is work a man can do but a woman can’t. The men work with machetes all day long, but we women cannot. The men give the women food. As women we help. Sometimes the man can go to a collective-labor group for the whole day and leave nothing for the woman. Laughing…
#9 Catherine Leger, 50, None, Market woman: But as a woman you have to hustle to make sure there is something waiting for him when he gets home.
#4 Rosemirtha Ardouin , 42, None, Market woman: You need to find some cocoa even if it is green to sell in order to cook food for the kids and leave him some. He is expecting to have food ready for him when he gets home and doesn’t need to know what you’ve done to get food…Laughing.
36- Do you think a woman can run for office in this area?
#8 Public: No, we don’t have these things around here.
Isn’t this area part of Anse D’Hainault?
Yes, we are. Only Rose Laure for deputy.
37- Who do you sell cocoa to?
#1 Rosanie Jean Jacques , 60, None, Market woman: We sell to the speculators; they are the people with scales. We dry the cocoa and leave our house and carry the cocoa to him. If we don’t have cocoa we go to people’s houses with cocoa and buy by small cans and sell it to speculators. The speculators buy the cocoa, put it in sacks, and send it to Port au Prince. He sends the cocoa to Port au Prince by boat. We who are buying cocoa by buckets or small cans, they call us zombies. We get the name zombie because it might be 4 or 5 in the morning or 4 in the evening and we are still out buying cocoa.
How do you buy cocoa as a zombie?
#9 Catherine Leger, 50, None, Market woman: We buy the amount we can find. We buy everywhere we go.
#11 Salomond Paulette, 52, None, Market woman: We find two small cans from this person, or three, four from another. We take everything until we have an amount that we can carry on our head. Cocoa is very heavy when it is wet.
#12 Camiler Louisia, 30, 2e AF Market woman: We buy it green and after it is taken from the pods also.
#10 Filisiara Filistin , 59, None, Market woman: We always buy dry cocoa but the price is different.
#11 Salomond Paulette, 52, None, Market woman: Dried cocoa is more expensive. If you pay 10 gourdes when it is dry, you will pay 8 gourdes when it is wet. 15 gourdes dry, 10 gourdes wet. 20 gourdes dry, 15 gourdes wet. Prices differ depending on the time of the year.
#4 Rosemirtha Ardouin , 42, None, Market woman: If you buy it wet , you would dry it.
#4 Rosemirtha Ardouin , 42, None, Market woman: When the cocoa is wet, it is not an advantage for the zombie. You might pay 15 gourdes for a small can of wet cocoa and after it is dry, you will be selling it for 25 gourdes per pound to speculators.
#11 Salomond Paulette, 52, None, Market woman: Speculators pay 25 gourdes per pound, and a pound is two small cans. Speculators do not buy the cocoa when it is wet. For us zombies it is better for us to buy the cocoa dried instead of wet.
#12 Camiler Louisia, 30, 2e AF Market woman: The speculators will not buy cocoa from us if the cocoa is wet. When you buy dried cocoa, you can go sell it right away. When you buy it wet, you have to dry it before selling it. It is not to our advantage. You do it because you have kids to take care of.
39- Besides cocoa, what other agriculture products do you sell?
#9 Catherine Leger, 50, None, Market woman: Yes, we sell cocoa, bananas, and breadfruit. Whatever you have you can go sell. There is more money in cocoa. When you take the breadfruit to the market you might make 10 gourdes..Laughter…Sometimes people don’t even look at them or you might not sell it at all. Cocoa on the other hand, as soon as you arrive there will be a person to weigh it, and you will sell it.
#3 Jona Lauror , 31, 3e AF, Market woman: People with a small plantation have cocoa. They pick it, dry it, and sell it. A zombie doesn’t have a plantation. They buy the cocoa and sell it to speculators.
#4 Rosemirtha Ardouin , 42, None, Market woman: Yes, we buy it from them. We don’t have a plantation. We only buy it and dry it to sell to speculators.
#11 Salomond Paulette, 52, None, Market woman: Sometimes the people with a plantation won’t sell you cocoa. They will dry it and take it to town. Only those who want to sell to you will sell.
#12 Camiler Louisia, 30, 2e AF Market woman: They know if you buy a mamit (large can) from them you need to try to make 10 gourdes from it. Well, some said they can make the extra 10 gourdes themselves…. Laughing.
Focus Group Chambellan 2 (English)
(conducted on 13th August 2011)
Below is a list of the participants, their name, age, education and (if the data is available), occupation. For education, the potential categories are,
| kindergarten | Kindergarten |
| 1st_grade | 1eme ane fondamantal |
| 2nd_grade | 2eme ane fondamantal |
| 3rd_grade | 3eme ane fondamantal |
| 4th_grade | 4eme ane fondamantal |
| 5th_grade | 5eme ane fondamantal |
| 6th_grade | 6eme ane fondamantal |
| 7th_grade | 7eme Seconde |
| 8th_grade | 8eme Sekonde |
| 9th_grade | 9eme Sekonde |
| 10_grade | 3eme Sekonde |
| 11_grade | Segonn |
| 12th_grade | Reto |
| 13th_grade | Filo |
| university | Inivesite |
| professional_school | Lekol pwofesyonel |
| no_school | Okenn |
Participants:
#1 — Julien Berlin, age 32, university educated, school teacher
#2 — Marco Belizaire, 31, university (civil engineer), unemployed
#3 — Edson Florestal, 21, education: filo, unemployed
#4 – Labonte Renel, 52, university, school director
#5 – Jefferson L’Honneur, 32, university/management, DINEPA technician
#6 – Handerly Michel, 23, filo, unemployed
#7 – Luxama Jean Marc, 23, 3em sekonde, unemployed
Cocoa Production
Do you like working in the cocoa production?
#4 – Labonte Renel, 52, university, school director: Well, for me, I am older than all those guys who are here. Cocoa raised me. It put me through school. In ‘71, ‘73 Haiti, especially for us from the area I am from, Chambellan, Moron , all the way to Les Irois, – this program – cocoa and Haitian pigs gave us our education. Haitian pigs, which we don’t have anymore. But in ‘82, when they came to remove all the Haitian pigs in Haiti, it was cocoa until now that brought us to where we are. I, who am speaking to you, am the director of Lycee Chambellan. It is cocoa that gave us all here an education. With my dad, there is something called zombie. When the peasants went to buy cocoa from the outside, it’s called zombie. My father was a big zombie, His father was a speculator, his father. … We are all here because it is cocoa that raised us.
Nowadays cocoa becomes a food, a prepared food. Because if we, for example, we can go by the fire now and take 2 ,3 cocoa beans, while the fire is lit, and we put the beans under the ashes, peel them and we eat them. We can add salt and eat them. That is cooked food (this may be metaphoric because he uses the expression “prepared food” which can also mean something immediately useful. Also,this is the first reference to people actually eating cocoa, despite the fact that we asked the question directly in other focus groups. The response was also, ’we only consume it as hot chocolate drink’, like coffee)
#3 — Edson Florestal, 21, education: filo, unemployed: To follow up on what the director was saying, it’s only the cocoa that raised us. It accomplished a lot but we are missing resources around here. When you take for example Dame Marie, the people go very far, farther with cocoa then Chambellan. Chambellan is focused in one place. I can say its only one company which took in a big quantity from us. But if you have resources, there will be more than one company to take it…… at different prices.
#4 – Labonte Renel, 52, university, school director: And another difference we could have is fermentation , but here we do not have that yet. I think this is important.
#2 — Marco Belizaire, 31, university (civil engineer), unemployed: To follow what the two gentlemen said, we have other problems in cocoa. There is one buyer, he takes the cocoa. He buys it at price he wants. Today you hear it’s 25 gourdes, tomorrow morning he will say it’s 24 gourdes, and tomorrow during the day he will say it’s 15 gourdes. You don’t have a place to dry it. You are forced to sell it.
As for me, cocoa raised me. Like right now, when I am broke, I just cross the river, pick cocoa and sell it. If I can find a place to work to strengthen cocoa production, I would be very happy. At my house there is a scale that my father left for me after he died. From my children to grandchildren this scale will never be sold. It will stay as a heirloom for us all. My mother had 5 children. After my father died, it’s the scale she took and raised us all. If the cocoa has value we will be very happy, but cocoa has another thing that happened – not enough production, which means the farmers become discouraged. They don’t plant cocoa any more because the price is too low. There was a year here whenthe price of cocoa dropped extremely low. We had to cut cocoa and plant yam instead. It was really. It was recently that people had cut cocoa so much we started planting it again. Also our cocoa is so old, we need to plant more cocoa, to have more because cocoa is our wealth.
During cocoa season, how do you spend your day?
#3 — Edson Florestal, 21, education: filo, unemployed: Well, I have to tell you that cocoa is an exhausting crop. When you pick cocoa, to pick it, to gather it is very tiring. There are ants, and you need to have a lot of people with you because there are some cocoa tree plantations you have here that are very very……vast.
#2 — Marco Belizaire, 31, university (civil engineer), unemployed: Also cocoa needs cleaning. You have to clean it. Cocoa needs to be exposed, but not too exposed.That means if it’s covered all over by weeds, it won’t produce. There are many parasitescalled “Gui” which sometimes cover it, so you have to clean it often. When it’s cocoa season, during Easter and October, you’re happy because you will be making money.
During the cocoa season, is the work different or the same as your mother’s, when she was your age?
#3 — Edson Florestal, 21, education: filo, unemployed: Cocoa used to produce more in the past, because my father used to sleep in the countryside to pick cocoa, but nowadays with hurricanes and several other things that are happening in Haiti, we can say this culture is disappearing even though they are rebuilding it. But in the past cocoa used to produce; it’s different.
#4 – Labonte Renel, 52, university, school director: : And the population ….. Increases.
#4 – Labonte Renel, 52, university, school director: It becomes more difficult, you don’t see exactly, to see cocoa now it’s at a speculator’s house, but in the past when you visit a farmer’s house the pound of cocoa was 20 gourdes. It’s only at some farmers you find cocoa, It was so much. They stored it and waited for it to be ready. Now it’s only at a speculator’s house. Because they sell it for 25 gourdes, even though life becomes hard, they bring it. But in the past when you visited a farmer, if he said it rained he spent a week wasting cocoa.
#2 — Marco Belizaire, 31, university (civil engineer), unemployed : To follow what the director said, because myself in the year ‘79 I was not born yet, my mother tells a story where after one cocoa season she built a house, and then that season gave a lot of cocoa. Cocoa was selling itself. Now, even after two seasons you can’t even buy a piece of land because the price is too low. There must be benefits but the farmers are not getting them.
#1 — Julien Berlin, age 32, university educated, school teacher : Also the farmers lack the means to clean cocoa the way it needs to be done. You might arrive at a cocoa tree and find another covering it. It has a tree on top of it. It’s not deforested. In the past when you planted, you didn’t have that amount of trees covering it, but the trees covering the cocoa become so big. It’s not deforested which causes them to be cold. For the cocoa when it blooms, the flower burns. We need to work on that but because we lack the means, it can’t happen. That is preventing the cocoa to produce
more than it used to.
What kind of problems do you have with cocoa? Do they suffer from any type of sicknesss?
#3 — Edson Florestal, 21, education: filo, unemployed: Yes , the sickness is lightning, if the cocoa produces fruits and during lightning storms, the cocoa gets burned.
After there are parasites , what we call “gui”. That is what is killing cocoa. And now we have ants which we called “Minustah” [after the UN occupation forces] – that’s how the farmers call them….They are so big.
#4 – Labonte Renel, 52, university, school director: We have birds that also eat cocoa. Rats also eat them.
#4 – Labonte Renel, 52, university, school director: Lizards. We have an animal that is called soud (a type of lizard).
Does soud kill the trees?
#3 — Edson Florestal, 21, education: filo, unemployed: No, the soud eats the seeds. Only gui kill the trees; if they get on it, they kill it [note that gui are parasitic plants and we suspect that something else, a disease or age is killing the tree and that offers a hospitable environment for the parasitic plants].
What is “Gui”?
#4 – Labonte Renel, 52, university, school director: Gui is a parasite. Cocoa has a lot of parasites also. If you could find everything you need to prepare the cocoa to sell, you would be making a lot of money. But during cocoa season, the amount that is prepared, you don’t really get it all. There are lizards eating it, there are rats eating it, there are lizards eating it. We need to find a way to fight against those pests, and we don’t have enough means. But during cocoa season we all will be making money, even if the money is not really enough…muffled…muffled……
Are there any other sickness that cause the roots to rot, that cause the leaves to fall, that cause the pods to turn black?
#3 — Edson Florestal, 21, education: filo, unemployed: The black pods – that’s what we are telling you is lightning. Any time you have lightning, they are not mature, they are rek. If the lightning hits them, they get steamed . But cocoa doesn’t die easily. But when the gui attacks it , the gui will take time to kill it; cocao tres last more than 100 years.
Gui takes years to kill the cocoa. It can take years for it to establish itself. Because it’s a parasite just like a tree that is called Fidye (I don’t know if you know it). And we have to tell people that cocoa in Grand Anse, is cocoa that has been here since colonial times. There has never been a campaign to plant cocoa. The cocoa has been here for a long time. You will see someone plant a little cocoa tree but there has never been a big campaign where everyone is planting cocoa . Those cocoa have been here for a long time..150,170,180 years . They don’t die easy. But when the gui attacks cocoa , it doesn’t produce. It stays on the cocoa and swallows all its sap, which prevents it from producing.
Can you borrow money on the cocoa before it is ready?
#3 — Edson Florestal, 21, education: filo, unemployed: Yes, with ease. For example if I am friend with a speculator here….he knows I have cocoa.
#4 – Labonte Renel, 52, university, school director Labonte Renel : I am broke and I can tell him to give me $50. After I will give him cocoa. Same as they do with coffee. Coffee especially – they do that with coffee.
#4 – Labonte Renel, 52, university, school director Labonte Renel : Because cocoa is a “prepared food” [the expression again], when it’s picked you make money.
Can cocoa be sold like mangoes, selling the whole harvest at once?
#2 — Marco Belizaire, 31, university (civil engineer), unemployed: Yes, some people do that sometimes.
#3 — Edson Florestal, 21, education: filo, unemployed: No, they can’t do that, they cannot sell a whole harvest of cocoa. They rent a cocoa tree plantation for 3 years, for 4 years. After 4 years if they want, they renew it. They renew it, after they take their land……people will not sell it often.
#2 — Marco Belizaire, 31, university (civil engineer), unemployed:. For example, someone can have a 3-acre plot with cocoa. They are leaving for Port au Prince, or maybe he is too old and can’t take care of it anymore. He rents it.
#4 – Labonte Renel, 52, university, school director Labonte Renel : For myself, who is talking to you right now….Pause…., cocoa is one of the things we cultivate in Haiti. You see in this moment, there used to be only one cocoa season. It was rare… we had the first season, it was called Easter season, like after Easter we found 2,3 cocoa pods. Now there is a middle ground between Easter and the big season. The big season is supposed to be ready from September to October. Nowadays …. it gives fruits all the time.
#5 – Jefferson L’Honneur, 32, university/management, DINEPA technician: Never lack cocoa.
#3 — Edson Florestal, 21, education: filo, unemployed: Now it’s the easter one – the biggest. Until right now we are still getting cocoa. If we go to that gentleman’s house we will find cocoa. Well i don’t know if it’s God who did that for Haiti, if it was for those small cocoa pods. There is not coffee in Haiti anymore. Coffee is in a situation right now where the roots dried out. It doesn’t give fruit anymore. But us here, we have cocoa trees that are more than 100 years old.
When my grandmother died at 102 years in 1993 she left cocoa trees. Those cocoa trees are still here and she found them already planted. Well, what you see from what the gentleman there just said, it’s the parasites that are preventing Haiti form producing real cocoa, and we are discouraged. Imagine if a pound of cocoa is selling for 25 gourdes here. Well, if it’s being sold for 25 gourdes and nine people buy it at the same price……..the price will never go up.
#3 — Edson Florestal, 21, education: filo, unemployed: You need to let them know that they never buy a pound of cocoa for 1 American dollar from us.
What do you find the most difficult(challenging) in cocoa production?
#3 — Edson Florestal, 21, education: filo, unemployed: Well, most difficult for me in cocoa…. as I told you before there are cocoa trees which when my grandmother who died at 102 years, she left for us. The cocoa trees are still here but you already know it won’t give you the same quantity like it used to. Those cocoa trees- in Creole we say they are rek, (decrepit). It needed pruning, but to have pruning done in 3 acres of land…pruning is removing old branches, branches that had been here for a long time. There is what you call “gui” a parasite…. .it’s a cleaning in itself. What it produces doesn’t give you enough money to clean it. Cleaning is the most difficult part for us. The advantage we get is not enough to have them cleaned. Imagine, a cocoa is rek like that, is a lot, the land is a lot, and it costs you for that. Now, suppose during the season you make 3 sacks of cocoa, they buy it from you in a bad condition. People who will be selling you sori, a single sori is 50gourdes ……Sori is a farmer konbit….people who will work for you.
#4 – Labonte Renel, 52, university, school director: Right now, when the worker sells the sori, he won’t stay for three hours working for you. For him to cut a cocoa branch- cutting the branch and putting it aside lasts one hour. That means you are not able to pay for enough work to even to regenerate the cocoa, and that is one of the most durable plants in Haiti.
#5 – Jefferson L’Honneur, 32, university/management, DINEPA technician –The advantage we have, around here is that we do not need fertilizer when we plant cocoa; it takes root. In some places you need fertilizer for the cocoa to grow . Here, we do not need that, we only need to have it cleaned.
#2 — Marco Belizaire, 31, university (civil engineer), unemployed: Almost everything within the cocoa is difficult, from beginning to the end. Because after picking the cocoa, breaking it….and when you have to carry the cocoa, it has syrup. Its very very heavy. You can’t carry it by yourself, you need someone with you……you should have an animal.
#4 – Labonte Renel, 52, university, school director: To pay people to carry the cocoa down, then to find a place to put it out to dry.
Are you saying to carry the cocoa is difficult?
#3 — Edson Florestal, 21, education: filo, unemployed : It’s difficult because there is a lot of syrup falling on the person. Sometimes the person needs to have something to cover themselves with.
#2 — Marco Belizaire, 31, university (civil engineer), unemployed: Taking the cocoa from the bitasyon (small plantation) where it is very difficult. Picking the cocoa; ants are in the cocoa. To break the cocoa is a very hard job. When removing it from its pod, your fingers can be cut and you don’t have any other options – you have to use your fingers. And the second factor is there is a problem to dry the cocoa. That is difficult. There is no place to dry the cocoa; you can’t find the appropriate place. Especially here in Chambellan, it’s a rainy area; there is a lot of rain. I can say in Chambellan, from May to December it rains every day……..The other day I had 30 sacks of cocoa that got wet on me.
#3 — Edson Florestal, 21, education: filo, unemployed : The cocoa gets spoiled if you can’t find a place to dry it. You can come looking for cocoa here, it’s already spoiled, and they take it from you at a bad price.
What is easiest in the cocoa production?
#3 — Edson Florestal, 21, education: filo, unemployed : It would be encouragement…when the cocoa produces fruits… take good care of it.
#2 — Marco Belizaire, 31, university (civil engineer), unemployed: It needs to have a good price
#4 – Labonte Renel, 52, university, school director: No, it’s the cocoa season.
#1 — Julien Berlin, age 32, university educated, school teacher: Money and taking good care of it.
#4 – Labonte Renel, 52, university, school director: The most difficult thing is getting dry….Ahhh yes.
#2 — Marco Belizaire, 31, university (civil engineer), unemployed: Getting the cocoa dry is a misery, you buy the cocoa and spend a whole day, and again the next day you need to put it out to dry. You could buy 200 sacks of cocoa, and you have to dry it.
#3 — Edson Florestal, 21, education: filo, unemployed: Those are the people buying it. They are talking about people who own it at their house. That’s the reason that they don’t take care of it…. From the farmer’s house if the cocoa was exploited well, valued it, the speculators would not need to have it dry. It would be dry. But it’s the way they bought it; how it’s taken from the farmers. They brought it like that. But if there was a structure, like we have this wealth; this wealth – ,they box it, they come to sell it, and you bought it. But the way they take it, a zombitakes it the zombi goes and sells it on the scale. The speculator takes it to the exporter. When it first comes to Wiener’s house, they dry it. There’s reject, but if they did, if they give it good care the reject was outside. Since it was in the peasant’s house, if the reject was sorted out The cocoa will arrive quick where it has to go to for feeding. Because we know that cocoa nowadays is a worldwide food…as I just told you, if I take two seeds of cocoa and put it under the ashes; dry it. I peel it like a peanut. I eat it. I will still taste the bitter taste but I will eat it anyway.’’
#4 – Labonte Renel, 52, university, school director: what’s most weird in the cocoa, it’s when we don’t know who fixed the price of the cocoa. It’s the problem. Today you come and you hear 25 gourdes; the next day you hear 20 gourdes. You don’t know what reason. The Haitian government doesn’t help us with this.
#1 — Julien Berlin, age 32, university educated, school teacher: we have to know the reason. Cocoa could be good quality, bad quality – but they give you the same price, You don’t know what reason is, Today it could be this price and tomorrow that price. You don’t know what office fixed the price of the cocoa. That’s the problem.
#1 — Julien Berlin, age 32, university educated, school teacher: When you see the cocoa for 25 gourdes, it’s because there is another person here. It’s the field time, that… there is no profit in it(silence).
#4 – Labonte Renel, 52, university, school director: The only thing that I know is when a business doesn’t have competition it will not work. We need other people buying,
#2 — Marco Belizaire, 31, university (civil engineer), unemployed: What’s also a problem is the biggest Haitian production is cocoa.
#2 — Marco Belizaire, 31, university (civil engineer), unemployed: Especially Grand Anse – it’s not another thing you can hear people talking about, yam, about this, about that. It’s cocoa. If the government wants to take charge saying that they will produce in the country, they could do that because with only cocoa we produce chocolate, we make candies. We make liquor with it.”
#3 — Edson Florestal, 21, education: filo, unemployed : Edson Florestal we produce “kremas” with it.__
#1 — Julien Berlin, age 32, university educated, school teacher: They make cocktails with it. They make perfume with it. It’s a plant; how can I say that, It has grease. There is cocoa oil. Then if they want to do a transformation you can do that.
Explain the cocoa production process.
#3 — Edson Florestal, 21, education: filo, unemployed : You make plants with the seeds. But, we in Haiti, we use the pods. We don’t take the pods on the ground; we take the pods on the body of the tree. It is with it we make seeds, and if we go over here, we can go and see a tree nursery in the national school… pods on the body of the tree. It’s the one guarantee for us. With it we make seeds. We take a plastic bag, we make fertilizer, we make compost. Then we put it in a black plastic bag. Then we make it grow. We make that while it’s all green.
But the peasant doesn’t do that. What the peasant does, he searches cool places in the garden, in the earth. He lifts a piece of cocoa; he plants it in the back of a banana tree. He plants it in the back of a tree that has died, then, miraculously, this cocoa tree is created.
#2 — Marco Belizaire, 31, university (civil engineer), unemployed : There are some cocoa trees that grow by themselves. Seeds that rats ate sometimes grow by themselves. They replace the old cocoa trees. When we talk about a tree nursery, that’s the way they do it. They make compost; earth prepared with fertilizer. They put it in a plastic bag then they put a seed of cocoa that came from the body of the tree and they transplant it in the plastic bag. After 3 or 4 weeks it grows. When it grows, now it gives birth to a plant and then they bring it to a place where they can plant it.
How many pods of Criollo vs Trinitario make a mamit?
#4 – Labonte Renel, 52, university, school director Labonte Renel: 40 pods is one mamit. The criollo is better, is thicker. The foreign cocoa is bigger; it’s the pod that is bigger but inside it’s not really big. Trinitario is not good. In contrast natural cocoa, ours, is thicker. Other foreign cocoa trees are bigger but not fuller.
#3 — Edson Florestal, 21, education: filo, unemployed: The difference is in the pods. The foreign pod is very big, but ours is denser, it does not have much oil. Our pods are smaller but it has more seeds inside.
#1 — Julien Berlin, age 32, university educated, school teacher:: It makes good chocolate.
How many pods from Trinitario make a mamit?
#4 – Labonte Renel, 52, university, school director Labonte Renel: Well, that I don’t know. Try looking at it.
#5 – Jefferson L’Honneur, 32, university/management, DINEPA technician: Ours, if you have 40 pods will make 1 mamit and 2 gode. Because the seeds are big, it has a lot of oil.
#3 — Edson Florestal, 21, education: filo, unemployed: Our chocolate is good.
Cooperative impact
repeated from above for reference:
#3 — Edson Florestal, 21, education: filo, unemployed: To follow what the director was saying, [respondent #4 in first response] it’s only the cocoa that raised us. It accomplished a lot but we are missing resources around here. When you take for example Dame Marie, the people go very far, farther with cocoa then Chambellan. Chambellan is focused in one place. I can say its only one company which took in a big quantity from us. But if you have resources, there will be more than one company to take it…… at different prices.
#4 – Labonte Renel, 52, university, school director Labonte Renel: And another difference we could have is fermentation , but here we do not have that yet. I think this is important.
#2 — Marco Belizaire, 31, university (civil engineer), unemployed Marco Belizaire: To follow what the two gentlemen said, we have other problems in cocoa. There is one buyer, he takes the cocoa. He buys it at price he wants. Today you heard it’s 25 gourdes, tomorrow morning he will say it’s 24 gourdes, and tomorrow during the day he will say it’s 15 gourdes. You don’t have a place to dry it. You are forced to sell it.
As for me, cocoa raised me. Like right now, when I am broke, I just cross the river, pick cocoa and sell it. If I can find a place to work to strengthen cocoa production, I would be very happy. At my house there is a scale that my father left for me after he died. From my children to grandchildren this scale will never be sold. It will stay as a heirloom for us all. My mother had 5 children. After my father died, it’s the scale she took and raised us all. If the cocoa has value we will be very happy, but cocoa has another thing that happened – not enough production, which means the farmers become discouraged. They don’t plant cocoa any more because the price is too low. There was a year here whenthe price of cocoa dropped extremely low. We had to cut cocoa and plant yam instead. It was really. It was recently that people had cut cocoa so much we started planting it again. Also our cocoa is so old, we need to plant more cocoa, to have more because cocoa is our wealth.
END duplicated passage
You said they, who are they?
All: People who are buying from us…..The buyers.
#3 — Edson Florestal, 21, education: filo, unemployed: There is only one buyer in the market.
#2 — Marco Belizaire, 31, university (civil engineer): There is only one person in the market. For example , when there are people buying, we compete for it. It works better. But when it’s only one person buying the cocoa, it doesn’t have a price, and he does whatever he wants.
#3 — Edson Florestal, 21, education: filo, unemployed: He comes and gives you what he wants. The farmers’ harvests do not have value in Haiti.
You said there is only one person buying the cocoa?
All: Yes, one person, one company.
#2 — Marco Belizaire, 31, university (civil engineer), unemployed Marco Belizaire: Yes, Maison Weiner ‘
#5 – Jefferson L’Honneur, 32, university/management, DINEPA technician – Jefferson L’Honneur, 32, university/management, DINEPA technician: Maison Weiner, that’s the one implanted in the Grand Anse.
#3 — Edson Florestal, 21, education: filo, unemployed: He does whatever he wants.
#2 — Marco Belizaire, 31, university (civil engineer), unemployed : For me, there is what I would like to say again: the wealth of cocoa is abroad. Why is it only Maison Weiner that can buy cocoa for abroad? The foreigners need cocoa, other countries need it, why can’t someone else have the means Maison Weiner has to buy? That’s the question I would like to ask.
The price you sell cocoa is 25 gourdes per pound?
#3 — Edson Florestal, 21, education: filo, unemployed: Yes, 25 gourdes. No matter what.
#4 – Labonte Renel, 52, university, school director: Whether green, whether dry, it’s the same price for cocoa. I don’t know if Mr. Ernst probably can show you. Well, I think we know already if we are talking about him. We know him…. It’s in Grand Anse and in Thiotte. Thiotte is coffee. Thiotte has places that produce a lot of cocoa.
#5 – Jefferson L’Honneur, 32, university/management, DINEPA technician – Jefferson L’Honneur, 32, university/management, DINEPA technician: In Cap Haitian, in the north
#1 — Julien Berlin, age 32, university educated, school teacher : When we are talking about Dame Marie that gives cocoa, it’s not Dame Marie that really gives cocoa, because it is this area that sells cocoa at Dame Marie. Chambellan, here, it’s the place that gives a lot of cocoa. You find Abricot, which gives a lot of cocoa and it’s natural cocoa. It is not the foreign cocoa, it is the real Haitian cocoa, good cocoa, natural, that produces the good oil.
Cooperatives, gender roles in cooperatives
Are there any people here who are in the cooperatives?
#4 – Labonte Renel, 52, university, school director Labonte Renel: No one here is in a cooperative. We have an association that is called FARHE, it’s related to our own group we call a Soladarite. We have had this project for a long time. We will reforest Haiti. We have a Tree nursery here in Chambellan.
Have you ever heard of cooperatives; do you know what is it?
#3 — Edson Florestal, 21, education: filo, unemployed: We heard about it, but we are in an association. We are responsible for it. It’s called FARHE. We have a relationship with them in the United States. But we have an association called Solidarite. We have this program to reforest this area for 5 or 6 years. A program every year…. we have a tree nursery down there. If you pass down there, we can show you a tree nursery that we prepared. It has Cocoa, Cedar , there are Mahogany trees – all that. We are waiting on the contrary during these months. After the 15th of this month we are supposed to start planting trees. It has mango. It has djaca….trees that produce fruits.
Would you like to be part of a cooperative?
Public: Yes, if they don’t steal from us.
#3 — Edson Florestal, 21, education: filo, unemployed: I agree with cooperatives. The reason I agree is –I am taking the example of Dame Marie. I won’t say Chamballan–that cocoa is a readied food. No, it is not readied food for us but in Dame Marie it is a readied food. People just pick cocoa, then go sell it. He go to sell cocoa, can start cooking food, sell the cocoa and knows he will buy fish. The money is already in his hand.
But with someone who breaks cocoa, it will take a week before it dries for him to sell it to speculators. It’s impossible or maybe difficult for the people living in the countryside.
I think the presence of a cooperative in Chambellan would be very good for us, especially in the case of fermentation. That one. You buy the cocoa green from someone who just picked it. Its important for us.
Regarding cooperatives, I won’t answer 100% if I am a member of one. I don’t buy but my father does and sells to a cooperative. The name of the cooperative is KOPKOD. It’s Daniel Michel who is in charge of it. He is here quietly.
#2 — Marco Belizaire, 31, university (civil engineer), unemployed: They don’t get benefits.
#1 — Julien Berlin, age 32, university educated, school teacher: I asked them how to become a member, and they never give me an answer. I think it will work, yes. But there is only a small group of people in it. They don’t open the door for others to come in.
#4 – Labonte Renel, 52, university, school director Labonte Renel: It has been here for a long time, but it stopped.
Do you think people who are part of a cooperative get more advantages than you?
Public: No, I don’t think that. No.
#3 — Edson Florestal, 21, education: filo, unemployed :. People in the cooperative have advantages. There was something called “ristoun” a long time ago. When you sell the cocoa at a cooperative they take your name. When you sell more than once, after sending it abroad or wherever they send it, the person gets a bonus. That’s what I knew a long time ago.
#2 — Marco Belizaire, 31, university (civil engineer), unemployed Marco Belizaire : I don’t think that’s a bonus. If you do the math, cocoa is being sold $5 per wash basin , to dry. If they had bought $6 from you, instead you sell at $5 ….muflle muflle…..Because the price they give you when you dry it, it has oil. It does respond even if the next day you get a bonus per pound, that’s nothing.
#3 — Edson Florestal, 21, education: filo, unemployed: That’t what I was explaining, yes. When you dry it , sort it, sell it at the cooperative, that’s what they say. They said they are selling it . The bonus is shared among everyone who helped with the preparation.
#2 — Marco Belizaire, 31, university (civil engineer), unemployed: There are people in it who complain they don’t get a ristoun. I don’t know if another one will come to replace it, that is coming with something new that perhaps can encourage us, but if there is not change I don’t believe there are advantages.
Gender roles in cocoa production
What is the diffrence between men and women as producers?
#3 — Edson Florestal, 21, education: filo, unemployed: Well, in the production, the women cannot do more business than the men. But the women cannot produce more than the men because production here is done with strength, in difficult situations ……with hands
#4 – Labonte Renel, 52, university, school director: The women cannot do it. The women can do business. Imagine, lets take the cast of the left overs of cocoa they made chocolate out of it.
Because farm work in Haiti is not a work that is mechanized . There are no tools. You hold the end of a machete to throw it; it’s a pick you swing to pull it. A woman can’t do that.
#3 — Edson Florestal, 21, education: filo, unemployed: If we go to Balirenne now, that’s where they produce a lot of chocolate, you will find more women that do that.
Is there anything in the cocoa production that a man can do but a woman cannot?
#2 — Marco Belizaire, 31, university (civil engineer), unemployed MarcoBelizaire: Mostly the picking, women cannot do the picking. She can’t clean the trees in it. She cannot clean it; cocoa trees are tall. She cannot swing a machete. The women will not find a pod of cocoa on the ground often, she might be able to pick it but sometimes you have to climb the tree with a pole to pick them. If a pod fell on the ground, the woman can pick it; she can carry it away …….muffle muffle…The woman can make cocoa and chocolate. The woman can take the cocoa and dry it.
What is the role of the men in the cocoa production?
#3 — Edson Florestal, 21, education: filo, unemployed: We are the motor; we are the one who plants. It’s us who followed it in the garden. Because a tree in a farm, it’s a man who has to follow it. The same way you are raising a child, that is how a tree is,yes. It has vines that climb on it. The vines needs to be cut out in order for the tree to spread out.
Who sells the cocoa, it is men or women ?
Public: All of them sell cocoa: children, old people whatever the person. If it’s ready, everybody can make money.
#3 — Edson Florestal, 21, education: filo, unemployed: Some call distingo, where all pods that are damaged are for children. Those the rats have been chewing on the pod are for children. Good pods are for mother and father; seeds on the floor for children.
If we take 10 sellers, will we find 5 women and 5 men who are sellers?
#2 — Marco Belizaire, 31, university (civil engineer), unemployed : Yes, easily.
#3 — Edson Florestal, 21, education: filo, unemployed: If only you can be here on a Thursday to see the amount of children who are going to the market. Even though the child has a little quantity of cocoa, he brings it.
#1 — Julien Berlin, age 32, university educated, school teacher: Even if you are at my scale, I will sit over there. You will see how many children who will come to sell me cocoa. They have freedom to do it, and it’s the only tree that they don’t cut down in Haiti.
Are the zombies more women or more men; what about the speculators?
The Public: More men are zombies. Speculators are men. 8 out of 10 zombies are men.
#6 – Handerly Michel, 23, filo, unemployed Michel Handerly: 90% men.
#2 — Marco Belizaire, 31, university (civil engineer), unemployed Marco Belizaire: 7 out of 10 are men. When you look at the women from Pay, the women from Gran Plaine, there are many.
#7 – Luxama Jean Marc, 23, 3em sekonde, unemployed: I can’t give a number.
#3 — Edson Florestal, 21, education: filo, unemployed: The women from Gran Fon don’t come to sell anymore.
#5 – Jefferson L’Honneur, 32, university/management, DINEPA technician: If we take 10 zombi we will find 7 are men because cocoa is something that is heavy.
#4 – Labonte Renel, 52, university, school director: The And the roads are bad. Well only men travel throughout them and they use mules.
#6 – Handerly Michel, 23, filo, unemployed: The roads are some times very difficult.
#2 — Marco Belizaire, 31, university (civil engineer), unemployed Marco Belizaire: Sometimes the man carries a bag on his head. Women can’t carry a sack of cocoa on her head.
Who makes decisions in the family?
(the following also posted under “family role in cocoa production” below)
#3 — Edson Florestal, 21, education: filo, unemployed: Everyone. Sometimes the man’s role is to pick cocoa. The woman what does she do? The man finds a technician who does everything. On the day of harvesting cocoa, when the cocoa is ripe the wife comes along , the kids come along. What is the role of the father? He picks the cocoa and lets it fall on the ground and the woman and kids gather them. Farther, in the processing, he grinds it. After that depends on their agreements. Because the cocoa needs understanding when they finish with selling it. The man might say I owe the workers this amount; give me this amount to pay them. It’s the same thing. School is about to be open – it’s the cocoa that will send the children to school. When the father brings the money after selling , he will, say, leave $200 for the workers.
In this case, its normal for the man to take charge, but while he controls, the money goes to the woman. Because its heavy, the woman can’t carry it. The man has to carry it, either he takes a horse or a muleor carry it on his head , it is the man who carries the cocoa for selling.
The family’s role in cocoa production
Who makes decisions in the family?
#3 — Edson Florestal, 21, education: filo, unemployed: Everyone. Sometimes the man’s role is to pick cocoa. The woman what does she do? The man finds a technician who does everything. On the day of harvesting cocoa, when the cocoa is ripe the wife comes along , the kids come along. What is the role of the father? He picks the cocoa and lets it fall on the ground and the woman and kids gather them. Farther, in the processing, he grinds it. After that depends on their agreements. Because the cocoa needs understanding when they finish with selling it. The man might say I owe the workers this amount; give me this amount to pay them. It’s the same thing. School is about to be open – it’s the cocoa that will send the children to school. When the father brings the money after selling , he will, say, leave $200 for the workers.
In this case, its normal for the man to take charge, but while he controls, the money goes to the woman. Because its heavy, the woman can’t carry it. The man has to carry it, either he takes a horse or a muleor carry it on his head , it is the man who carries the cocoa for selling.
Focus Group: Dame Marie (English)
(conducted on 11th August 2011)
Below is a list of the participants, their name, age, education and (if the data is available), occupation. For education, the potential categories are,
| kindergarten | Kindergarten |
| 1st_grade | 1eme ane fondamantal |
| 2nd_grade | 2eme ane fondamantal |
| 3rd_grade | 3eme ane fondamantal |
| 4th_grade | 4eme ane fondamantal |
| 5th_grade | 5eme ane fondamantal |
| 6th_grade | 6eme ane fondamantal |
| 7th_grade | 7eme Seconde |
| 8th_grade | 8eme Sekonde |
| 9th_grade | 9eme Sekonde |
| 10_grade | 3eme Sekonde |
| 11_grade | Segonn |
| 12th_grade | Reto |
| 13th_grade | Filo |
| university | Inivesite |
| professional_school | Lekol pwofesyonel |
| no_school | Okenn |
Participants :
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member
#3 Marie Mimose Metelus, 56, 4e AF, Cooperative Member
#4 Ronise Francois
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member
#6 Mirtha Dorlus, 75, None, Cooperative Member
#7 Mme Exelhomme Samdi, 57, 2e AF, Cooperative Member
#8 Brunette Saint Surain, 55, None, Cooperative Member
#9 Spencer Cesar, Guest, In charge of fermentation for CAUD
#10 Public
Cocoa Production
What is the importance of cocoa to you as a producer?
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: Cocoa is very important to us because it is our life. It is our bank account. Everything we need is from the cocoa we have to sell. School is about to be open; to send the kids to school. It’s with it we pay school fees. It is with it that he takes care of everything. I have responsibilities, like my mother and father. Everything I need to do is from the cocoa. Cocoa has great importance for me.
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: Cocoa is our life. Cocoa land and cocoa gardens are our lives. Because when you sell the cocoa …muffle…muffle….. the time to dry it and all the trouble. I just sell it and they pay me. For me, I would wish for it to go farther, to go higher, for God to help us.
#3 Marie Mimose Metelus, 56, 4e AF, Cooperative Member: Cocoa has a great importance because it makes good chocolate. When we drink it we feel great. It’s agreeable. It makes good liquor. We feel it’s very agreeable. My husband just broke his leg and it was the cocoa I had to sell. I felt great joy in my heart. The car just broke down. My child was living in Mirebalais. When I see myself taking a big amount of cocoa to sell and send money to my child living in Mirebalis, I felt like Jesus came down. It’s honey that is pouring down, pouring down in abundance. I feel so happy. What a joy. Thank, thank you General Assembly (of the co-op). We are doing so well! God blesses us, sends prosperity to us right here. Grace will pour down and we in Dame Marie will receive it.
As women, do you like working in cocoa production?
#10 Public: Yes.
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: Yes, we like it.
Why do you like working in it?
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: The reason we like working in it is because after God it is our source of life. That is why we love it.
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: Cocoa is my life. I had a child who was helping me. He died. Now I have to go to the cocoa trees to make 5 gourdes.[24] After that, the cocoa plantation is all I have.
What do like about cocoa production?
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: The reason we love cocoa and take care of it is the same reason why when God loves someone He takes care of him. It is the same thing. We take care of the cocoa because it is our source of life.
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: Today they ask us to come here. Regarding cocoa, it opens my heart. It opens my children’s hearts and it opens the heart of the men who gave us the land. I grew up finding my father left us this heritage. The heritage of cocoa – we live on it and raise our kids with it. Our father died and we found the means to give him a funeral and bury him, all with this gift., because we did not know that we would be inheriting this gift. .
Explain how your day goes during cocoa season?
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: During cocoa season we will be picking cocoa at 7:00 am, especially if we will be selling the cocoa on the same day. We go around 7:00 am and start picking cocoa. After picking it — as a woman I can’t pick it; it is a man that would need to pick it, and I would gather it). When we are done with picking it, we gather it. We make a pile of it and start breaking it. Before 4:00 pm we would sell it. For example, we can spend two days picking because one day is not enough.
#3 Marie Mimose Metelus, 56, 4e AF, Cooperative Member: For myself, the man picks. Man and woman are equal. The woman needs to try too. The man is picking and I am picking also. My cocoa needs to be very ripe and when I am done with picking my cocoa, the kids help me gather it, then we break our cocoa. We remove the pod and set it aside. Then our cocoa is beautiful. We remove all the dark spots so we can present it nicely to the buyers. That is beautiful, and when we get our money that is also beautiful. We say thank you, thanks be to God! What a great joy! Oh, if we did not have God who gives this to us, who would we be? Yes! We are happy, there is joy in our hearts all our lives!
Do you think there is a difference between how you spend your days during cocoa season and how your mother spent hers?
#10 Public: No.
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: Those days when our mothers had that heritage, they did not benefit at all from it. Because when she finished raising the children, she started again…..she died and left this heritage to us. We got this blessing. That’s something I have never seen; we never thought we would have this.
What is the difference with back then?
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: Now what is different? A lot is different. After my mother and father had it, they died and left it to us, it was being wasted. It was being picked green and wasted. The difference now is that is we wait until it is ripe before we pick it. You hire people to help with picking. You put it on the ground and remove all bad ones, and remove the skin. You come here to sell it and feel joyful coming with a bucket of cocoa. You are happy. You feel_ I don’t know _ and say “Oh my, who made this for us?” Cocoa used to be sold for 25 cents, 40 gourdes, or 35 gourdes. Sometimes after selling you could not even buy fish or soup. Now when you see all those things, you feel there is a difference.
#4 Ronise Francois: In the past cocoa was not valued because all you did was pick it and sell the mamit.[25] There was no money in it. Now, cocoa is more valuable than it was long ago. You just pick the cocoa and sell it and take your money. In the past you had to dry it before selling, there were no advantages in it. You did not make any money. It is now that cocoa is appreciated more than before.
When you said in the past it was not valued, when was that? Last year or two years ago?
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: : No, it wasn’t because it was not valued, but because it did not have a good price.
What I would like to know now, you said the cooperatives pay better?
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: Yes, because of the “right here right now” program. They buy it while it’s still green. Now there is a competition. Now cocoa is being sold at 100 gourdes. In the past when we used to dry, it was being sold at 65 gourdes
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: They used to pay 60 gourdes, 50 gourdes, or 40 gourdes.
Now because of ‘’right here, right now ‘’ the price went up?
#10 Public: Yes.
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: We are saved.
#3 Marie Mimose Metelus, 56, 4e AF, Cooperative Member: Yes, it went up.
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: Now they are buying it at 100 gourdes and they can’t lower the price. They are also buying green, and they can’t pay a better price. To finish, in the past the reason our parents were not getting those benefits was because we didn’t have all those companies who are buying cocoa. Now because we have the companies who are buying it green, the speculators don’t wait for the farmers to dry the cocoa in order to buy it at good price. Now they have to pay same price for the green ones.
As women, what do you find as the most difficult thing about cocoa production?
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: To begin, what is most difficult for me is being a woman, with no man with me. When I sell the cocoa, I have to use the money to take care of my mother, myself , and the people who are with me. Now I don’t have enough money to produce cocoa. There are big trees and weeds on the land. I can’t clean the garden on the ground but I don’t have enough money to pay someone to do the work up in the trees.
#7 Mme Exelhomme Samdi, 57, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: For me, it’s on my mother’s property that I grow cocoa. My mother died and I am following in her footsteps. I am satisfied because my mother left that resource for me.
What is the most difficult thing for you?
#7 Mme Exelhomme Samdi, 57, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: Well, it is cutting the weeds. Weeds can cover the tree. We would need money often to take care of that so the cocoa can be cared for and cleaned, so it can produce more fruit.
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: For it to produce more. If the farm is not well cared for it won’t produce as it should.
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: We have cocoa, but we cannot care for it as we should. The cocoa is dirty. There is something that is called gui[26]. Gui is another small tree that covers it.
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: It makes a vine.
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: When you are selling a bucket for 100 gourdes, it’s not enough for you to take care of the cocoa. The cocoa has a lot of problems; it’s dirty. Sometimes it is so unclean that a year my pass with no harvest, or you don’t get the amount you should have gotten. Our arms are short. Same as we are doing here, it would very helpful if we can get some help to care for the cocoa. The cocoa is unclean. We cannot take care of it.
What is the easiest thing in the cocoa production?
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: The easiest thing for us would be for the price to increase; to get enough money to care for the cocoa
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: The most difficult thing for us in the production is picking the cocoa. We don’t dry the cocoa anymore. It’s being sold green. That is easy because we get the money right away. For example, if I have problem and do not have any money, I would just take my basket, go outside, and pick up cocoa. I would sell it and get paid. I would be able to buy food and do what I needed to do.
As women, what other agricultural production are you involved in?
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: We plant yams and malanga.[27]
#7 Mme Exelhomme Samdi, 57, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: I plant corn and beans
#3 Marie Mimose Metelus, 56, 4e AF, Cooperative Member: I plant yam. I plant other trees-good cedar trees and mahogany trees. All of them are useful.
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: At my house, I plant yam, malanga, cedar and mahogany trees. We don’t plant them near the cocoa. It’s not good for the cocoa to have to trees near.
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: They will choke the cocoa.
Who carries the cocoa to market to sell? Is it the women or the men?
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: The women sell the cocoa. I am the one who sells my cocoa. The men carry it, but it is the women who sell it. I own the cocoa land. I am the one who carries my bucket of cocoa to sell.
#10 Public: Women carry. Men carry.
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: I own the cocoa land; I am the one who has to sell my cocoa.
Can you explain how you produce cocoa?
#6 Mirtha Dorlus, 75, None, Cooperative Member: It starts out in a small bag. When it is big enough we plant it. Before planting it, we clean it but we have to water it in order for it to grow.
Well, who plants, men or women?
#6 Mirtha Dorlus, 75, None, Cooperative Member: Women are doing the planting but men……
#4 Ronise Francois: No, my mother planted the cocoa at my house; not my father.
Do men plant more than women?
#10 Public: Yes.
#6 Mirtha Dorlus, 75, None, Cooperative Member: My mother planted them. She dug the holes and we carried them. We used small black bags filled with dirt and added other things to them. When they grew, we cut the bottom of the bags and placed them in holes in the ground.
How long does it take for the cocoa to start producing?
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: I cannot count because my mother planted them. I cannot say how long, but the old cocoa trees are dying.
#4 Ronise Francois: Depends on the land.
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: Depends on the elevation.
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: Depends on how you care for the land. If you clean it from time to time, the cocoa will produce. It will grow faster.
After that, what do you do? Do you cut them? When do you know the cocoa is ready to harvest?
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: No, we don’t cut cocoa trees. We know it is ready for harvest when the fruit is yellow and it is ripe. That is when you pick the cocoa.
#10 Public: The cocoa is blue when it is not ripe.
#4 Ronise Francois: When the cocoa is green, the fruit is blue, but as soon as it changes color to yellow that is when the cocoa can be picked.
What kind of problems do you have with cocoa? What type of sickness? Do animals eat the cocoa leaves or the cocoa fruit?
#10 Public: Yes
#6 Mirtha Dorlus, 75, None, Cooperative Member: Rats eat them before they are ripe. As soon as they are ripe woodpeckers start eating them. When rats eat them, you see them white on the ground and that is how they eat them.
Are rats the biggest problem? What other sicknesses?
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: Only gui
#10 Public: Gui is another type of tree which climbs on it. It sucks it and kills the tree.
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: It is the man’s job. We women cannot do it. If the cocoa tree has gui, a man with machete has to climb it and cut the cocoa branches with gui. It’s like a vine.
#4 Ronise Francois: It is a small tree which has a lot of leaves
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: It makes vines that tie the cocoa tree.
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: It squeezes it.
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: Another big problem is rats. As soon as the cocoa is ripe they will eat it.
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: For instance, the amount of cocoa I should have harvested green to sell, I did not get it because rats ate the cocoa. If rats eat the cocoa I cannot sell it “right here, right now”.
If the gui stays on it for a long time, it will squeeze the cocoa tree. That is like being sick and you don’t see a doctor or don’t take care of yourself. The sickness will squeeze life out of you and then you will die. At that time all the leaves die and it will not produce anymore.
#7 Mme Exelhomme Samdi, 57, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: Also if it has too many other trees near, it won’t produce. For example, if you have mango trees close by and I cannot climb the mango to free the cocoa branches from the mango it will die because it will not get enough sun.
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: When my father was alive the amount of cocoa we used to harvest decreased. There are too many other trees on top of it.
Can someone explain the difference between women in the cooperatives and women who are not in the cooperatives?
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: A woman who is in the cooperatives and a woman who is not are very different. Because if I have cocoa and if I sell it “right here, right now”, in December I will get a dividend, or second payment (ristourn[28]). For those who are not in the cooperative, they sell their cocoa to speculators. They do not get a bonus and selling to speculators is different from selling at cooperatives. Being a member has benefits. For example, you can receive donations. They value women. I had a lot of benefits in the cooperatives. If you are not a member you will not get these benefits. There are seminars you cannot attend if you are not a member. There are diffirences between those in the cooperatives and women who are not.
#7 Mme Exelhomme Samdi, 57, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: The difference is in December we might be broke, but when we get the bonus (ristourn) things are better. We go to the market. If we needed a glass or sheets we are are able to buy them. That is useful.
Is the ristourn the only advantage of being in the cooperative?
#7 Mme Exelhomme Samdi, 57, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: When you get that money in December, God willing, if our husband give us 50 gourdes when we get to the market and we owe someone money we can’t pay that person. Now I can take a bucket of cocoa and sell it to the pay the person. That person cannot disrespect me anymore.
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: I know in December things are hard sometimes and you do not harvest much or anything at all . January comes upon us and we don’t have money, but when we get the ristourn it is a huge help. We use the money to buy clothes for our children and gifts also. Yes, they sometimes conduct seminars.
Do you get loans from the cooperative?
#4 Ronise Francois: No, we don’t take out loans. In the past before I became a member, they used to loan people money. Probably people did not pay them back. It’s like I borrowed the money and took it for myself. Eventually they stopped giving out loans.
Is drying the cocoa a big task for you?
#10 Public: Yes , it is a big task for us.
#4 Ronise Francois: We sweat during those times.
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: It can be ruined anytime during that process.
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: Sometimes you can dry the cocoa if you go out.
Do you prefer selling it green instead of dried?
#10 Public: Yes, we prefer selling it green.
#4 Ronise Francois: It can rain sometimes and the cocoa gets ruined.
#3 Marie Mimose Metelus, 56, 4e AF, Cooperative Member: We do not have enough space to dry it.
#4 Ronise Francois: We are not present.
Do people who are not members in the cooperatives sell their cocoa there?
#10 Public: Yes, they sell.
#4 Ronise Francois: They sell, but it is not the same thing. We are members.
As members, do they pay you more than non-members?
#10 Public: No, same amount.
#4 Ronise Francois: They don’t give the ristourn.
#6 Mirtha Dorlus, 75, None, Cooperative Member: If you are not a member you do not get a ristourn, but they get the same price up front.
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member:: Now, many people are signing up to be members. Those who were not members are signing up.
How did you become a member?
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: How did we became members? As for myself, one day I came to weigh cocoa here, but I was not a member. Someone said, “Wait , you are weighing the cocoa, but you are not getting a ristourn”? I went down where people were signing up and paid 40 gourdes for the membership card. I did not have money to pay for the inscription fee. I did it on credit. After I sold the cocoa I paid the fee. I stayed involved until I became a member.
Does everyone get the same amount for a ristourn?
#10 Public: No.
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: It depends on the amount you brought in.
#4 Ronise Francois: The more cocoa you bring, the more money you will make.
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: If you bring more, the bonus increases. If you don’t bring much it won’t go up.
How many women here whose husband is living with them?
(Hands raised : #3 Marie Mimose Metellus, #5 Rosena Simon, #7 Mme Excelhomme Samedi)
Is your husband a member in the cooperative?
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: The women mostly do the selling. He is not a member. My mother is taking care of me. That means my husband is not involved in the cooperative.
#7 Mme Exelhomme Samdi, 57, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: My husband is involved but I do all the selling. He picks the cocoa and I sell it.
#3 Marie Mimose Metelus, 56, 4e AF, Cooperative Member: Marie Mimose is involved because I am in charge. As a woman, my husband helps me. He brings cocoa to the cooperative under my name. We are together. Union makes strength.
#7 Mme Exelhomme Samdi, 57, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: One person would do most of the selling. For instance the husband can be a member and the wife is not, but she still does the selling. She sells under his name.
If both of us are members, which one of us would attend the meetings?
#10 Public: Mostly the women.
What is preventing the other women from becoming members in the cooperatives?
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: The reason they are not members is because they believe that we are being ripped off. They think the cooperatives are getting rich off of us.
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: They said we are poor.
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: Others would like to become members, but they don’t have cocoa. You need to have cocoa to be a member.
#6 Mirtha Dorlus, 75, None, Cooperative Member: You have to sell cocoa in order for you to get the ristourn. If you are a member but do not have cocoa, you will not get the bonus.
Can a zombi[29] sell at the cooperatives?
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: Yes, the zombi sells and becomes a member also.
#4 Ronise Francois: A zombi does not have cocoa land; he goes and buys it and sells it to us.
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: That means we have more advantages than them.
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: The more we stick together the stronger we will be.
Who else do the zombies sell to?
#4 Ronise Francois: They sell here but in December they do not get a ristourn.
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: They sell to the speculators.
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: The reason the zombies are not selling more at the cooperatives is beacuse in the past the zombies were buying the cocoa dried and sold to the cooperatives. Now the cooperatives are buying green cocoa, and that is difficult for the zombies. They have to buy the cocoa green from the farmers in the countryside and carry it on their head to the cooperatives.
When I bring 4 or 5 mamit of cocoa to the cooperative, that amount is too heavy for me to carry on my head. Now if the zombi could have brought in 15 to 20 mamit of cocoa to the cooperatives, that is too much to carry on his head. That is why the zombies are selling more on the speculators’ scales instead of selling to the cooperatives.
#9 Spencer Cesar, Guest, In charge of fermentation for CAUD: There is a difference between a zombi and a speculator. A zombi is pillaging; he buys the cocoa at a very unfavorable price. The speculator is different; he stays home with his scale. He pays his taxes. A zombi takes the cocoa from the farmers all over. These people are ravagers. They take the cocoa at a low price, and also the mamit they use is a mamit and a half of a normal mamit. When they buy a pound of cocoa from the farmers, it is equal to a pound and a half. They buy with one type of mamit and sell with a different type. They invest money and they expect money.
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: If he buys a pound of cocoa, he’s expecting it to be a pound and a half.
Are zombies men or women?
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: Out of 10 zombis, 4 or 5 are women. On Wednesday when they come from the countryside, you mostly see women.
Who are the more common speculators?
#10 Public: No, men are speculators
If the price is unfavorable why do people sell to them?
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: From what I see with the zombies, people mostly sell them cocoa towo. If I put 20 pods of green cocoa along with 30 pods of ripe cocoa and set it out to dry for a day or two, I can sell it to a zombie. If I have a small amount I can also sell it to them. Zombies buy cocoa from farmers in the countryside, not farmers in town.
Do zombies pay in cash?
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: Both a zombi and a speculator pay you right away. Everyone does. Only if you are a member in a cooperative and the money went out at the time you are selling you might not get pay right away. They will give you a receipt for the next day to come and get your money. Anywhere you sell cocoa, they pay you right away.
What is the biggest change the cooperative has made in your life?
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: There is a big change because you have ‘right here, right now’. If you owe someone money, that person cannot disrespect you. The moment he asks for the money, you tell him you will pay him later. I would pick some cocoa, come here and sell it, and pay the person.
#8 Brunette Saint Surain, 55, None, Cooperative Member: We communicate. We sit down together and have meetings for changes. When we owe someone, that does not give you much of a problem anymore. You just go and pick cocoa and sell it here to pay that person. That is a big change.
#6 Mirtha Dorlus, 75, None, Cooperative Member: If it rained for maybe 8 days, the cocoa would be ruined.
#4 Ronise Francois: When you owed someone you could not pay them, but now you can.
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: Now, if they send your kids home from school for money, you would just go to someone and ask for a loan until the next day. You pay the school and the next day sell cocoa to pay the person back. In the past, it took time to dry it; especially in May when it rains all the time.
If you owe someone money can you repay them with a cocoa tree?
#10 Public: No. You probably won’t give the person a cocoa tree but instead might say “Here is this cocoa as a payment.” I can probably rent the cocoa land for the amount of money I owe that person to pay them back. Some people would rent a cocoa tree to pay someone they owe money, but we here we don’t do that. We rent the land. You can rent an acre or half of an acre. You don’t just rent 2 or 3 cocoa trees.
Do men and women get the same advantages in the cooperative?
#10 Public: Yes.
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: The men might have more advantages than the women because there are things men can do and we women cannot. The man can take his machete, climb the cocoa tree, clean it and cut out the branches. I cannot do that. I would need to pay someone to do that. There is a difference between men and women because I cannot climb tall trees.
#3 Marie Mimose Metelus, 56, 4e AF, Cooperative Member: Men do the tree nursery and tilling the dirt, while we women use a sieve to sift the dirt. The men do a lot of hard work. They dig up the dirt with a pick and after sifting the dirt, they put them in small bags.
Do you talk during meetings?
#4 Ronise Francois: Yes. The same way we are doing now. If the president asks questions in the general assembly, we answer. We also participate in debates.
Do you think because you are a woman that prevents you from talking during meetings?
#4 Ronise Francois: No. We don’t have any problems. We are the same; we have to ask questions.
Do you think because you are a woman that prevents you from becoming a leader in the cooperative?
#10 Public: There is no problem. We are the same.
Are there any women administrators in the cooperative?
#4 Ronise Francois: No. They are men, not women. I am the deputy secretary in the cooperative. I did not do anything to get the position. They simply thought about me and invited me to a meeting. When I came they gave me a small test and I was given the position.
Is there anything you do as women in the cooperative that men do not do?
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: There is nothing women do but men don’t do. Even though men do the picking in cocoa production, the women gather the cocoa.
#4 Ronise Francois: It is only the cleaning of the cocoa that women cannot do because they cannot climb the trees.
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: The men cut the cocoa branches and we women remove the leaves under the trees.
How do the men spend their day during cocoa harvest?
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: The same way. Women spend their day gathering the cocoa. The men spend the day picking cocoa.
#6 Mirtha Dorlus, 75, None, Cooperative Member: They cut vines on the cocoa.
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: Gathering and selling cocoa, there are men who sell cocoa just like women do.
Who in the household makes all the decisions for the family and other family-related things?
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: We are right behind our husbands. The house is our responsibility. If the men are not involved, things might not work well. Men first and women second.
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: I don’t have a husband. I am in charge of everything.
#4 Ronise Francois: Me too. I make all decisions. I don’t have a husband.
How do you consume cocoa? What can you make with it to eat or drink?
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: We make chocolate. We make chocolate liquor. We put it in alcohol and make cookies with it. You can make many things with cocoa. Tranpe kakawo[30] is very good. You remove the cocoa from the pod, add alcohol, sugar, and cinnamon, and then boil it.
Can you make any remedies out of cocoa?
#3 Marie Mimose Metelus, 56, 4e AF, Cooperative Member: If a child has a cold you can take some cocoa buds which are pink, boil it, and give it to the child. You cannot do that with any type of cocoa, only with kakawo karaf.[31]
What different types of cocoa do you have?
#10 Public: There are three different types. You have the criollo[32]…There are more than three. You have criollo, forastero[33], trinitario[34],and kakawo nasyonal[35]. The old cocoa is different from today’s cocoa.
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: They are not the same? They are the same type. The old one is criollo then you have trinitario. You have indigenous cocoa which is a type of criollo. Trinitario gives forastero. You also have karaf which is a graft.
#9 Spencer Cesar, Guest, In charge of fermentation for CAUD: You asked a very important question when you asked what changes the cooperatives brought in our lives. Before cooperatives, we never had meetings like this, nor did we have organizations like CRS or other international organization meetings with us. The fermentation process brought great changes, especially for me. I met several great people and I have a job working in the fermentation process.
Do you have the same wish for your daughters as you have for your sons?
#10 Public: Yes
#8 Brunette Saint Surain, 55, None, Cooperative Member: Yes, I send both of them to school. I don’t have a man with me. I am the only one working hard to support them. I want them to become someone in the future so they can help me because I do not have much.
What would you like her to become?
#8 Brunette Saint Surain, 55, None, Cooperative Member: I don’t know – whatever they want.
#3 Marie Mimose Metelus, 56, 4e AF, Cooperative Member: Nurse
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: Nurse or doctor – whatever they want.
Would you be happy if they ended up working in the cocoa production?
#8 Brunette Saint Surain, 55, None, Cooperative Member: Yes and no.
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: I don’t know. I don’t have a problem if they work in the production, but I want them to go to college.
Would you prefer your child to have five acres of cocoa or to be a doctor?
#10 Public: Doctor
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: Doctor. We taught our children about cocoa production. If he is a doctor he still will benefit monetarily from cocoa production. While working at the hospital, some of his patients would be cocoa producers.
#7 Mme Exelhomme Samdi, 57, 2e AF, Cooperative Member:: Cocoa helps me send my child to college to become an engineer.
#6 Mirtha Dorlus, 75, None, Cooperative Member: My children are in school. I want them to go far. I prefer a doctor because he will give me health care.
#8 Brunette Saint Surain, 55, None, Cooperative Member: He will get the money from the cocoa if he is a doctor.
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: He will get the money from the cocoa and he will also give me health care.
#7 Mme Exelhomme Samdi, 57, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: Cocoa helps me with giving my children an education.
Can you borrow money on the cocoa before harvest time?
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: Yes you can. If I know that you are a honest person like this fellow over there, I would go to his house and say “I have a problem. Can you please loan me some money?” He is going to loan me the money. Now, I know I will not be in need. When it is ready I sell it and pay him back. Nobody has to know. But now if I sell the cocoa and I just give the money away, when I am in need again he won’t give me a loan. Then everyone here will know that I borrowed money and didn’t pay it back.
Can you sell cocoa like mango, meaning selling the whole harvest at once?
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: Yes, if we are selling the land….Ahhh ! No, we don’t sell the whole harvest at once. We can rent the land for 2,3, or 5 years.
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: We don’t do that.
Do the women play a role in the community? What kind of role?
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: Yes, women participate in the community. I am a woman. I participate. I work. I help. I have cocoa. It is me who takes care of it. I pay people to clean it for me. If that person did not have a 100 gourdes that day, I hire him and pay him. I help in the community.
Are there many women as leaders in the community?
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: Yes. A woman is the mayor of the community, Madam Angelot. Women are school principals and we have a judge who is a woman.
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: There are many female police.
Are there any organizations for women only?
#10 Public: Both women and men. It’s a mix of both.
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: They are all mixed.
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: I know this group of only women, but I don’t participate in it. It’s called Group Fanm Kanpe. At the rich house they are taught how to make flowers. There are rich men also.
Is there money that as woman you decide how to spend?
#8 Brunette Saint Surain, 55, None, Cooperative Member: I spend my own money on the engineer, for school. I rent some land to send the kids to school.
#3 Marie Mimose Metelus, 56, 4e AF, Cooperative Member: My husband and I make all the decisions.
Who makes the decision on small and big spending for the household?
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: I don’t have a husband. I make the decisions regarding spending. After God, it is me in the house.
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: My husband ‘s leg is broken. What he used to do in the past, he is not able to do anymore. He takes other people to help him when we need to accomplish something. He supports me because he wants me to keep working. Together we make all the decisions.
Focus Group: Dame Marie (English)
(conducted on 11th August 2011)
Below is a list of the participants, their name, age, education and (if the data is available), occupation. For education, the potential categories are,
| kindergarten | Kindergarten |
| 1st_grade | 1eme ane fondamantal |
| 2nd_grade | 2eme ane fondamantal |
| 3rd_grade | 3eme ane fondamantal |
| 4th_grade | 4eme ane fondamantal |
| 5th_grade | 5eme ane fondamantal |
| 6th_grade | 6eme ane fondamantal |
| 7th_grade | 7eme Seconde |
| 8th_grade | 8eme Sekonde |
| 9th_grade | 9eme Sekonde |
| 10_grade | 3eme Sekonde |
| 11_grade | Segonn |
| 12th_grade | Reto |
| 13th_grade | Filo |
| university | Inivesite |
| professional_school | Lekol pwofesyonel |
| no_school | Okenn |
Participants :
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member
#3 Marie Mimose Metelus, 56, 4e AF, Cooperative Member
#4 Ronise Francois
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member
#6 Mirtha Dorlus, 75, None, Cooperative Member
#7 Mme Exelhomme Samdi, 57, 2e AF, Cooperative Member
#8 Brunette Saint Surain, 55, None, Cooperative Member
#9 Spencer Cesar, Guest, In charge of fermentation for CAUD
#10 Public
Cocoa Production
What is the importance of cocoa to you as a producer?
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: Cocoa is very important to us because it is our life. It is our bank account. Everything we need is from the cocoa we have to sell. School is about to be open; to send the kids to school. It’s with it we pay school fees. It is with it that he takes care of everything. I have responsibilities, like my mother and father. Everything I need to do is from the cocoa. Cocoa has great importance for me.
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: Cocoa is our life. Cocoa land and cocoa gardens are our lives. Because when you sell the cocoa …muffle…muffle….. the time to dry it and all the trouble. I just sell it and they pay me. For me, I would wish for it to go farther, to go higher, for God to help us.
#3 Marie Mimose Metelus, 56, 4e AF, Cooperative Member: Cocoa has a great importance because it makes good chocolate. When we drink it we feel great. It’s agreeable. It makes good liquor. We feel it’s very agreeable. My husband just broke his leg and it was the cocoa I had to sell. I felt great joy in my heart. The car just broke down. My child was living in Mirebalais. When I see myself taking a big amount of cocoa to sell and send money to my child living in Mirebalis, I felt like Jesus came down. It’s honey that is pouring down, pouring down in abundance. I feel so happy. What a joy. Thank, thank you General Assembly (of the co-op). We are doing so well! God blesses us, sends prosperity to us right here. Grace will pour down and we in Dame Marie will receive it.
As women, do you like working in cocoa production?
#10 Public: Yes.
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: Yes, we like it.
Why do you like working in it?
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: The reason we like working in it is because after God it is our source of life. That is why we love it.
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: Cocoa is my life. I had a child who was helping me. He died. Now I have to go to the cocoa trees to make 5 gourdes.[36] After that, the cocoa plantation is all I have.
What do like about cocoa production?
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: The reason we love cocoa and take care of it is the same reason why when God loves someone He takes care of him. It is the same thing. We take care of the cocoa because it is our source of life.
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: Today they ask us to come here. Regarding cocoa, it opens my heart. It opens my children’s hearts and it opens the heart of the men who gave us the land. I grew up finding my father left us this heritage. The heritage of cocoa – we live on it and raise our kids with it. Our father died and we found the means to give him a funeral and bury him, all with this gift., because we did not know that we would be inheriting this gift. .
Explain how your day goes during cocoa season?
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: During cocoa season we will be picking cocoa at 7:00 am, especially if we will be selling the cocoa on the same day. We go around 7:00 am and start picking cocoa. After picking it — as a woman I can’t pick it; it is a man that would need to pick it, and I would gather it). When we are done with picking it, we gather it. We make a pile of it and start breaking it. Before 4:00 pm we would sell it. For example, we can spend two days picking because one day is not enough.
#3 Marie Mimose Metelus, 56, 4e AF, Cooperative Member: For myself, the man picks. Man and woman are equal. The woman needs to try too. The man is picking and I am picking also. My cocoa needs to be very ripe and when I am done with picking my cocoa, the kids help me gather it, then we break our cocoa. We remove the pod and set it aside. Then our cocoa is beautiful. We remove all the dark spots so we can present it nicely to the buyers. That is beautiful, and when we get our money that is also beautiful. We say thank you, thanks be to God! What a great joy! Oh, if we did not have God who gives this to us, who would we be? Yes! We are happy, there is joy in our hearts all our lives!
Do you think there is a difference between how you spend your days during cocoa season and how your mother spent hers?
#10 Public: No.
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: Those days when our mothers had that heritage, they did not benefit at all from it. Because when she finished raising the children, she started again…..she died and left this heritage to us. We got this blessing. That’s something I have never seen; we never thought we would have this.
What is the difference with back then?
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: Now what is different? A lot is different. After my mother and father had it, they died and left it to us, it was being wasted. It was being picked green and wasted. The difference now is that is we wait until it is ripe before we pick it. You hire people to help with picking. You put it on the ground and remove all bad ones, and remove the skin. You come here to sell it and feel joyful coming with a bucket of cocoa. You are happy. You feel_ I don’t know _ and say “Oh my, who made this for us?” Cocoa used to be sold for 25 cents, 40 gourdes, or 35 gourdes. Sometimes after selling you could not even buy fish or soup. Now when you see all those things, you feel there is a difference.
#4 Ronise Francois: In the past cocoa was not valued because all you did was pick it and sell the mamit.[37] There was no money in it. Now, cocoa is more valuable than it was long ago. You just pick the cocoa and sell it and take your money. In the past you had to dry it before selling, there were no advantages in it. You did not make any money. It is now that cocoa is appreciated more than before.
When you said in the past it was not valued, when was that? Last year or two years ago?
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: : No, it wasn’t because it was not valued, but because it did not have a good price.
What I would like to know now, you said the cooperatives pay better?
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: Yes, because of the “right here right now” program. They buy it while it’s still green. Now there is a competition. Now cocoa is being sold at 100 gourdes. In the past when we used to dry, it was being sold at 65 gourdes
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: They used to pay 60 gourdes, 50 gourdes, or 40 gourdes.
Now because of ‘’right here, right now ‘’ the price went up?
#10 Public: Yes.
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: We are saved.
#3 Marie Mimose Metelus, 56, 4e AF, Cooperative Member: Yes, it went up.
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: Now they are buying it at 100 gourdes and they can’t lower the price. They are also buying green, and they can’t pay a better price. To finish, in the past the reason our parents were not getting those benefits was because we didn’t have all those companies who are buying cocoa. Now because we have the companies who are buying it green, the speculators don’t wait for the farmers to dry the cocoa in order to buy it at good price. Now they have to pay same price for the green ones.
As women, what do you find as the most difficult thing about cocoa production?
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: To begin, what is most difficult for me is being a woman, with no man with me. When I sell the cocoa, I have to use the money to take care of my mother, myself , and the people who are with me. Now I don’t have enough money to produce cocoa. There are big trees and weeds on the land. I can’t clean the garden on the ground but I don’t have enough money to pay someone to do the work up in the trees.
#7 Mme Exelhomme Samdi, 57, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: For me, it’s on my mother’s property that I grow cocoa. My mother died and I am following in her footsteps. I am satisfied because my mother left that resource for me.
What is the most difficult thing for you?
#7 Mme Exelhomme Samdi, 57, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: Well, it is cutting the weeds. Weeds can cover the tree. We would need money often to take care of that so the cocoa can be cared for and cleaned, so it can produce more fruit.
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: For it to produce more. If the farm is not well cared for it won’t produce as it should.
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: We have cocoa, but we cannot care for it as we should. The cocoa is dirty. There is something that is called gui[38]. Gui is another small tree that covers it.
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: It makes a vine.
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: When you are selling a bucket for 100 gourdes, it’s not enough for you to take care of the cocoa. The cocoa has a lot of problems; it’s dirty. Sometimes it is so unclean that a year my pass with no harvest, or you don’t get the amount you should have gotten. Our arms are short. Same as we are doing here, it would very helpful if we can get some help to care for the cocoa. The cocoa is unclean. We cannot take care of it.
What is the easiest thing in the cocoa production?
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: The easiest thing for us would be for the price to increase; to get enough money to care for the cocoa
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: The most difficult thing for us in the production is picking the cocoa. We don’t dry the cocoa anymore. It’s being sold green. That is easy because we get the money right away. For example, if I have problem and do not have any money, I would just take my basket, go outside, and pick up cocoa. I would sell it and get paid. I would be able to buy food and do what I needed to do.
As women, what other agricultural production are you involved in?
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: We plant yams and malanga.[39]
#7 Mme Exelhomme Samdi, 57, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: I plant corn and beans
#3 Marie Mimose Metelus, 56, 4e AF, Cooperative Member: I plant yam. I plant other trees-good cedar trees and mahogany trees. All of them are useful.
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: At my house, I plant yam, malanga, cedar and mahogany trees. We don’t plant them near the cocoa. It’s not good for the cocoa to have to trees near.
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: They will choke the cocoa.
Who carries the cocoa to market to sell? Is it the women or the men?
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: The women sell the cocoa. I am the one who sells my cocoa. The men carry it, but it is the women who sell it. I own the cocoa land. I am the one who carries my bucket of cocoa to sell.
#10 Public: Women carry. Men carry.
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: I own the cocoa land; I am the one who has to sell my cocoa.
Can you explain how you produce cocoa?
#6 Mirtha Dorlus, 75, None, Cooperative Member: It starts out in a small bag. When it is big enough we plant it. Before planting it, we clean it but we have to water it in order for it to grow.
Well, who plants, men or women?
#6 Mirtha Dorlus, 75, None, Cooperative Member: Women are doing the planting but men……
#4 Ronise Francois: No, my mother planted the cocoa at my house; not my father.
Do men plant more than women?
#10 Public: Yes.
#6 Mirtha Dorlus, 75, None, Cooperative Member: My mother planted them. She dug the holes and we carried them. We used small black bags filled with dirt and added other things to them. When they grew, we cut the bottom of the bags and placed them in holes in the ground.
How long does it take for the cocoa to start producing?
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: I cannot count because my mother planted them. I cannot say how long, but the old cocoa trees are dying.
#4 Ronise Francois: Depends on the land.
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: Depends on the elevation.
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: Depends on how you care for the land. If you clean it from time to time, the cocoa will produce. It will grow faster.
After that, what do you do? Do you cut them? When do you know the cocoa is ready to harvest?
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: No, we don’t cut cocoa trees. We know it is ready for harvest when the fruit is yellow and it is ripe. That is when you pick the cocoa.
#10 Public: The cocoa is blue when it is not ripe.
#4 Ronise Francois: When the cocoa is green, the fruit is blue, but as soon as it changes color to yellow that is when the cocoa can be picked.
What kind of problems do you have with cocoa? What type of sickness? Do animals eat the cocoa leaves or the cocoa fruit?
#10 Public: Yes
#6 Mirtha Dorlus, 75, None, Cooperative Member: Rats eat them before they are ripe. As soon as they are ripe woodpeckers start eating them. When rats eat them, you see them white on the ground and that is how they eat them.
Are rats the biggest problem? What other sicknesses?
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: Only gui
#10 Public: Gui is another type of tree which climbs on it. It sucks it and kills the tree.
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: It is the man’s job. We women cannot do it. If the cocoa tree has gui, a man with machete has to climb it and cut the cocoa branches with gui. It’s like a vine.
#4 Ronise Francois: It is a small tree which has a lot of leaves
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: It makes vines that tie the cocoa tree.
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: It squeezes it.
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: Another big problem is rats. As soon as the cocoa is ripe they will eat it.
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: For instance, the amount of cocoa I should have harvested green to sell, I did not get it because rats ate the cocoa. If rats eat the cocoa I cannot sell it “right here, right now”.
If the gui stays on it for a long time, it will squeeze the cocoa tree. That is like being sick and you don’t see a doctor or don’t take care of yourself. The sickness will squeeze life out of you and then you will die. At that time all the leaves die and it will not produce anymore.
#7 Mme Exelhomme Samdi, 57, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: Also if it has too many other trees near, it won’t produce. For example, if you have mango trees close by and I cannot climb the mango to free the cocoa branches from the mango it will die because it will not get enough sun.
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: When my father was alive the amount of cocoa we used to harvest decreased. There are too many other trees on top of it.
Can someone explain the difference between women in the cooperatives and women who are not in the cooperatives?
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: A woman who is in the cooperatives and a woman who is not are very different. Because if I have cocoa and if I sell it “right here, right now”, in December I will get a dividend, or second payment (ristourn[40]). For those who are not in the cooperative, they sell their cocoa to speculators. They do not get a bonus and selling to speculators is different from selling at cooperatives. Being a member has benefits. For example, you can receive donations. They value women. I had a lot of benefits in the cooperatives. If you are not a member you will not get these benefits. There are seminars you cannot attend if you are not a member. There are diffirences between those in the cooperatives and women who are not.
#7 Mme Exelhomme Samdi, 57, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: The difference is in December we might be broke, but when we get the bonus (ristourn) things are better. We go to the market. If we needed a glass or sheets we are are able to buy them. That is useful.
Is the ristourn the only advantage of being in the cooperative?
#7 Mme Exelhomme Samdi, 57, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: When you get that money in December, God willing, if our husband give us 50 gourdes when we get to the market and we owe someone money we can’t pay that person. Now I can take a bucket of cocoa and sell it to the pay the person. That person cannot disrespect me anymore.
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: I know in December things are hard sometimes and you do not harvest much or anything at all . January comes upon us and we don’t have money, but when we get the ristourn it is a huge help. We use the money to buy clothes for our children and gifts also. Yes, they sometimes conduct seminars.
Do you get loans from the cooperative?
#4 Ronise Francois: No, we don’t take out loans. In the past before I became a member, they used to loan people money. Probably people did not pay them back. It’s like I borrowed the money and took it for myself. Eventually they stopped giving out loans.
Is drying the cocoa a big task for you?
#10 Public: Yes , it is a big task for us.
#4 Ronise Francois: We sweat during those times.
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: It can be ruined anytime during that process.
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: Sometimes you can dry the cocoa if you go out.
Do you prefer selling it green instead of dried?
#10 Public: Yes, we prefer selling it green.
#4 Ronise Francois: It can rain sometimes and the cocoa gets ruined.
#3 Marie Mimose Metelus, 56, 4e AF, Cooperative Member: We do not have enough space to dry it.
#4 Ronise Francois: We are not present.
Do people who are not members in the cooperatives sell their cocoa there?
#10 Public: Yes, they sell.
#4 Ronise Francois: They sell, but it is not the same thing. We are members.
As members, do they pay you more than non-members?
#10 Public: No, same amount.
#4 Ronise Francois: They don’t give the ristourn.
#6 Mirtha Dorlus, 75, None, Cooperative Member: If you are not a member you do not get a ristourn, but they get the same price up front.
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member:: Now, many people are signing up to be members. Those who were not members are signing up.
How did you become a member?
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: How did we became members? As for myself, one day I came to weigh cocoa here, but I was not a member. Someone said, “Wait , you are weighing the cocoa, but you are not getting a ristourn”? I went down where people were signing up and paid 40 gourdes for the membership card. I did not have money to pay for the inscription fee. I did it on credit. After I sold the cocoa I paid the fee. I stayed involved until I became a member.
Does everyone get the same amount for a ristourn?
#10 Public: No.
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: It depends on the amount you brought in.
#4 Ronise Francois: The more cocoa you bring, the more money you will make.
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: If you bring more, the bonus increases. If you don’t bring much it won’t go up.
How many women here whose husband is living with them?
(Hands raised : #3 Marie Mimose Metellus, #5 Rosena Simon, #7 Mme Excelhomme Samedi)
Is your husband a member in the cooperative?
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: The women mostly do the selling. He is not a member. My mother is taking care of me. That means my husband is not involved in the cooperative.
#7 Mme Exelhomme Samdi, 57, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: My husband is involved but I do all the selling. He picks the cocoa and I sell it.
#3 Marie Mimose Metelus, 56, 4e AF, Cooperative Member: Marie Mimose is involved because I am in charge. As a woman, my husband helps me. He brings cocoa to the cooperative under my name. We are together. Union makes strength.
#7 Mme Exelhomme Samdi, 57, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: One person would do most of the selling. For instance the husband can be a member and the wife is not, but she still does the selling. She sells under his name.
If both of us are members, which one of us would attend the meetings?
#10 Public: Mostly the women.
What is preventing the other women from becoming members in the cooperatives?
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: The reason they are not members is because they believe that we are being ripped off. They think the cooperatives are getting rich off of us.
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: They said we are poor.
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: Others would like to become members, but they don’t have cocoa. You need to have cocoa to be a member.
#6 Mirtha Dorlus, 75, None, Cooperative Member: You have to sell cocoa in order for you to get the ristourn. If you are a member but do not have cocoa, you will not get the bonus.
Can a zombi[41] sell at the cooperatives?
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: Yes, the zombi sells and becomes a member also.
#4 Ronise Francois: A zombi does not have cocoa land; he goes and buys it and sells it to us.
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: That means we have more advantages than them.
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: The more we stick together the stronger we will be.
Who else do the zombies sell to?
#4 Ronise Francois: They sell here but in December they do not get a ristourn.
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: They sell to the speculators.
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: The reason the zombies are not selling more at the cooperatives is beacuse in the past the zombies were buying the cocoa dried and sold to the cooperatives. Now the cooperatives are buying green cocoa, and that is difficult for the zombies. They have to buy the cocoa green from the farmers in the countryside and carry it on their head to the cooperatives.
When I bring 4 or 5 mamit of cocoa to the cooperative, that amount is too heavy for me to carry on my head. Now if the zombi could have brought in 15 to 20 mamit of cocoa to the cooperatives, that is too much to carry on his head. That is why the zombies are selling more on the speculators’ scales instead of selling to the cooperatives.
#9 Spencer Cesar, Guest, In charge of fermentation for CAUD: There is a difference between a zombi and a speculator. A zombi is pillaging; he buys the cocoa at a very unfavorable price. The speculator is different; he stays home with his scale. He pays his taxes. A zombi takes the cocoa from the farmers all over. These people are ravagers. They take the cocoa at a low price, and also the mamit they use is a mamit and a half of a normal mamit. When they buy a pound of cocoa from the farmers, it is equal to a pound and a half. They buy with one type of mamit and sell with a different type. They invest money and they expect money.
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: If he buys a pound of cocoa, he’s expecting it to be a pound and a half.
Are zombies men or women?
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: Out of 10 zombis, 4 or 5 are women. On Wednesday when they come from the countryside, you mostly see women.
Who are the more common speculators?
#10 Public: No, men are speculators
If the price is unfavorable why do people sell to them?
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: From what I see with the zombies, people mostly sell them cocoa towo. If I put 20 pods of green cocoa along with 30 pods of ripe cocoa and set it out to dry for a day or two, I can sell it to a zombie. If I have a small amount I can also sell it to them. Zombies buy cocoa from farmers in the countryside, not farmers in town.
Do zombies pay in cash?
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: Both a zombi and a speculator pay you right away. Everyone does. Only if you are a member in a cooperative and the money went out at the time you are selling you might not get pay right away. They will give you a receipt for the next day to come and get your money. Anywhere you sell cocoa, they pay you right away.
What is the biggest change the cooperative has made in your life?
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: There is a big change because you have ‘right here, right now’. If you owe someone money, that person cannot disrespect you. The moment he asks for the money, you tell him you will pay him later. I would pick some cocoa, come here and sell it, and pay the person.
#8 Brunette Saint Surain, 55, None, Cooperative Member: We communicate. We sit down together and have meetings for changes. When we owe someone, that does not give you much of a problem anymore. You just go and pick cocoa and sell it here to pay that person. That is a big change.
#6 Mirtha Dorlus, 75, None, Cooperative Member: If it rained for maybe 8 days, the cocoa would be ruined.
#4 Ronise Francois: When you owed someone you could not pay them, but now you can.
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: Now, if they send your kids home from school for money, you would just go to someone and ask for a loan until the next day. You pay the school and the next day sell cocoa to pay the person back. In the past, it took time to dry it; especially in May when it rains all the time.
If you owe someone money can you repay them with a cocoa tree?
#10 Public: No. You probably won’t give the person a cocoa tree but instead might say “Here is this cocoa as a payment.” I can probably rent the cocoa land for the amount of money I owe that person to pay them back. Some people would rent a cocoa tree to pay someone they owe money, but we here we don’t do that. We rent the land. You can rent an acre or half of an acre. You don’t just rent 2 or 3 cocoa trees.
Do men and women get the same advantages in the cooperative?
#10 Public: Yes.
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: The men might have more advantages than the women because there are things men can do and we women cannot. The man can take his machete, climb the cocoa tree, clean it and cut out the branches. I cannot do that. I would need to pay someone to do that. There is a difference between men and women because I cannot climb tall trees.
#3 Marie Mimose Metelus, 56, 4e AF, Cooperative Member: Men do the tree nursery and tilling the dirt, while we women use a sieve to sift the dirt. The men do a lot of hard work. They dig up the dirt with a pick and after sifting the dirt, they put them in small bags.
Do you talk during meetings?
#4 Ronise Francois: Yes. The same way we are doing now. If the president asks questions in the general assembly, we answer. We also participate in debates.
Do you think because you are a woman that prevents you from talking during meetings?
#4 Ronise Francois: No. We don’t have any problems. We are the same; we have to ask questions.
Do you think because you are a woman that prevents you from becoming a leader in the cooperative?
#10 Public: There is no problem. We are the same.
Are there any women administrators in the cooperative?
#4 Ronise Francois: No. They are men, not women. I am the deputy secretary in the cooperative. I did not do anything to get the position. They simply thought about me and invited me to a meeting. When I came they gave me a small test and I was given the position.
Is there anything you do as women in the cooperative that men do not do?
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: There is nothing women do but men don’t do. Even though men do the picking in cocoa production, the women gather the cocoa.
#4 Ronise Francois: It is only the cleaning of the cocoa that women cannot do because they cannot climb the trees.
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: The men cut the cocoa branches and we women remove the leaves under the trees.
How do the men spend their day during cocoa harvest?
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: The same way. Women spend their day gathering the cocoa. The men spend the day picking cocoa.
#6 Mirtha Dorlus, 75, None, Cooperative Member: They cut vines on the cocoa.
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: Gathering and selling cocoa, there are men who sell cocoa just like women do.
Who in the household makes all the decisions for the family and other family-related things?
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: We are right behind our husbands. The house is our responsibility. If the men are not involved, things might not work well. Men first and women second.
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: I don’t have a husband. I am in charge of everything.
#4 Ronise Francois: Me too. I make all decisions. I don’t have a husband.
How do you consume cocoa? What can you make with it to eat or drink?
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: We make chocolate. We make chocolate liquor. We put it in alcohol and make cookies with it. You can make many things with cocoa. Tranpe kakawo[42] is very good. You remove the cocoa from the pod, add alcohol, sugar, and cinnamon, and then boil it.
Can you make any remedies out of cocoa?
#3 Marie Mimose Metelus, 56, 4e AF, Cooperative Member: If a child has a cold you can take some cocoa buds which are pink, boil it, and give it to the child. You cannot do that with any type of cocoa, only with kakawo karaf.[43]
What different types of cocoa do you have?
#10 Public: There are three different types. You have the criollo[44]…There are more than three. You have criollo, forastero[45], trinitario[46],and kakawo nasyonal[47]. The old cocoa is different from today’s cocoa.
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: They are not the same? They are the same type. The old one is criollo then you have trinitario. You have indigenous cocoa which is a type of criollo. Trinitario gives forastero. You also have karaf which is a graft.
#9 Spencer Cesar, Guest, In charge of fermentation for CAUD: You asked a very important question when you asked what changes the cooperatives brought in our lives. Before cooperatives, we never had meetings like this, nor did we have organizations like CRS or other international organization meetings with us. The fermentation process brought great changes, especially for me. I met several great people and I have a job working in the fermentation process.
Do you have the same wish for your daughters as you have for your sons?
#10 Public: Yes
#8 Brunette Saint Surain, 55, None, Cooperative Member: Yes, I send both of them to school. I don’t have a man with me. I am the only one working hard to support them. I want them to become someone in the future so they can help me because I do not have much.
What would you like her to become?
#8 Brunette Saint Surain, 55, None, Cooperative Member: I don’t know – whatever they want.
#3 Marie Mimose Metelus, 56, 4e AF, Cooperative Member: Nurse
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: Nurse or doctor – whatever they want.
Would you be happy if they ended up working in the cocoa production?
#8 Brunette Saint Surain, 55, None, Cooperative Member: Yes and no.
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: I don’t know. I don’t have a problem if they work in the production, but I want them to go to college.
Would you prefer your child to have five acres of cocoa or to be a doctor?
#10 Public: Doctor
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: Doctor. We taught our children about cocoa production. If he is a doctor he still will benefit monetarily from cocoa production. While working at the hospital, some of his patients would be cocoa producers.
#7 Mme Exelhomme Samdi, 57, 2e AF, Cooperative Member:: Cocoa helps me send my child to college to become an engineer.
#6 Mirtha Dorlus, 75, None, Cooperative Member: My children are in school. I want them to go far. I prefer a doctor because he will give me health care.
#8 Brunette Saint Surain, 55, None, Cooperative Member: He will get the money from the cocoa if he is a doctor.
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: He will get the money from the cocoa and he will also give me health care.
#7 Mme Exelhomme Samdi, 57, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: Cocoa helps me with giving my children an education.
Can you borrow money on the cocoa before harvest time?
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: Yes you can. If I know that you are a honest person like this fellow over there, I would go to his house and say “I have a problem. Can you please loan me some money?” He is going to loan me the money. Now, I know I will not be in need. When it is ready I sell it and pay him back. Nobody has to know. But now if I sell the cocoa and I just give the money away, when I am in need again he won’t give me a loan. Then everyone here will know that I borrowed money and didn’t pay it back.
Can you sell cocoa like mango, meaning selling the whole harvest at once?
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: Yes, if we are selling the land….Ahhh ! No, we don’t sell the whole harvest at once. We can rent the land for 2,3, or 5 years.
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: We don’t do that.
Do the women play a role in the community? What kind of role?
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: Yes, women participate in the community. I am a woman. I participate. I work. I help. I have cocoa. It is me who takes care of it. I pay people to clean it for me. If that person did not have a 100 gourdes that day, I hire him and pay him. I help in the community.
Are there many women as leaders in the community?
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: Yes. A woman is the mayor of the community, Madam Angelot. Women are school principals and we have a judge who is a woman.
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: There are many female police.
Are there any organizations for women only?
#10 Public: Both women and men. It’s a mix of both.
#2 Samedi Corancy, 75, 2e AF, Cooperative Member: They are all mixed.
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: I know this group of only women, but I don’t participate in it. It’s called Group Fanm Kanpe. At the rich house they are taught how to make flowers. There are rich men also.
Is there money that as woman you decide how to spend?
#8 Brunette Saint Surain, 55, None, Cooperative Member: I spend my own money on the engineer, for school. I rent some land to send the kids to school.
#3 Marie Mimose Metelus, 56, 4e AF, Cooperative Member: My husband and I make all the decisions.
Who makes the decision on small and big spending for the household?
#1 Clezena Fontain, 48, 5e AF, Cooperative Member: I don’t have a husband. I make the decisions regarding spending. After God, it is me in the house.
#5 Elvecia Alexis, 60, None, Cooperative Member: My husband ‘s leg is broken. What he used to do in the past, he is not able to do anymore. He takes other people to help him when we need to accomplish something. He supports me because he wants me to keep working. Together we make all the decisions.
Bawon Focus Group
Participant
- Nardin Rony;M; 52 yrs; 7 kids; 6e AF; farmer; 20yrs in coop
- Ceide Sidoine; F; 81 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 2 yrs in coop;
- Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop
- Lessage Elismene; F; 66 yrs; 4 kids; 5e AF; farmer; 20 yrs in coop
- Alfred Remond; M; 50 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 25 yrs in coop
- Dugue Lusette; F; 69 yrs; 7 kids; 4e AF; saleswoman; 30 yrs in coop
- Simon Limanie; F; 55 yrs; 2 kids; 6e AF; saleswoman; 6 yrs in coop
We want to say thank you to everyon I Baron for coming to this meeting especially the members of the cooperative, COTAM. We come working for CRS, it has a project on the cocoa production. What we are doing here is one step of the project to get it where needed to go. They cannot work for you if they don’t have any data or good information but it does not mean they do not know anything about you.They already talked to the leaders, they got some information from them You cannot say that you have data on someone by simple talking to them with a well prepared questionnaire to gather all the information you need from him. You have to use a method to get those data. That method is called an independent group, it is a group that has no relationship with the cooperative or CRS. They use this group to find the information that they need. That is why we are here, our objective is to get the information from you and transmit it to CRS. We are the bridge between you and CRS. You give us the information and our job is to take that information to CRS. Everything we are going to talk about it based cocoa the cocoa production. We are going to ask you some questions, everyone here have a number, and we use that to identify you. Each time you want to talk raise your hand with the number so we can give you permission. Each question that will be asking, all of you can answer. When someone is talking, the rest of you must listen to him and let him finish and after someone else will be able to talk. We are using recorders to record everything that is being said so we do not lose anything from what you will say to us. We use this technic in order for us not lose anything. It means everything you say, _noise of a motorcycle_ …will be recorded. This is the reason I am asking you not talk at the same time. All of you will have time to talk.
A participant: Yes
Ok, can we start now?
A participant: Yes we can.
The first thing we want to know is, why is cocoa good?
#5Alfred Remond; M; 50 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 25 yrs in coop: Well, cocoa is good for many reasons. First, _voice of a woman talking very low_ as farmers we plant it to get money. With that money, we pay school _silence_A patisipant(F): Keep on talking_…for our children,_noise of a motocycle_ We sell the cocoa to pay school for our children, and we use that money to feed them and us. _noise:kling gendeng gendeng_…We can save some money. This is why the production is very very important._ Voice of children talking_.
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop: Ehumm, the reason we plant cocoa and to keep on planting cocoa because it is useful to us. We plant it for many reasons. It gives us money to solve our problems; we need it, it gives us chocolate to drink, the chocolate makes us stronger. It is very important because even if it does not solve all our problems but it solves some of our problems. This is the reason we need the cocoa, I am a producer _Noise of cars passing_.. I see how it is helpful for me and I will keep on planting cocoa until I die because. I am alive and it helps me in everything. It helps the children. When I die I want to leave it as an heritage for the generation after me. This is the reason why I keep on planting cocoa.
#2 Ceide Sidoine; F; 81 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 2 yrs in coop: Cocoa, the reason we….
Why is it good?
#2 Ceide Sidoine; F; 81 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 2 yrs in coop: It is important for us because… _Noise of a bus passing by_ because we had something that used to help us now it deminshing .The oranges used to help us with everything. Back in the day, it was the oranges that paid school for our children.Now it is cocoa that replaced oranges. Today with 100 pounds of cocoa you get your children ready for school. On the next harvest you still benefit because you can give your children some money to go to school. That gives you encouragement to keep on planting cocoa. It keeps you motivated to keep on planting cocoa because you know it is something you will not lose and it will help you in everything you will be doing. If you have a problem and you need money you can go to a speculators and tell him, “You know I have cocoa and loan me $200HT[48] and next week I will pay back with cocoa.” The speculator will be happy to loan you that money. _ Another participant said something that can’t be heard. #2 continues: No, no it’s just an example. Cocoa has a full potential. That is why people had neglected the cocoa and did not want to plant it, now are planting it to see if they can make the production part of their household. Because_noise of motocycle_ some the older generation would just leave around 10 cocoa trees behind for their children but now people want to leave more than that before they died.
Let’s try to be more precise on the answers.
#4 Lessage Elismene; F; 66 yrs; 4 kids; 5e AF; farmer; 20 yrs in coop : The reason I say the cocoa is good, specially on every Wednesday _noise of motocycle passing by_we get it ready on Monday and Tuesday to sell _noise of a motocycle passing by_ If we owe money to someone we can pay him back on Wednesdays. As soon as it is Wednesday we get the money to pay the person back._ someone is cleaning his throat_ The cocoa pays school for our children. When you have to do something the cocoa helps you to do it. The cocoa makes you earn money. The cocoa helps you in everything you are doing. It pays school for children. As for cocoa my man, we cannot tell how good it is enough. It helps with everything and as soon as it is Wednesday it says “Good morning”.
#1 Nardin Rony;M; 52 yrs; 7 kids; 6e AF; farmer; 20yrs in coop : I can not find the word to explain how important cocoa is. The way cocoa is helping me,the way it supporting me; it pays school for my children. When I need 50 gourdes for the kids to go to school cocoa gives it to me. I gathered cocoa on Sunday and Monday and get ready to sell on Wednesday. I don’t beans or anything else to sell, I only have the cocoa._ someone is cleaning his throat_ My life depends on it. The cocoa has helped me to raise my children, it is everything to me. When you have 100 or 150 pounds of cocoa put it on an animal back…_ noise of motocycle passing by_ Cocoa is planted on every single pieces of land that I own. When I die, I will leave them as a heritage for my children and they will leave them to their childrens._someone is zipping up something and a motocycle is passing by.
Do you make any kind of remedies from it?
Several partisipants: No, no, only chocolate.
One person at a time, if you have the answer raise your hand with your number.
#7Simon Limanie: F; 55 yrs; 2 kids; 6e AF; saleswoman; 6 yrs in coop: We do not make any remedy with the cocoa. We do not make remedy with the cocoa. We drink cocoa and we sell it. If I used to plant 50 cocoa trees in my farm or a 100, I would be working on planting 200 because it is very useful.
Would you like to add something?
A partisipant: No, I was going to say the same thing
Do you eat the cocoa?
Several partisipants: Yes, yes
How do you eat the cocoa?
A participant: Money, we make chocolate with it.
Do not you do anything else with it?
Several partisipants: No, no, no.
Only chocolate?
A participant: We do not know about the others, but it makes us earn money _noise of motocycle passing_
How many different varities of cocoa there are?
#4 Lessage Elismene; F; 66 yrs; 4 kids; 5e AF; farmer; 20 yrs in coop: The local cocoa.
How many different types of cocoa there are?
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop: Well, we have different types of cocoa but we cannot identify them well. We have the local cocoa which is our cocoa. There is a big cocoa, which is hummm_Another participant: Foreign_ foreign cocoa that has different types of colors. Sometimes it’s deep red color, light red, deep blue, or light blue. We have them but cannot identify them all.We don’t know.
Do not you know their names?
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop: No, we do not know their names; we only know that they are cocoa trees.
A participant: Well I belive we forget theirs names. We have Criolo, we have Forastero, and there is another one. I forget it names ._ noise of children are playing_
#2 Ceide Sidoine; F; 81 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 2 yrs in coop: We have the “[49]pote kole” cocoa.It has a beautiful color._children are talking_We also have violet cocoa.That means that we have different types of cocoa.
Which cocoa do you call “pote kole”?
#2 Ceide Sidoine; F; 81 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 2 yrs in coop: A cocoa which has big seeds.The seeds are very long. During the harvest the tree gives good and beautiful cocoa.
If someone asks you how many different types of cocoa do you have you would say the pote kole and what else would you say?
#2 Ceide Sidoine; F; 81 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 2 yrs in coop: Yes and we have the small cocoa, and that is why we have all these different types of cocoa.
You were telling me about the other one you have but you change to something else. You said that you have the pote kole cocoa, what others do you have? _ a motocycle is passing_
#2 Ceide Sidoine; F; 81 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 2 yrs in coop: We have humm, we have a small which is the local cocoa._motocycle is passing_We have another one that is big that was giving to us by an institution.How did we got that cocoa? _another participant : Hey, hey, I want to answer that one.
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop : Ehummm ,the man asked how many different varieties of cocoa do we have.
How many types of cocoa are there?
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop : If I am to identify them all I would say that we have 5 different varieties of cocoa.
Can you name all 5 of them for us?
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop : We said that we have a big cocoa which seeds are big and red. That is the local cocoa. Its seeds are like….
What is the name for it?
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop : That is what I told you, we have them but we don’t know their names. How did we get them? At first we only had the small blue on. Then a project that came to the cooperative and they can gave us several other different kinds. I don’t know where they came from but they were in boxes. We did nurseries with them and we planted them. They grew and gave us cocoa in all different colors, all different colors. We have never identified their names but I know we have about 5 different varieties.
What month do you harvest cocoa? _ a motocycle is passing by_
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop: Well, we start to harvest in September. September, October and November is the small harvest. From December, January, February, to March we have the big harvest. Someone in the audience is talking and laughing_That means from March to April the cocoa started decreasing and by May it is almost gone. You will still get some wild ones but the big harvest is from December to March. During those time we have a lot cocoa. _Number 7 starts talking befor Number 3 finishes_
#7 Limanie; F; 55 yrs; 2 kids; 6e AF; saleswoman; 6 yrs in coop: There is a big cocoa, the big one the mister is talking about. It’s call hybrid, hybrid cocoa. It was in the time of LOULOUNE during the period of LOULOUNE we got it. It is the big cocoa with big seeds._noise of motocycle and benches moving_
How do you spend your days during the time of harvest?
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop: Yes, how do we spend our days during harvest time ? During the time of harvest, we don’t_ chairs are moving_ harvest in one day _ someone is walking around in heels_ In one week we can, on this week we harvest an amount. _silence_. In 15 days we go and harvest more cocoa sell it .15 later we go back again. We do not harvest it all at one time but each time we harvest we make money._ someone else is talking in the audience_
#4 Lessage Elismene; F; 66 yrs; 4 kids; 5e AF; farmer; 20 yrs in coop: Yes, it is the same thing. I will say the same thing. Days we harvest cocoa are good days for us. We make money and that is good for us. Because if you owe money to someone, you can pay him back. If we need to do domething in our farm we can do it. It solves our problems, so that day is very good for us.
According to you, what is the easiest task in the cocoa production for you as producers?
_ several people in the audience are talking_
#5 Alfred Remond; M; 50 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 25 yrs in coop: While producing cocoa, what is most difficult for us is the market. We work hard to plant market to sell, truly. We _people are talking _when we harvest very often we don’t have a good market to sell. The cooperative was founded to buy cocoa. _ someone is cleaning his throat_ There was a period where the cooperative was not buying cocoa from us. That means we were selling to the speculators. During that time the speculators paid us whatever they wanted. You see? They took it at whatever price they wanted. _ voice of kinds talking_ Ehumm we don’t have a market. Our biggest problem is after spending our energies planting, cleaning and harvesting and when we sell to the speculators they pay us however they want. This is our biggest problem, we do not have a market.
#4 Lessage Elismene; F; 66 yrs; 4 kids; 5e AF; farmer; 20 yrs in coop: Yes, yes the problem we have_ motorcycle passing by_ our problem is when we decided to sell it for $5HT[50] the buyer wants to pay $4HT[51] and we cannot say anything to him. We are obliged to give it to him. This is a problem because we cannot say anything. They give whatever prices they want for our cocoa.
What other things are you find difficult in the production?
#4 Lessage Elismene; F; 66 yrs; 4 kids; 5e AF; farmer; 20 yrs in coop: The same thing we said.
What can a woman do in the production that might be difficult for a man to do?
#2 Ceide Sidoine; F; 81yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 2yrs in coop: What women do in the cocoa production, as the men are picking the women are gathering. They prepare the cocoa and sell it. _motorcycle is passing by_ The men want to make money too, but they know after the women sell the cocoa if they make 10 gourdes they will only share it if they want. _laughing JJJ_ It is up to the women to sell the cocoa
#6 Dugue Lusette; F; 69 yrs; 7 kids; 4e AF; saleswoman; 30 yrs in coop: It is up to the men to pick the cocoa and the women break them. Both of them work in the production and both of them benefit the money.
What can men do and women cannot do?
#6 Dugue Lusette; F; 69 yrs; 7 kids; 4e AF; saleswoman; 30 yrs in coop: well, what men do, men climb the cocoa trees and the women have to break them_JJJ laughing_
#1 Nardin Rony;M; 52 yrs; 7 kids; 6e AF; farmer; 20yrs in coop: Me as women, I do everything an man can do, _ several people are talking in the audience_ Man does not pick cocoa for me. I do not climb the trees. I am the one who do everything by myself. I use a long stick and pick up 50 pounds of cocoa by myself. It is my job, I do it all.
#4 Lessage Elismene; F; 66 yrs; 4 kids; 5e AF; farmer; 20 yrs in coop: What men can do and women cannot is planting the cocoa_JJJ laughing_men plant cocoa, that is all._JJJ laughing_
#7 Simon Limanie; F; 55 yrs; 2 kids; 6e AF; saleswoman; 6 yrs in coop : I would say that there is no work that men can do but women cannot do. As a woman, I plant cocoa like men. I pick cocoa from the trees and break them. I dry it and sell it. Like a
How is the process planting cocoa is done, what do you do before selling?
_ motocycle is passing by_
#7 Simon Limanie; F; 55 yrs; 2 kids; 6e AF; saleswoman; 6 yrs in coop : We just the break the cocoa and take it to the balancers[52]._a participant is laughing: hi,hay
If you dry it isn’t that a process?
#7 Simon Limanie; F; 55 yrs; 2 kids; 6e AF; saleswoman; 6 yrs in coop: Yes , we can spend 3 days drying it and the we take it to a balancer.
#1 Nardin Rony;M; 52 yrs; 7 kids; 6e AF; farmer; 20yrs in coop: We do not spend 3 drying. Where I am from we do not spend 3 days drying. We just break it on Monday on Tuesday it already dry. We put it in a sack and it dries the water from it. We do not wash it we make it dry and sell it but we do not wash it.
Between men and women who sell the cocoa?
#1 Nardin Rony;M; 52 yrs; 7 kids; 6e AF; farmer; 20yrs in coop: I do not know for the others, if I am not home the man can put the cocoa inside the house for me. He does not measure or sell it for me.I am the one who sells, that is what I do.
Who sells more cocoa?
#1 Nardin Rony;M; 52 yrs; 7 kids; 6e AF; farmer; 20yrs in coop: Well, I am the who sells the cocoa. Women sell the cocoa. Women sell the cocoa.I do not know about other places, but in this area women are the one who sell the cocoa.
#7 Simon Limanie; F; 55 yrs; 2 kids; 6e AF; saleswoman; 6 yrs in coo: Both of them sell cocoa. _JJJlaughing_ Men sell the cocoa and sell the cocoa. _JJJlaughing_
How do you sell it?
#1 Nardin Rony;M; 52 yrs; 7 kids; 6e AF; farmer; 20yrs in coop:We sell it per pound, we measure it. Yes we measure the cocoa. If you need 50 pounds of cocoa, you take it from the trees.If the cocoa was well ripe you take to the balancer you can have extra 5 or 4 pounds from it.
Which one are you talking about the green one or the ripe one?
#1 Nardin Rony: M; 52yrs; 7 kids; 6e AF; farmer; 20yrs in coop: It is ripe. I don’t about other places but here we don’t about the green one.For us it has to be ripe.
Several in the audiance: The dry one
#1 Nardin Rony;M; 52 yrs; 7 kids; 6e AF; farmer; 20yrs in coop: Dry, dry , yes
Ahh, you are talking about the dry one.
#1 Nardin Rony;M; 52 yrs; 7 kids; 6e AF; farmer; 20yrs in coop: Yes._silence_
#2 Ceide Sidoine; F; 81 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 2 yrs in coop:Well, what the sister said is true. I understand what the sister just said but as woman I don’t have a man to help me and when I am in need I pick the cocoa green and sell it. I don’t have anyone to help me with carrying. When I need money, I pick the green ones,break and sell them. Quickly, I make money. I sell it drying it.
What is most difficult thing for women in the production?
#2 Ceide Sidoine; F; 81 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 2 yrs in coop: For the women, the ladies, nothing is too difficult for them. When the get the cocoa it is with a happy heart that they drying it because they know they will be making money from it.
When we are talking about the cocoa production, we want start from the beginning. What is most difficult thing for women in the production?
#2 Ceide Sidoine; F; 81 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 2 yrs in coop: Well, what we would say is cleaning. Cleaning the cocoa is the most difficult. Some women mow the land just like any other man. Especially right now that they see that cocoa is giving them money they will not leave the farm in bad conditions. They mow the land and prepare the cocoa. Now the cocoa is going through something_ noise:kleng, kleng, kleng_ it is producing fruit now but preparation is needed to be made for it. You need to build a house for it and clean it_ motorcycle is passing by_ for the cocoa to produce more.
#1 Nardin Rony;M; 52 yrs; 7 kids; 6e AF; farmer; 20yrs in coop: For me, cleaning, cleaning is more difficult.
What is most difficult for you?
_ people are talking in the audience _
#1 Nardin Rony;M; 52 yrs; 7 kids; 6e AF; farmer; 20yrs in coop: Cleanning is most difficult for me. Cleaning is difficult. I have to need to get rid of the lougawou[53] branches, I need to cut them.
What is the most difficult thing for men in the cocoa production?
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop: Well, for me, nothing is difficult. I plant the cocoa. I clean the cocoa._ noise of a motocycle_ I prepare the cocoa. I pick the cocoa. I carry the cocoa home. I break the cocoa and I even sell it. Even if it is up to the women to sell I still do it. I can do everything; if I can plant it I can do everything.
#5 Alfred Remond; M; 50 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 25 yrs in coop: Well, as for me the most difficult is the harvest. I don’t have space to dry the cocoa. That means I don’t have a floor to put it out to dry in my house. That is the only difficult thing for me. Sometimes I used stray and pieces of sheet metal to set it out to dry. That is my biggest problem.
Do we plant the cocoa or they grow up by themselves?
#5 Alfred Remond; M; 50 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 25 yrs in coop: We plant them_JJJ laughing_ plant , plant.
Can you explain the process from planting until harvest time?
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop: Yes, in the past the way we used to plant was go to all the bottoms banana trees and cut the head of the pods, you know that cocoa have a head and a bottom before we plant them we get to cut the bottom and the head.
A participant(F): The seeds in both the bottom and the head are soft seeds.
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop: You dug a hole and place the pod. But after the training we got from COTAM, now we prepare the cocoa and put them in bags. We do nursery. We water them and when they are ready we dig holes by measurement, take out the bottom of the bags and plant them.
_voice of children playing_,
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop: That cocoa is cocoa is already good. There are no problems when you take them out of the bags to plant them._ motorcycle passing by_ That means they will not die because the tree are already growing. They will only need to develop more. With that system we produce more cocoa.
#6 Dugue Lusette; F; 69 yrs; 7 kids; 4e AF; saleswoman; 30 yrs in coop: According to me we planted on our own, nobody showed us how to plant. It was because we see that cocoa was becoming very important and we began to plant. When we see how much money we can make from cocoa we planted more. As we planted more and more some organization came and showed us more things. Now we will have more than we used to. _ motorcycle is passing by_
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop: Yeah, ehumm, the way the mister is explaining the process to you, we didn’t know how to plant cocoa. That is why all the old trees that were planted are too close to each other. They do not have enough space to develop so they can produce good qualities of cocoa. The cooperative taught us how to plant them. They told us we have to respect distance when planting cocoa. The distance is 3 meters by 3 meters or 4 meters by 4 meters. When you respect that distance the cocoa has more space to develop, it will give you more cocoa _voice of someone talking.
_silence_
How do you sell it cocoa?
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop : Noise of motocycle coming_ Yes, how do we sell cocoa? After we harvest it we dry it and take it to the cooperative._noise of motocycles_ When the cooperative do not take it, we sell it to a speculator.
another participant: To the cooperative
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop : We go sell to the balancers .If the cooperative starts buying cocoa , I believe all the cocoa will come here. We don’t have anywhere else to sell it if the cooperative could take it from us it would be good.
What is the biggest problem you have with prices?
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop Michel : The problem is when we want to sell the cocoa at a price but the buyers decide to give their own prices. The price never goes up it is always going down.
A participant: That is true.
_A woman is laughing_
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop Michel : You understand? That is the problem we have with the cocoa. can put on your mind that you will make a quantity of money and when you go to sell it you realize the price is decreased, this is our problem regarding the price. When you have good quality of cocoa and you think you will make good money, you only get ehummm…
Two participants (M,F): Just a small amount, a very small amount
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop Michel : That is the problem we have with the cocoa
#6 Dugue Lusette; F; 69 yrs; 7 kids; 4e AF; saleswoman; 30 yrs in coop: Whe sell beans we can give our prices but not cocoa. The buyers give the price that they want. Each time they have a different price.
_ a bus is passing by_
Who do you sell cocoa to?
_Noise of a big truck passing that prevent from hearing what the participant is saying_
Le nou ap konpare jounen travay nou Jodi a avek jounen travay granmoun lontan yo ki diferans nou we ki genyen?
_voices of children talking_
#6 Dugue Lusette; F; 69 yrs; 7 kids; 4e AF; saleswoman; 30 yrs in coop: The difference is, if our parents had got the same training we are getting today we would be way ahead.
_noise of children playing_
#4 Lessage Elismene; F; 66 yrs; 4 kids; 5e AF; farmer; 20 yrs in coop: Yes, like the brother said it ,now, now, we e have the chance to have agronomists who are training us and giving us good education. Now everytime we plant….
Another participant: speak up, speak up
He said to speak up.
#4 Lessage Elismene; F; 66 yrs; 4 kids; 5e AF; farmer; 20 yrs in coop: Hummm, in the past people did not know how to plant cocoa. They used to plant them to close to each other but now we know at what distance to plant. It is better for us now.
Another participant(F): Our life is better now.
Do you like what you are doing? Do you like being a cocoa producer?
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop : Yes, we love our lives because we are producing the cocoa .The cocoa does many things for us, we like what we are doing. If I could find 200 cocoa trees to plant, it would be good for me, because I willl have more than what I have now. Before I die, I want to leave many cocoa trees for my children and their children.
_ Motocycle is passing _
#4 Lessage Elismene; F; 66 yrs; 4 kids; 5e AF; farmer; 20 yrs in coop: It helps us in everything we are doing. We love our lives, we like what we are doing, we like the cocoa trees.
_ Children are playing_
What is the role of the children in the cocoa production?
#7 Simon Limanie; F; 55 yrs; 2 kids; 6e AF; saleswoman; 6 yrs in coop : They help us when we are planting.
#4 Lessage Elismene; F; 66 yrs; 4 kids; 5e AF; farmer; 20 yrs in coop: Laughing_ Depends on the distance, they carry the plant to the farm for us.
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop: Children today are not like the children in the past. Back in the day the children wanted to help, but now, they have to go to school. They have to do their homework; it is not easy for them so we have to work for them.
Do the children sell cocoa?
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop : No,children do not sell the cocoa. We sell it and it helps the children but it is not up to the children to sell it.
#6 Dugue Lusette; F; 69 yrs; 7 kids; 4e AF; saleswoman; 30 yrs in coop: Well, sometimes children sell it. Itmight happen you have a problem and you ask the child to sell it for you. You trust him; he does exactly what you ask him to do.
_Silence_
Is cocoa the most important product in this area?
#6 Dugue Lusette; F; 69 yrs; 7 kids; 4e AF; saleswoman; 30 yrs in coop: Well, the reason cocoa becomes more important,_ someone is cleaning his throat_ we used to cultivate other products like coffee and oranges, but coffee had been destroyed, even the oranges. So cocoa has taken. _ motorcycle is passing by_ Now according to me, cocoa is the only product that is helping us_ motorcycle is passing by_ When you plant it, it grows. It will not die if it get a lot of sun. That is why after God that cocoa is our only hope.
_noise of motorcycles_
#2 Ceide Sidoine; F; 81 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 2 yrs in coop: Yes, I would say that cocoa is something that is here to help us all the time. During the time when we don’t have cocoa we are sick because it is not harvest time. When cocoa is going out of season we are examining when you used to sell 50, 25, or 30 pounds of cocoa we are selling only 5 pounds. _Kids far away can be heard playing_ That makes us sad because _loud noise of a motorcycle passing through_ production is going down. Sometimes you might need to buy a textbook for your child and you sell 2 pounds of cocoa and you are safe. Sometimes you need to do a konbit[54] to clean the farm you can sell some to cover the cost. When you don’t have it you will have to find something else to sell.
#5 Alfred Remond; M; 50 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 25 yrs in coop: To add to what she said, we can say that currently the cocoa means a lot to us. Someone with a huge bitasyon[55] of cocoa can be compared to person who has money in the bank.._noise of motocycles passing_ Because when you have money in the bank, you can decided one day to go to the bank and take some money, that is the same thing when you have a farm with cocoa._noise of a motorcycle passing by_ You can say to the speculator that you need 2000[56] or 3000[57] gourdes from him and tomorrow he can come to take cocoa for the money. So cocoa has a lot of importances.
Besides cocoa,what other products do you?
#5 Alfred Remond; M; 50 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 25 yrs in coop: We already talked about them. We had the oranges but it has been destroyed._noise of the motocycles_We had the coffee the same thing happened to it. So the cocoa is the only thing that we have, and we have some other products…
Like
#5 Alfred Remond; M; 50 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 25 yrs in coop: We produce beans,peanut, corn and manyok[58]. You see, we produce those things to eat and we also produce banana.
Which one of them gives you more money?
# 5 #5 Alfred Remond; M; 50 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 25 yrs in coop: Well, _ motocycle passing_ all these products give us money. During peanut season, we harvest it and make money with it. During the beans season, we harvest and sell to make money. We used to sell the mamit[59] of beans for 200[60] to 275[61] gourdes. You see, all of them are important.
_ Motorcycles passing through_
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop: Well, according to me,all of them are important._ someone cleaning his throat _But the most important ones are cocoa and orange. You plant them once and they will produce every year.
Another participant: You can find cocoa at any moment.
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop: As for the rest, I mean the corn, you have to spend money each time to plant it. Sometimes the sun burns the crop. But what is important is when you have cocoa, orange and banana.You are able to eat them and make money with them. The cocoa is first because the coffee had been destroyed.
Do you have anything else?
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop: We have others like, we have banana, yam, peanut, corn, we have bean, and sweet potatoes. We have all of these here. All of them are important,_noise of a motorcycle_ we use all of them. But….
A participant (F): The biggest thing is the cocoa; you just prepare it and harvest it.
How does the cooperative work?
_ someone cleaning his throat_
#2 Ceide Sidoine; F; 81 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 2 yrs in coop Well, the cooperative is working ,_Children are playing_ it is working very well. What we need _ motorcycle is passing by_is more support. As we are getting more support it will move forward. Well that is what we need. But as for us we are fighting together with it cooperative, if God wants, to be stronger. Well, when we don’t get anything we going klopi klopan[62] but we get something we feel stronger together.
How does the cooperative help you?
#2 Ceide Sidoine; F; 81 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 2 yrs in coop: Help us like in…
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop: The cooperative helps us in several different ways. Because since I’ve been a member in the cooperative, I am an elder, since the cooperative had been founded it has done a lot of great things for me._ participant is talking very low_ Every projects that came to the cooperative I got involved in them. If I have a lot of cocoa right now it is because of the cooperative. If I tell you that I need something, I will find the resource from the cooperative to do it. I cannot say that the cooperative is not working. Because now each thing that comes to the cooperative is moving us forward for things to be better ._children are playing_ As for me I cannot criticized the cooperative. _motorcycle is passing by_ Because it has done a lot for great things for me. I don’t know for the others but as for me I benefit a lot from the cooperative.
What other services the cooperative gives you?
#5 Alfred Remond; M; 50 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 25 yrs in coop: Yes, the cooperative helps us a lot in several other ways. First we have is called training. Well, that is the cooperative main domain. Today I am a technician thanks to the cooperative.
Are you a technician?
#5 Alfred Remond; M; 50 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 25 yrs in coop: I can say that I am not a real technician because I do not know everything but I know many things thanks to the cooperative. For example, recently we had project that eheummmm DNDN, Minister of Agriculture, did here in Baron. Every man from the cooperative who participated in the project got a certificate
What was the project about?
#5 Alfred Remond; M; 50 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 25 yrs in coop It was on dirt and rocks. Understand? Everyone from the cooperative got a certificate
What other services does the cooperative offer to the community? _something heavy is passing by_
#5 Alfred Remond; M; 50 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 25 yrs in coop: Well, the cooperative is always helping the community. It gives a lot of things to the community. Some organizations give us banana trees, sugarcane, pineapple to plant. When we have them we share them with others in the community. Some people have more privilege than others. They give it to the people who work. Sometimes they give it to the people who work on conservation of the fields, _noise of the motocycles and children playing and we share with others. Yeah! We share with others. The cooperative is very good. Sometime you need money to pay school for your children, you go to the cooperative and they will lend it to you_noise of the motocycles_ it offers many, many services.
What things you think that the cooperative should do but does not them?
#5 Alfred Remond; M; 50 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 25 yrs in coop Well, what cooperative could have done_motorcycle is passing through_ but doesn’t do them is because it lacks the possibilities to do them. That means everyone needs to make an effort for themselves._Children are playing_ That means if there things that the cooperative cannot do and they are necessary it does not have to give them to us because does not have them.
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop: What I think, ehummmm, that cooperative should have is a bank. If someone have some money they can save it on their account .When you have a problem you can come and take to solve your problem ._Children are talking far way_ The cooperative should have a bank. If it doesn’t have it to me it is missing something.
Rooster: cock-a-doodle-doo
#5 Alfred Remond; M; 50 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 25 yrs in coop: Yes, there should a seed bank also. Very often in the year _Someone is cleaning his throat_ a farmer mow the farm and he could find any seeds to plant. Well if the cooperative have a bank for that it will be good. That means someone who_ motorcycle beeping_ is a member in the cooperative when he mows his farm he will know where he will the seeds to plant. The reason farmers are not mowing their land is because they don’t know where they will get seeds they need. That is why we are always late. When you were supposed to plant you didn’t and when you plant the crops are destroyed because the sun it too hot.
Are there are many women in the cooperative?
##5 Alfred Remond; M; 50 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 25 yrs in coop: Yes, yes, yes, there are many women in the cooperative.
Is there difference between women and men in the cooperative?
#2 Ceide Sidoine; F; 81 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 2 yrs in coop: Well, I would say there areno differences because both of them benefit the same thing. _someone is cleaning his throat_ We have the same rights. That means, _ children playing_ if there is something that the woman cannot do, a man can do it for her. We all work. That is all.
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop Well, between men and women ehummm there is a difference. What is the difference? For example the women get loans to do business but do not get loans. There is a difference, not all of the have the same problem.
Another participant: mmmmh-hummmm
_voice of a woman talking _
What can prevent a woman from being a member in the cooperative?
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop: Nothing can woman from being a member in the cooperative.
_noise of a motocycle_
Can any woman become a member in the cooperative?
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop: Yes, any woman can be a member, but she needs to be 18 years old.
#5 Alfred Remond; M; 50 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 25 yrs in coop: Yes, the comrade said that any woman can be a member in the cooperative; I have to say no to that._motorcycle passing by_ Just like not any woman can be a member it is the same thing for a man. For example, ehummm, if we know someone who likes to make trouble and disrespect people on the street, someone is lifting her dress to her heard in the streets, those kind of people cannot be members. Someone who is greedy cannot be a member. We don’t tolerate those kinds of people among us. That is for both men and women.
Does that mean you don’t any kind of greedy people in the cooperative?
#5 Alfred Remond; M; 50 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 25 yrs in coop: Exactly, we do not tolerate them.
_Someone is laughing_
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop: Ehummm, about people who are greedy, in the cooperative you cannot take all kinds of people. But you cannot just say to the person that they can’t become members because they are greedy; there are rules and regulation that you have to show them. When you show the regulations to them, they will know that they don’t have a place among us.
Who benefit most in the cooperative, men or women?
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop: According to women benefit more than men._ motorcycles are passing_Yes, women benefit the most.
Why do you say that?
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop: Why did I say that? _motorcycle passing by_ Ehummm, when there is project or an activity both and women can find work in them. Besides that the women get loans. They have more advantage than us.
The cooperative does not give loans to men?
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs;10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop : No, it does not .
Wht don’t the men ask for loans?
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop: They said they do not give loans to men.
A participant: They do not give loan money to men only women, only women.
_JJJ laughing_
What is the difference between women who are from towns than women from the countyside?
_laughing_
#4 Lessage Elismene; F; 66 yrs; 4 kids; 5e AF; farmer; 20 yrs in coop: There is no difference, both of them do their works.
#6 Dugue Lusette; F; 69 yrs; 7 kids; 4e AF; saleswoman; 30 yrs in coop Well, the difference between them is that those from towns do what women from towns do. Women from the countryside do what women from the countryside do. _motorcycle is passing_ There were rats who were fighting each other. The first one said he is not a rat, the second one said he is a rat. Well, one of them said “Walk in front of” and while they were walking he said “Look, here is a rat !” The second one turns around and looks at the other and said “Here is another one!” As human being we have a better understanding of things.
_JJJlaughing_
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop: What the elder said is the story of the city rat and the country rat. The city rat said that they don’t call him rat and said it is the rat from the country that they call rat. _motorcycle is passing_ People from towns are always respectful to people from the countryside.
Why?
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop: Why? One said he is from the town another said he is from the countryside. Town’s business is not the countryside’s business. Each one of them has their own roles.
Why is like that according to you?
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop : Well, they made it like that. They made the differences. We see everyone as people. They said people as people from towns they don’t mix with people from the countryside. They always say that.
#8 – As for me, what I see if the cooperative continues to work everything will be fine.
_voice of children talking_
Is there a difference between women from towns and women from the country?
#8 -Fi : Difference between women from towns and from the country? Well, supposedly women from towns think they are better the people from the country. Everyone is valuable in some way.
_Child is crying_
What makes each one valuable?
R#8- Because people from towns are originally from the country. Understand?
Is there transparency in the cooperative?
A participant: No, I do not see that.
What we mean by transparent is if you know about everything that is going on in the cooperative, like all the activities. Do they explain everything to you?
Two participants (F) :Yes, yes
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop Each time there is something new we know about them. If we didn’t know we will not be able to tell you, ehummm, about the women and men in the cooperative. The women more advantages than the men. The reason we know that is because we know about everything that is going in the cooperative.
#8 -Fi : Yes, we know everything about the cooperative, they explain everything to us. Women work. Men work. We all work.
What is a Ristoun?
#8 -Fi : The ristoun, we cannot say anything about it. In the past when the cooperative was buying we used to get ristoun. Now the cooperative doesn’t buy anything there is no ristoun.
Rooster: cock-a-doodle-doo
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop: Well, to have a ristoun there should be activities going on in the cooperative. If you sell you get a ristoun but if you don’t sell you don’t a ristoun.
,_A child is crying_,
If I understand well there is no ristoun anymore.
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop: There is no ristoun anymore.
Did you ever had it before?
A participant: Yes
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop: We had it in the past
Can you tell us about it?
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop: The ristoun was when, you used to get it, _ a child is playing_ that is when we use to sell cocoa. Right? When you sold cocoa they paid you and gave you a receipt. At the end of the year they came back and gave you a ristoun. That was the bonus you got for selling. The cooperative didn’t buy cocoa that is why we didn’t get it. Things are changing; I don’t if we will get it this time. We don’t know yet._a child is crying_ With the price that is cocoa is being sold how will you get a ristoun from it?
_Children are playing_
A participant: Yes, I was going to say the same thing.
#7Simon Limanie; F; 55 yrs; 2 kids; 6e AF; saleswoman; 6 yrs in coop: The difference I see _ a small child is playing_ between men and women in the cooperative is when you are building a committee it should have both men and women _motorcycle is passing by _ but in the cooperative they only take men. They don’t even put a single woman in the cooperative.
That is where the difference is?
#7Simon Limanie; F; 55 yrs; 2 kids; 6e AF; saleswoman; 6 yrs in coop In the cooperative, in all the committee they only take men. Are women not important? I would like to know if women are not important.
#5 Alfred Remond; M; 50 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 25 yrs in coop Well, as for me I am doing to deny this information. I am part of the monitoring committee. That committee has 3 members, 2 men and 1 woman. In the education committee there are 2 men and 1 woman. In the administrative committee the advisor is a woman. What I am afraid of and understand is that we don’t have enough women. But when they say that there are no women in the committees, I Rony deny that information. That is not true. _someone cleans his throat_ There are women.
#7 Simon Limanie; F; 55 yrs; 2 kids; 6e AF; saleswoman; 6 yrs in coop When the cooperative was working with women, women had more importance. Women were encouraged to do business. Now there is no business. There is nothing in the cooperative at all.
_Children are playing_
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop: I disagree because I am a member of the cooperative but I am not in the committee but I see women in the committees.
That is your own opinion, he has his own. You can tell us what you think.
#2 Ceide Sidoine; F; 81 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 2 yrs in coop What the sister said, I would say_ participants are saying that they don’t agree with what #7 said_ what do I think? Sometimes there are activities in the cooperative but sometimes there are none. Everyone benefits something in those activities. For example someone can eat today and tomorrow goes to bed hungry. When you don’t get anything you can hope for tomorrow to be better.
_Motorcycle passing by_
We didn’t finish talking about the ristoun, how did it work when you had it?
#2 Ceide Sidoine; F; 81 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 2 yrs in coop When we were getting a ristoun you would get it at time like this, at the end of the year. Cocoa production is going down now. When we getting the ristoun, it was with a happy heart to give cocoa.
How do they give the ristoun?
#2 Ceide Sidoine; F; 81 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 2 yrs in coop: How they give you the ristoun depending on how well you prepare the cocoa. If you give good cocoa, you will get a good ristoun.
Let us consider you sell 100 punds of cocoa_noise of hammer hitting on something_, how much Ristoun would you receive?
#2 Ceide Sidoine; F; 81 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 2 yrs in coop: Well, how do they give it? It is the same thing we spoke about _motorcycle is passing by_ if the cocoa is good quality you can get 5 gourdes[63] per pound.
When you receive 5 gourdes for each pound, do you think it is fair or you should have receive more than that?
#2 Ceide Sidoine; F; 81 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 2 yrs in coop: I used to sell 200 to 500 pounds and I did not any benefit from it. One day they can give $200HT[64] to me or $300HT[65] of ristourn,_noise of a hammer hitting on something ,that is God who came down from the sky and brough cocoa to us.
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop: The ristoun is based on the way you sell the cocoa. _noise of a hammer hitting on something_ When we sale it to the cooperative, we used to get ristoun. We know when we sell it to the speculators that…
No, we are not talking about speculators because we know that speculatosr does not give ristoun…
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop: . When we used to sell here they gave us a receipt and they came back with money. We never verified how much it was. _someone is coughing_ We don’t know if in the future we will understand it. That means whatever they use to give us we would take it.
#5 Alfred Remond; M; 50 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 25 yrs in coop: Yes, the ristoun varied in the cooperative . It depends on how much you sell. Imagine if you sell 1 pound of cocoa in a year,_ another participant: Hummmmm!_ they will put 5 gourdes in an envelope and give to you. You will have to take. You cannot compare yourself to someone who gets ristoun for 200 pounds of cocoa.
Does everyone get the same ristoun if they sell the same amount of cocoa?
A participant : You will get the same. If you sell 1 pound like everyone else you will get 5 gourdes. Someone who sells more will get more.
Do you know where the cooperative sell your cocoa?
Several participants: No, no
Do they sell it in Haiti or abroad?
_Motorcycles passing _
A participant: Well, ehummm, they sell abroad. We had MEDA who we were buying cocoa for. _motorcycle is passing by_ MEDA would store the cocoa abroad. That was how we came with the ristoun system. There is a percentage that would return to us; that percentage is the ristoun.
_Beeping of a motorcycle_
As members in the cooperative, do you know how much the pound is being sold for abroad?
Several participants: No, no, we do not know.
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop: We do not anything about it
#6 Dugue Lusette; F; 69 yrs; 7 kids; 4e AF; saleswoman; 30 yrs in coop: To me cocoa is something they took from us and gave us a small amount of money. We don’t how for how much they sell it. We plant a lot product. We plant beans, corn, and peanut; when we take a mamit of beans to the market we sell it at the price we want. But for the cocoa you pick it , break it , and take to the speculators. If the speculators say 10 gourdes you don’t know if it is right or wrong; you have to sell it to them because you don’t have another place to sell it. If they say it is 10 gourdes, it is 10 gourdes.
_Someone is coughing_
Why don’t you sell it at the price you want like the other products?
_ motorcycles passing_
#6 Dugue Lusette; F; 69 yrs; 7 kids; 4e AF; saleswoman; 30 yrs in coop: If we know where the sell it, we would take it there and sell it too.
_JJJ laughing_
As you may know CRS has a project for the cocoa production in this area, what 3 things would you like CRS do to for you?
# 5 Alfred Remond; M; 50 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 25 yrs in coop: First, I would like for pice of cocoa to increase and to have a fix price. The second thing we want as producers is a place to dry the cocoa. Very often we have to dry the cocoa on the ground that is not good for the cocoa.
#2 Ceide Sidoine; F; 81 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 2 yrs in coop: Yes, ehummm, as for us we would like to get support to ehummm develop the cocoa production. Support on grooming, planting, and the nursery system to move forward with the production.
What are the dreams you have for your children? Would you like for them to work in the cocoa production like you?
#2 Ceide Sidoine; F; 81 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 2 yrs in coop: Well, as for the children I can say that they are already ehummm in the production. When the child sells cocoa for you, you give him 30 gourdes[66] or 40 gourdes[67] he puts it in his pocket to take to school. That makes him very happy. You are also encouraging him.
Would like to see your children become cocoa producers like you ?
#2 Ceide Sidoine; F; 81 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 2 yrs in coop: Well, ehummm , all of us here have children. The children, the younger one have their own small garden. They are asking you for small cocoa tree to plant in their garden. They want to have theirs in the future. The children are strongly involved in the production
#5 Alfred Remond; M; 50 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 25 yrs in coop: This is a good question._noise of motocycles_ All my children are boys. I would like for God bless all of them. I would like to have 7 agronomists so they can plant cocoa._ something zipping_I would like for to keep on planting the cocoa, even after I die. I would like for the to always remember that the cocoa contributed in paying school for them.
#6 Dugue Lusette; F; 69 yrs; 7 kids; 4e AF; saleswoman; 30 yrs in coop : Well, as for me cocoa is not something that can be planted anywhere. Many of us already have cocoa, _motorcycle is passing by_ and we will continue to plant cocoa. By the time the children are adult what we planting now will be producing. All the children would have to do is harvest cocoa and sell it.
Is there a difference between your sons and daughters? Do you raise them the same way? Do you give them the same education?
#6 Dugue Lusette; F; 69 yrs; 7 kids; 4e AF; saleswoman; 30 yrs in coop: We raise them the same way. We give the same education, because we pay school for both of them.
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop : Well, as for me ehummm children now a day we can say that we work for them. They are going to school they won’t see farming as something for them to do.
Do you raise them the same way, with the same education?
_ Something fell down_
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop : Both are in school. Understand? It is not like one of the go to school and another one goes to farm. Both of them are in the school. Well, it is the same education for them both.
_JJ J laughing?
Did everybody hear that? Would someone like to add something else? We are about to finish here and I want to thank all of you for participating. If there is something you would like to say, this the perfect time to say it.
#6 Dugue Lusette; F; 69 yrs; 7 kids; 4e AF; saleswoman; 30 yrs in coop:
The last thing I would like to say why are you here? What are looking for? You called us here and ask us questions, why?
_ cars are passing by_
Researcher Nahomie: Maybe you was not present in the begining , Mr. Pharrel said that we are doing a survey for CRS on cocoa production. We are doing a research . We will be talking to producers, and leaders in the cooperative to better understand the cocoa production. We want to know everything about you as producers to better understand you and then we will give the report to CRS. We act as a bridge for you and CRS. That means everything that was recorded in this meeting will be giving to CRS in a report.
.
#3 Michel Duverneau; M; 59 yrs; 10 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 4yrs in coop Well, the last thing we want to say ehummm is thank you for what you doing here. We hope you take the letter and we get an answer.
_JJJ laughing _
#4 Lessage Elismene; F; 66 yrs; 4 kids; 5e AF; farmer; 20 yrs in coop: We would like for the price of the cocoa to increase. That would be good.
A participant: I was going to say the same thing.
2 Ceide Sidoine; F; 81 yrs; 4 kids; 4e AF; farmer; 2 yrs in coop: Well, we say thank you because you are doing this for us on the cocoa production. _children playing_ We hope that you can teach something new about the cocoa.Thank you for being with us today.
1 Nardin Rony;M; 52 yrs; 7 kids; 6e AF; farmer; 20yrs in coop: Well, I want to say thank you. We say thank you because the letter is written now and we are waiting for the answer. _motorcycle is passing by
Thank you to every single one of you for coming here. I hope this is not the last we see each other. This is the first step of the survey, there will be another part. Again thank you to each one of you.
Translation Focus Group Grande Riviere du Nord
1 Dorestin Jude: G; 53; 5 children rheto; agriculture technician; 20 in kop
2 Jardis Rosena: F; 58; 4 children 3 segonde guard yard; 14 in kop
3 Saintis Alberte: F; 51; 3 children 6e AF seller; 20 in kop
4 Marcelus Noel: G; 60; 2 children 6e AF farmer; 31 in kop
5 Leon Syrilien: G; 62; 2 children 6e AF; farmer; 31 in kop
6 Baptiste Julmiste: G; 47; 3 children; 9e AF guard yard; 30 in kop
7 Garcon Suzette: F; 67; 6 children; 6e AF; farmer; 31 in kop
8 Mervelus Ervenson: G ; 58; 5 children; 5e AF; farmer; 15 in kop
9 Rene Saint Juste: G; 30; no children ; rheto; farmer; 12 in cooperative
10 Eugene Anold :G ; 79; 6 children; 7e AF; farmer; 30 in kop
We Are in Grande riviere du Nord, Isn’t true ?
‘’ Yes’’
Ok, we are here, for a research we do for CRS about cocoa, we know that CRS has a project( noise of chair) we are doing now,perhaps did not reach the farmers directly like they wanted it,but it can not also happen without a data collection throughout cocoa,who has a link to the management of us as organisation or institution,then that’s why we herejust to get information, look for those datas. Then all the informations that we got from you, will be part of information that we are going to complete to introduce a report ,which has all your complaints, which has all informations, everything that you have about cocoa.Then we are going to start with interviews,we will ask you some questions and all of you will have the possibility to share their own opinions about all of them,it’s for that we ask you to be in short, to be direcly. Even do someone is talking, just let him free to share everything he wants to talk about then you just show your number for expressing what you think.__ok that’s that__Ok ? That means for a question everybody can answer, each person is going to share according to you, ok ? you will tell something before ? __ No__
We can start ?
We can start__ Ok agree ( noise moto happening)
Why cocoa is good?
(Dorestin Jude, Man, 53 Years old, 5 children, agriculture technician) : For health,cocoa is good for the brain,(noisy) for the environment, cocoa protect the earth and the environment, then the cocoa is also good to give opportunities to the farmers to make more money.
# 4 : ( Marcelus Noel,Man, 60 years old, 2 children, farmer) Cocoa is good, it gives us profite, it hepls us to make more money and it’s one of the product that we have to support peasant. ( lots of noisy)
# 6 : ( Baptiste Julmiste, Mane, 47 years old, 3 children, agriculture technician) Just to keep going what the brother came to say, cocoa in itselft is a naturel ressource for us the farmers, it helps us with school,it helps us with sickness, it helps us in feeding, and the nit helps us in death case.
Does no one else?
To keep moving
#5: ( Leon, Syrilien, Man, 62 years old, 2 children, farmer) just to keep going with the cocoa’s affairs,it has such importance, many peasant, lot of farmers will keep going plainting it because it has a lot of money, it helps us with student, it helps us to progress, it can, it feeds, they make dous with it, we make candy with it, you make chocolate with it and we also make all of good other things with it, that help us to make more profite,that why we keep growing cocoa so that we can have more money.
#2: ( Jardis Rosena, Woman, 58 years old, 4 children , Guard yard ) Then I can also say, that cocoa is something that will never stop to provide, we can say it provides, every seasons but there is some place, every three months we see the cocoa provides more if there is no sun because when the sun rises on them it doesn’t provide but when the sun doesn’t rise on it, it provides more, when someone goes to cocoa tree you can 2 pounds, 3 pounds,you can have money to feed the children.
Do you make medication with cocoa?
Yes, yes we make medication with cocoa
What kind of medication?
# 2: ( Jardis Rosena, Woman, 58 years old, 4 children, guard yard) Because when people have ehh ehh,ehh ehh how do they say that __beast__ ( someone laughs) they use cocoa, and then there is disease people can have, when you get constipate ehh ehh, they use ehh they use to take the cocoa,and then they beat it,la jonis, they also use it to for la jonis, someone just take the cocoa and then they break a cocoa, sometimes they can suck the cocoa,to drink eh eh the cocoa water
#1: (Dorestin Jude, Man 53 years old, 5 children, agriculture technician) The cocoa you can make grease , whatever the person has a belt problem,rhumatis, then with the cocoa grease, it helps you to have more energy__ be strong_.
#6 : ( Baptiste Julmiste,Gason, 47 ane, 3 timoun, teknisyen agwonom) The cocoa is a medicine for us, when you have, a sickness called kolo,kole, kolorin, when you have it when you take the cocoa, you break it, you put white sugar or crème sugar on it and then to mix it, you suck it then quckly heal
#7: (Garcon Suzette, Woman, 67 years old, 6 children, farmer) Me?__ Will you say someting?__ ( Clean throat) Will you say something?__If i have to say something?__ No__Then ok.
# 8 : ( Mervelus Ervenson,Man, 58 years old, 5 children, farmer) When you are watching the cocoa affairs, for us,( we don’t have other ressource that help more, it’s the cocoa), that help us with everything, we don’t have other support it’s like when we have the cocoa crops , we already know that we are going to do such a thing, children will go to school, we are going to do other thing,it’s all for us, it’s there for our sickness, it representes everything for us.
Ok.
How long have been growing cocoa in Grand Rivye area?
Public: There is a long time__A long time ago (people talk each other)
# 5: ( Leon, Syrilien, Gason, 62 ane, 2 timoun, kiltivate) Absolutely cocoa for Grand Rivye du no, there is a long time ago,here is the time we as a cooperative really started to take the cocoa,give the cocoa value since 1982. After diagnose with a group of foreignes’’MEDA’’they come to do e babababla, they will notice that Grand Rivye du no has reputation for cocoa since that time this cooperative started to take this production and give value. Nowadays it becomes such a big thing for them, will become a patrimony for Haiti country.
How many type of cocoa that you have?
( noisy)
# 1: (Dorestin Jude, Man, 53 years old, 5 children, agriculture technician) We have three(3) types for Grand Rivye, Criollo, Forestero e Trinitario.
How long did you know that there are three types?
After a diagnose by a group of technician coming from ehhh Dominican Republic
What did you know before that?
We didn’t know, we have only ehhh, I had only euhhh more trinitario with criollo ( people voice)
#6: ( Baptiste Julmiste,Man, 47 years old, 3 children, agricultura technician) Yes, according to the value one of those 3 qualities of cocoa…
What are those 3?
…. Crilollo, Trinitario then Forastero. According the value of criollo, itself, now ourself in cooparatives, we have information base on how to recognize the criollo, that why when we are doing pepinye, it’s specially the criollo that we almost do pepinye with it.
Why?
So, because of it, according to a study that white people do, the criollo more valuable. Blablabla talking more
I am going to interrupt you (lot of people are talking)
(participant voice that we do not identify) Criollo has more valuable, and they buy it from other country, interesting to buy it because it costing_ I am coming_(and for planting,what technician in fermentation,it ferment more,more fast), other cocoa like trinitario, forestero, you can take 5 days, 4 days, 5 days( phone is ringing)(to ferment but,) it takes 3 days in itself for more 4 days. 4 days then we can have more money and all the country that I visit, last time I was in france, all countries are asking for criollo cocoa. Do not you have cocoa criollo, where is criollo, they are asking for it, why? It also a quality that does n’t scared of sickness. ( chair noise)
# 10: (Eugene Arnold, Man, 79 years old, 6 children, farmer) From where the technicians are talking about cocoa, it’s something that can be good, everywhere cocoa is the best, even if you hear about a lot of quality_talk louder_( a lot of, a lot of noisy)_ you can talk_ according to the cooperative du no,the cocoa could be a good thing, then I can tell you it succed and they appreciate it everywhere, everywhere. Lot of noisy
# 4: (Marcelus Noel, Man, 60 years old, 2 children, farmer) The cocoa is so important, even do you will get_chair noisy_you take the cocoa in a place you are working, you scratch it then you apply on bleeding,it allow it to dry. (noisy)
Here is the month that we use to harvest cocoa?
So
# 4: ( Marcelus Noel,Man, 60 years old, 2 children, farmer) We harvest cocoa,in 2 seasons, november december it’s the little periode,and then you will have to harvest in big season, starting from march__march__ April that’s mean we are in big season, it says cocoa , june also (young children are crying)
Ok
# 5 : ( Leon, Syrilien, Gason, 62 ane, 2 timoun, kiltivate) Then, yes to the truth as the man says that, one of them says it is from september, october, november december ( children are crying) we are in a big season cocoa, When we are in the actual period now, there is a lot of cocoa, that is because sun was risen, the sun was the cause of the lack of providing, but now when it is raining there is a lot place where cocoa is providing , when february is starting , march and april thre is big harvest of cocoa , at this time all the peasants , all the farmers feel happy because they can make money, because they have cocoa and it provides, because it is a wealth for all the farmers. That’s an heritage.
(lot of noise)
Like producer in cocoa season, in harvest season how (children crying, motorcycle noise) do you spend your day, how would you explain your day during a cocoa harvest, how is everything ?
# 4 (Marcelus Noel M 60 years, 2 children, farmer) So, in a crops of cocoa that is cost a lot, for example when you are paying a day you pay 150 gourdes, to pay the farmer to sell him a day. There is some many other way you can pay until 200 gourdes. And we pay only 200 gourdes , and we give lunch to the farmer, that could cost at least 300 gourdes for spending the whole day.
We will talk one by one,one by one…respect,respect. You done? Number,you have something to say.
# 3: (Saintis Alberte, woman, 51 years old, 3 children,seller) what I said before the opening,we’re saying when we are talking,we must talk in a direct way on the point,don’t go around.
Number 10 have you got something to say about cocoa…I almost don’t say anything.Ok!
What seems to be more difficult for you about euhh cocoa affairs,in the production,what seems difficult ?
# 4 : ( Marcelus Noel,man, 60 years, 2 children,farmer) Sakwhat seem more difficult for us is about the hard life,the way that the cocoa should be treated,farmers don’t have enough (clean throat) euhh money to support us with the cocoa because there are several farmers in the cooperatives,they have skills,it’s easy for them to manage the cocoa but,all the farmers don’t earn that means the cooperative doesn’t have enough money to make kind of training for everybody could earn and allow to the cocoa (motto noise) blabla bla it’s a financial problem
# 6: ( Baptiste Julmiste,man, 47 years, 3 children,agriculture technician) then another difficult thing for us,cocoa garden is far,when we have to do transportation for the cocoa,it’s the head,we oblige to support it on our head to go down with it because it is our source,we oblige but it makes us so tired
# 8: ( Mervelus Ervenson,man, 58 years, 5 children, farmer) Mostly you can be outside,there is a time to get in,to come and give the cocoa because of a lack of possibility,sometimes we walk,where the cocoa is,you will willl be oblige to pay a motocycle to come,that can make us late,sometimes when people come,man and woman who buying cocoa,they can come from their house…because of a lack of possibility to make the production happen
# 6 ( Baptiste Julmiste,Man, 47 years, 3 children,agriculture technician) : yes,we’ll keep going,we wondering that if there is a way to help us either a donkey or an horse that can relief us because the gardens are really far to go down with the product
We will sell cocoa a year then we will buy a donkey…( people are laughing J J J)
What seems to be difficult for us as men that we do then you think that women cannot do ?
So, there is a thing that men do .
# 5 ( Leon, Syrilien, M, 62 years, 2 Children, farmer) : When you have to clean the cocoa, prepare and put the cocoa in a clean way, that is in the mountain very far, women cannot do it. Sometimes when you have to clean the cocoa, you would have to climb the cocoa tree just to clean it. Women cannot do it, which is men to do it, there is sometimes gardens are full of wasps, there is weed, less possibility to take care of the cocoa. The reason why the cocoa do not clean is beause women cannot go in this kind of garden, if the garden was clean and there is possibility, money to take care of the cocoa, make clean the cocoa, to cleaned well the cocoa, so that should be…
#6 (Baptiste Julmiste, M, 47 years, 3 children, technician agronomist ) : So, that is exactly the same i was about to say, i do not need to go on it anymore. Bon se menm sa m ta pral di, m pa bezwen pase ladan l anko.
And what is the most easy women can do then, man cannot, what women can do man cannot ? E kisa ki pi fasil ke yon fi kap fe epi gason limenm li paka fe , sa ke fi kap fe gason pa kapab fe?
# 3 (Saintis Alberte, F, 51 years, 3 children, sales women): We break the cocoa, we bring it it to sale.
Men cannot do that ?
# 7 (Garcon Suzette, F, 67 years, 6 Children, farmer) : So for that, there is nothing women can do men cannot, the opposit when men met girls in a high mountain, the road is difficult men take the cocoa and put it in the plane for the girls.
(Range of people are talking at the same time.)
#2 ( Jardis Rosena, F, 58 years, 4 children, the guard yard) : So, me as girl, i believe thatis only that i say, i could not do in that is clean it_the cleaning_ because there is some branches when they are in bad position, these things women cannot go, to go on these things but many girls climb tree than man (people laughing) and about cut off weeds, you can hear, you can hear complaints hmm, some of the girls cut off weds too_ a lot_ some of the girls cut off weeds too, then they will not say everything but some of the girls knows what cut off weeds mean, they will not be afraid of wasps, they will not be afraid of snake , they are not be afraid of nothing to cut off weds.
# 5 (Leon, Syrilien, M, 62 years, 2 children, farmer ) : Better than girls talkin about themselves, because I am not going to charge them like a horse (people which is laughing)
# 4: (Marcelus Noel, M 60 years, 2 children farmer) So, what we would like as farmer is the ngo’s help us find support of technicians, help us find finance, find some technicians which pemit us finding the best treatment for the cocoa and produce more.
# 9 (Rene St Juste, M, 30 ane, 0 children, farmer) (long silent) I do not say, women can do everything, one thing there is some isolate branch women cannot go on, but after that i see all that men can do, women can do it in the garden too.
Ok, Thank you.
After picking the cocoa, now what are we doing, can you explain me the process, so you picking cocoa and after?
# 6 ( Baptiste Julmiste, M, 47 years, 3 children, technician agronomist: After picking the cocoa, we assembly but before we select all that rats eats, all (sound of music) what birds dig we put them a side, when we are finish we take a piece of Wood and break the cocoa, since when we break the cocoa all that is too mature that shake which inside of the cover, we do not put which is shake in it, we put them apart and when we break the cocoa we put it in a clean sac and we press it a little until it gives some juice and after that we bring it at the cooperative times, the cooperative measure it for us.
# 2 (Jardis Rosena, F, 58 years, 4 children, the guard yard): Then, i am the master…
# 7 (Garcon Suzette, F, 67 years, 6 children, farmer: Then, me i am an old people, i do not have husband, when i am going to the garden i cut off some weed like that but in the mountain i cannot do nothing in it.
# 8 (Mervelus Ervenson, M, 58 ane, 5 children, farmer) : When we are looking at, when we are talking about the production of the cocoa, for us even you hear we have 50 children or ten, even the children finish with the secondary study, the terminal or university it is because of the cocoa, but that what is happen when we cannnot have more advantage in the cocoa, we would have more advantage, some times we spend too much for us which have plantation and sometimes weeds waste them at the bottom, the amount we did have to collect we do not have it because of possibility, so how could you help us in that situation
Is that a question, we ask you a question you ask a question too (laughing) we will back on that.
No, we are telling you the same thing, we cannot answer this question, we are not there to do nothing and we cannot do nothing for you in cocoa__thank you__ here the best we can do for you is to give the possibility to tell everything you think, all that you need, all that you would need and these data will use to make a report in good way which permit CRS having a good decision with the community in the cooperative. __ Thank you__.
# 1 (Dorestin Jude, M, 53 ane, 5 children, technician agronomist): The first thing i am telling you, you never tell us what CRS mean.
I tell that already you did shake your head when i did tell that, when i was talking about that, i did refer to ADRA that is developmental agency in the adventist church, CRS is «Catholic Relief service»
After that…
But who sells cocoa the most, women or men?
Public : Both of them
One by one
# 1 (Dorestin Jude, M, 53 years, 5 children, technician agronomist) : Both of them !
# 2 ( Jardis Rosena, F, 58 ane, 4 children, Jeran) : Neither men nor women, because women have his personal effects to take care and men have his personal effects to take care too.
1 (Dorestin Jude, M, 53 years, 5 children, technician agronomist): You see right now, men do not let women sells cocoa anymore (laughing), what is the thing, for us which produce ferment cocoa prepare a cocoa, like you see this cocoa in the sun, i look up, i did go to Cormier last week all the sellers of cocoa was men, only if i have seen 2 women, what words i heard a man says, i heard a man talking, i said oh ! so gentleman since the morning i see you selling cocoa i do not even see a women, i do not even see a women yet, he says my dear when women sells cocoa what they gives you you might take it (laughing) what they gives you, what do you say, do you accept but now my friend when we are coming there, we bring, we picked it in the street, we come with it there, we press our thing, we see the money, now this is our responsability to give to the women (laughing) but they know how much is the money
How do you sell it ?
Grinded
So, how do you sell it, the way I explained the thing the blablabla, they make the sort out since the field, some of the people are well informed they prepare the product since the field, tht is mean he press it with a very clean sac, he press the cocoa, he remove the sour water, they remove te sweet juice__with what ?__ with a very clean sac__How do they call this operaation?__euhhh__is there a name for this operation ? Then, it is a training by the cooperative__No, I would like to know if remove water in the cocoa operation has a name__so we decrease water…__decrease, decreasing the water. Because we do not have training, where, for not wasting water, we wasting water, because there is somewhere they make sevinetal to prepare some kind of things but we do not have this training, but we go foward, we are looking for it.
When you finally press the cocoa, you remove the water, they come with it in a very clean bucket or in a vase, Then the responsible come only and mix the cocoa, he looks at, he supervise it, he looks at if this cocoa require to measure, to ferment. Once the person who knows or the specialist comes, he says this cocoa is good, it is to measure, measure it in a bottle bucket, you know how many pounds its make, a measure in a bottle bucket, a measure that is, a little bucket, a little bottle bucket that is a little bottle bucket of butter that measure 5 pounds, and then when it is the amount it makes, they pay him his money, he goes and then the technician is putting it in a box and when i take a look (motorcycle sound) i do not see nothing, nothing, that is a good thing, a good rule, we realize that everything is starting to be very well, it is as well as possible and it is not show off, it is one of the place that provide the best product, good fermented product is there at grande riviere du nord.
# 4 ( Marcelus Noel, M 60 ane, 2 children, farmer) : So, to prepare the cocoa also, to use the principles formula of preparation, if this person sniff tabacco, he cannot be a part of it, if this person is an alchoolic he cannot be a part of it, if this person is also like devil stuff, smelling bath that they using, he cannot also be a part of it, if this person has this type of perfum he do not have to be a part of the cocoa production, if this person has « florida » which is a type of perfum, he does not have to participate in the cocoa production, That is mean cocoa should be treated cleanly and be delevering cleanly.
What seems to be the problem?
And then, is because he could infect the cocoa, according when they analyse those things, for the foreigners those are not good quality, that is mean the product is affected, the cocoa is affeted.
It is to say when they examinate the cocoa, the foreigners will not accept the infected product, as haitian we eat everything. The foreigners, whatever they buy from you, in your country, to make you earn money, for your pleasure, he will not really interest of your product, I notice that in other country.
As women, you know that women is planting cocoa, what is the most difficult for you ? __When we are…__ The question is to women and men ?
# 4 (Marcelus Noel, M, 60 years, 2 children, farmer): For the farmers, what is the most difficult__not for all the farmers, but for the women__it is according to distance, ah ok !
Let the women answer__women goes__you can answer but, what is the most difficult while women are working, there is something that is the most difficult for them.
Then, what is the most difficult for the women, even there are some women which always try to cut off weeds, but cut off weeds is not women job, climb cocoa tree is not for women, you understand plus, transporting the cocoa, there is lots of cocoa, the charge is not for the women, women can pick up a small part of cocoa, not a big part, it is not for women. Women might have the possibility to pick up the cocoa in the zone where they go.
In those 3 things that you said, if you would classify which one would you say that is the most difficult for women__example__if you would choose one.
What about the world of cocoa__what would be the most difficult for women in the cocoa affairs?
Dear, clean the cocoa__climb the cocoa tree
# 6 (Baptiste Julmiste, M, 47 years, 3 children, technician agronomist: You said during women are planting cocoa, was not it ?__No, in the cocoa production what is the most difficult for women to do, say it exactly.
(people are talking)
# 2 (Jardis Rosena, F, 58 years, 4 childrem, the guard yard) : Really, not all the women could climb a cocoa tree__when the product is mature we have to climb the cocoa tree, for women to pick the cocoa__is the most difficult for women ? When the cocoa needs to be clean, I would like to ask if there are some material especially for women, when they need the cocoa, they will not need men to pick the cocoa (laughing), unless they have a long stick.
Now we receive a tools__I do not have__ to pick the cocoa. Once women know how to use the tools we have now to pick the cocoa, it is more easy for women to pick the cocoa with the tools when they have it. When you just apply the tools the cocoa just fall down. But when you use a long stick it blaabla.
What about men, what is more difficult for them while their are providing the cocoa. Tell exactly what is the more difficult?
Moment (silent)
# 6 ( Baptiste Julmiste, M, 47 Years, 3 chidren: __ Someone else, what is more difficult for men?__then, the more difficult for men is to cut off cocoa, clean the cocoa, (motorcycle sound).
__To clean it is not the moment to tell (people are talking
Does the cocoa grow up by itself or do they plant them?
We plant
# 5: (Leon, Syrilien, M, 62 years, 2 children, farmer) We plant more, __plant__ old plants are falling during the young is planting.
You can teach us the planting process ?
I am coming with it for you.
# 1 (Dorestin Jude, M, 53 years, 5 children, technician agronomist): Ok, back in the days I used too see how my father plant cocoa, its not the same, it is different about as technician how I plant cocoa, my father used to plant cocoa next the bananas tree, cocoa grow up, provide quickly and it’s true and good. But today we receive another training that show us how to plant cocoa. If now you have acre of earth, an acre or 2 acres of earth to plant cocoa on it. And then, you can plant 3 by 3 meters, that is mean 3 meters by 3 meters. At that time the cocoa, when it’s from next to the seeds, the cocoa last one week without being supervising.
And after the next week you plant it, you dig a hole one feet, squarre squarre, the deep is also one feet, and then you put, you cut the plastic at the bottom, but do not forget you removed it on the top and put it a side, it might be face to the sun, there are many types of sickness that are already disappear because of the sun, at the deep you put again the earth a side, now you will go to put the small tree in the hole, you cut the plastic of the small tree at the bottom, you make a…only you put the small tree lightly, when you put the small tree in the hole, you have to avoid making what we call « pouritu kolet », you take first the providing land that you did put a side, the one that was face the sun and you put it in the hole__the first or the second ?_
The first, and then if you want you can put a few fertilizer , lightly then you put the second, but which is planting the small tree, at exactly where the small tree was in the seed, in the plastic, it’s in that position you have to apply the land, specially do not forget, that is a lesson for you, because most of people plant cocoa very bad, and then you left a little space for the rain, or when there is a providing land from the mountain join to the small tree and now it’s not going to cause damage, otherwise, it’s a new fertilizer for the seed or the small tree, when water falls into the small plant, get into the land, it’s not going to be a ravine or an erosion and at this time all plants will waste, yours only will stay alive.
# 6 (Baptiste Julmiste, M, 47 years, 3 children, technician agronomist: To carry on the process, when you plant cocoa, the seed of cocoa at the bottom of banana and when it is nursery tree you make, that is mean now you have 2 differents things. First when you select the seed you think that you plant a good seed and this seed might be good. When you select the seed you take, you take out the head, the seeds in the head of the cover are not good, all the seeds at the bottom of the cover are not good than the seed in the middle you have to take.
Posting the process, when you are planting cocoa at the bottom of banana specially when you do nursery, it means that you do two differents thing. Firstly,when you select the seeds you plant a good seed,this,suppose to be good..and then,when you finish to select the seed,the head of it is not good Take a new, top, seeds of which are at the top pods are good seeds in the middle,you have to take them and make that you sure you plant a good seed .__ ya, ya__ that’s that
# 4 (Marcelus Noel, Male, 60 years, 2 children, farmers): Also when you are going to plant or preparation of seedlings, seeds of cocoa,a part of it you better wash this cocoa, you take out the sugar on it, to allow that cocoa after you finish to wash it, or you make a preparation you put it in ‘’ jemwa’’, either you cover it with some little type of stick, when you finish to cut the hood, you seek a Bag Burlap, or pay the alleged begun to decompose or you measure a little hot and normally ,you measure seeds of cocoa on it,it just because when you put it after 3 days, you will water then cocoas will grow,push stems I mean it called jemwa And you put cocoa in jemwa upward push stem to find ways to know which way you will measure it in put it on a plastic bag.A half inch so that you must not measure it overly deep if it is overly deep in the plastic bag then,those cocoa cannot probably grow up,it has a way to make it comfortable,so that those cocoa tree can grow up.
(People are talking lourder)
To add in what my neighboors just came to say, even when little sleep, prepare this arena, we seek dry stoo lof cow, we dump it, We pasey We get good hot, we mix with warm then we are going to measure ehhh a nursery, this we will take it out from the jemwa in put it in a plastic bag ,when that happen,we do not, then it became a natural products, home products, in which cocoa progresses more, developed more .
During and at the moment ti domi labor cocoa, how can you compare our day of work with old people work?
So!
# 5(Leon, Syrilien, Male, 62 years, 2 children, farmers): We make your pan with a strategy that old people used to measure and go to the bottom of a banana tree_ like this like that_then,it develops, he rose and grow up, We prepared the cocoa,when we break cocoa, like … just told we take out Neither the head,nor the rear,the middle seed,we take it we measure it and put it in a bucket of water, you wash it, you wash it and scrub it (noise of chair), We scrub it before we put in a jemwa We We We weighed it, we take out the water in it then measure it in put it in jemwa…number 4.. . When he started pushing up …
# 4 (Marcelus Noel, Male, 60 years, 2 children, farmers): So, For the cocoa even when you plant the small cocoa tree for example,__compare,compare_if little sleep compare old farmers,who planted cocoa tree, it grow up for itself because they planted without hot techniques, so they even have information, they could plant it,we,as men who have technical training, when we planted a cocoa, a cocoa while developing ever, the system asking for is developing a 4 branches, because when the small cocoa is starting to develop, it reaches an age, or need some type of small tools to allow that, you clean small sweeps branches,so that cocoa trees grow up, a 4 branches, your son
The way that those cocoa tree can breath well , To receive regular time, then cocoa must begin to provide fruit from the body, from the body of the cocoa, For the cocoa started to measure. That means if it receives the steps normally, cocoa treestart to give pods from under till it just reached the top. Dear,if only you don’t have opportunity,what called werewolf branch so that they can not start by riding on it, when he went deep to climb a top of the cocoa tree,it allows that coverage of the above, it provides shadow, this means that the cocoa skin does not get heat, they said « the sev » is unable to arise, said that this treatment, new technicians They even making that, cocoa Providing better products.
# 2 (Jardis Rosena, Female, 58 years, 4 children, custodian): (rushing car) And I would also say is a production from small tree in preparation, it needs a slave because is not a small tree that you are going to pray and abandon and then, you turn oyur back to it,that never pray better,not! You have to be constantly the slave of it y better, not! If ever you do not water it,if you do not water it,eh eh It will be bad, water is necessary,even when the small trees would supposedly good, or take it,plant the small tree again, if the sun hit it,you will not need water it so that the small tree,the small tree could grow up because if there is no water,it will not grow, it is something that requires slaves a lot.
# 6 (Baptiste Julmiste, Male, 47 years, 3 children, technicians agronomists): Yes,it is noticeably different from the past and presently,because old people if they have a make it hot that can take a hundred of cocoa tree,take and make two or 300 tree,men nowadays,even if we have a make it hot, We identified duration of a hundred cocoa tree it can take and nap planting techniques and what we want to plant is it ever take.
(A noise hits)
We all here is in.wiktionary.org of people who produce cocoa _ yes_ Do we love ourselves because we like kaka .. We proud of ourselves because little nap products cocoa?
Public: Yes
Why?
Why, it is because cocoa is all for us, all of the life___it is our wealth (noise hit and phone ringing)
# 2 (Jardis Rosena, Female, 58 years, 4 children, custodian): Because with the cocoa we can do many things with the cocoa when we look at cocoa, is not only gotten a sold cocoa seeds, We found cocoa and we make some transformation also,it allows us to drink good chocolate,and they said that chocolate is really good for the intellect, when children __ For the brain__ go to school it is good for the brain and when you make a transformation eh, you can make dous, you can do like cocoa and give them,they are EXTREMELY good.that is why our cocoa, a great, great, great, great production for us the peasants.
Well I ..
# 5 (Leon, Syrilien, Male, 62 years, 2 children, farmers): I would say after God, cocoa is life for us the farmers
Ok!
Hum hum (clean throat)
And children, what about children, HM what they do?
Our children? __ Yes, what they do, what they do in the plantation, do Children are important,tell us what children do?
# 9 (Rene St Juste, Male, 30 Years, 0 children, farmers): Alright! Children are vital in a garden because when adults are harvesting a cocoa, we know they help harvesting and sometimes we help to gather cocoa, sometimes adults while performing many new works for the cocoa tree We help adults being in this work they do in the garden.
# 3 (Saintis Alberta, Female, 51 years, 3 children, komesant): Children Love to sell cocoa,all of them have sun burn and said they will take a some little vase so that jackson can sell.
# 4 (Marcelus Noel, Male, 60 years, 2 children, farmers): What i what to chain is about women affairs, Picking cocoa , where neighbors made intervention on tools affairs ,tools that we have,they are not enough to enable all farmers harvesting cocoas because, when harvesting cocoas, they picked them very bad sometimes when they picked cocoa, tearing cocoa,pulled the cocoa,tearing them ehh that why when,they tear cocoa, cocoa itself could become problems, the problem is because the coco ais in the pods, where they take out the pods, the clamped when you tear it, where it should push the « sev » helps it unable to push « sev », It Came become a wound in a cocoa body, that means for us, if there is no or do not have enough tools in which to allow for planting or using a them,allow to the cocoa It would ehhh, I do not know how you ever make them Well ….
# 2 (Jardis Rosena, Female, 58 years, 4 children, custodian): Yes, and I can complete also to tell them when cocoa is flourishing,somethimes wnen cocoa is providing,when it flourish,in.wiktionary.org people climb cocoa tree, and All Clubs who won the branches of cocoa tree,then your feet make all of them fall down, it makes a product you lose and that is why if there is material so that could be more harvesting en.wiktionary.org by man does not climb cocoa, To lose Clubs production fell.
# 9 (Rene St Juste, Male, 30 Years, 0 children, farmers):What I observe in when you are making it _for the kids, do not forget that_cocoas,yes, when children are fairy Picking cocoa,sometimes , They picked Cacao like this,like that, they can tear cocoa..ehhh the pods, Inthe body of the tree _ _ yes, the New case, tearing the body of the cocoa tree which is not good for a cocoa tree because of the same body ..the same place WHERE YOU just harvesting cocoa, it is where he will give a new production,
# 6 (Baptiste Julmiste, Male, 47 years, 3 children, technicians agronomists): (noise moto happenig) For Posted process, which not only, a new production,it is also where cocoa are starting to be ill.
Because,if the body tears,it is rainingand it haswater on it, a little water in which the cocoa body is starting to be ill,you could be quite sure and ensure that the Cacao tree will be eliminate anyway.
In cocoa selling affairs,can you..tell me what it is,hum ?
What is the biggest problem that you have with the price in cocoa affairs ?
# 6 (Baptiste Julmiste, Male, 47 years, 3 children, technicians agronomists): Ehh, the biggest problem we have in the price affairs, such a product so, we should set the price__ see, but that are them__ who will give you the price, giving you a serious, big problems, big problems and upset us as we may have enjoyed, we are unable to benefit as planting (0:46:32) Cacao, is what gives us problems.
# 4 (Marcelus Noel, Male, 60 years, 2 children, farmers): For the price, as if I should tell you, we have the product, they buy it, they take it from us, given what they want because that prevent you, you are told to buy it, they give you time but you do not know the price Strictly cocoa sounds you listen to something sadly saw things cost when you sell a bunch of bananas you sell it happens you sold 200 gourdes, or sell it to 300 gourdes at your fairy price, but when you bring the pound Cocoa, the person comes and tells me give you 25 gourdes, I give you 10 goudes but you are unable to know if 100 gourdes, if t is 150 gourdes for the pounds Cacao cost.
# 1 (Dorestin Jude, Male, 53 years, 5 children, technicians agronomists): the problem is in us the farmers, the second thing, the goverment! When the government takes its job over but now is the organizations fighting for Cacao has value in other countries, is the only cocoa yes we have as reference_ as ressources_ we cooperate we fight we make good products but there are also going to have, in the sand, in the yard, as if sound your products have ASSOCIATED value, but the day we Haitian farmers we recognize us, we will give our product value when other countries need to buy from us as living buyers is flattered to flatter us and we are looking to price by us. Today is moving to lower our cost, is a day we can have to die, is our future to give the price for cocoa.
# 5 (Leon, Syrilien, Male, 62 years, 2 children, farmers): And please, according Cacao we’re talking about it, is not where we should be, everyone should have shoes on our feet, we would be admired woolen hat in ourselves (laughs) but as long as they do what they want and cocoa, has competed in Cacao, a part will take it but, if we could say that Cacao has gotten a bit thanks to cooperative, if Cacao became where it is, it would be lower, each week, they lower the price, it was 5, they make it 2 gourdes, they make it 3 gourdes,make it 1 and half gourdes, well thanks to cooperative gotten provide Cacao a reciprocal price and you can sell it a bit, but according Cacao is not how we should be.
Is …
# 2 (Jardis Rosena, Female, 58 years, 4 children, custodian): So,for the Cacao sale price, we never know the sale price Cacao even, because what they really want to give you,that is what they give you, but it seemed that cooperative , which we found prices that we found in cocoa and I see if, as I see that we have discussed a lot about cocoa, what cocoa does, I see that if we do not have good price of cocoa, it is a waste of time.
Do you love yourself as cocoa producers?
Public: Yes _ you already ask this question__Pharrel we ask this question already (truck noise happening)
Is Cacao is a product that is important for us?
Public: Yes, oh, lot,a lot__ this is ours
It is the most important for us in the area?
(Person talking)
# 1 (Dorestin Jude, Male, 53 years, 5 children, technicians agronomists): even if I speak this way I speak for everyone after we will answer .__ For a long time,cocoa was not there, we had orange, all were talking about orange ‘bonami”and since you heard of orange bonami this is a type of orange very sugared, and not only drinking the juice, even the skin you will eat, nowadays orange__ eliminate__ I do not say completely eliminate, almost eliminate but we have cocoa, as I have said I would start saying you that we started Cacao, with it,I even hope that one day the cocoa will become a national heritage, why? because everyone you see today in grand Riye du no, since you have your small land, it does not have a 3, 4, 5 Cocoa tree in it, this was not valuable, and since this includes you penned his pledge to you, you buy very expensive.
# 4 (Marcelus Noel, Male, 60 years, 2 children, farmers): Highest resources we have planted is coffee (people talk), coffee was the most admired resource for us in Haiti. Since we do not know what happened, coffee gotten disease falls on it lose coffee, but as God he is God, as he got every thing started, he got everything done, coffee finished, He gives us Cocoa, this mean for us if we had no cocoa in Haiti, the country would look like a desert, it would become a desert.As my friend saidKom orange is really one of that provide but now we started losing orange tree in the country because all oranges tree die if we lose Cocoa consider that we lose all our lives. Cocoa is the most important to us? __ Cacao is more important for us at this time.
You see, excuse me ..
# 10 (Eugene Arnold, Male, 79 years, 6 children, farmers): You see where we are talking here, I can be older than you, all of us here … Cocoa now can tell that is something that could be” buen ” (laughter) but as soon as I was born, Cacao has canceled, all men as they went on their acres of land, all cut Cocoa,it is orange, the banana siginn yam, the yam kwedek, was Laureates, coffee as well, Cacao all cut Cacao’s where they stay as they talk to talk well if not thanks to the cooperative, the guys you hear next purchase, but now has nothing thanks god thanks cooperatives were functioning, we are fun but do not despise anything that we will all benefit because now am we thank God we have Mercy ‘setenta y nueve’ ‘I do not know the century (laughs) I got,do not laugh,you make forget firm, I have 2reto, a nursing philosophy thanks to coffee, bananas, yams sigi, yams and blablabla … Cacao now for us is the first, but me, not the first because recent days, I bought a acre, 400 gourdes in NOVELA plan blablblslalala was a buying, lesivye gotten killed, leaving the death eliminate her …… 56 thousand dollars which was delivered to me? plantain, coffee, and orange that why it is selling for this price, he has money, he has containing all of the fruit and till now, it has my grapefruit, I have breadfruit and coconut trees I have, it has my Cocoa tree , and it has plantain tree etc., I bought it 400 gourdes the acres but last time I sell …, buy it for 56 thousand dollars, everything has is importance, you see woman is something unexplainable (people talk) never say that women are not good,it is us,men who are not good all we had that happened, do not despise it, what comes now,let’s make deal with it.
After these products we have listed here, do not you have other products that you in Grande rivye have?
Pineapple, after Cocoa it’s pineaple_banana also _
After Cacao that give you money, that means after it is pineapple?
Plantains, peanuts, beans
What other products that ..?
# 8 (Mervelus Ervenson, Male, 58 years, 5 children, farmers): plantain, orange …
# 1 you have another (Dorestin Jude, Male thing to say?
(Dorestin Jude, Male, 53 years, 5 children, technicians agronomists) Peanuts,we do not talk about peanuts that we name over here,what about the big beans we’re not talking __big beans, yeah__ peanuts, beans, corn__ when we are after another to make similar , ok__
And there is another thing that give us,wich is very important, which gives us a lot of money but not everyone can use it, yams Guinea, a yam that sell a lot, sell expensive ah __ yes__ expensive,this yam what has called yams in Guinea
# 2 (Jardis Rosena, Female, 58 years, 4 children, custodian): There is a product that we used to make,corn, but now we are unable to make corn, because back in the days when someone planted 2 cups of corn you will harvest a barrel__50__ corn,but now if you are planting two cup of corn even for chicken _ not even two cup_ (caller speaking) are unable to work.
# 8 (Mervelus Ervenson, Male, 58 years, 5 children, farmers): Now if I work a lot, but now I see blablabla gotten me almost helpless with him, you plante corn not done corn planting beans and sometimes rainy, you finish to plant beans, rain blew it, easily later by rain, but now the rain not fall, as if things are more and more everything is starting to be done, this one to me we have now, we have as the only hope the cocoa __cocoa__
Hum!
Now let’s talk about a cooperative is not
(Silence ‘)
How cooperative is an help for us,a planting production and harvest …
# 4 (Marcelus Noel, Male, 60 years, 2 children, farmers): cooperative itself, after god if it was not there,sometimes cocoa a hot air used to take it, when cooperative was not there it was 25 cents, 75 cent quickly they used to buy the pounds, the first when cocoa sell, Give Them a warm hot ristourn cocoa give it 5 gourdes, Peasants Call « anmwye » so happy hot hot, a hot earned good money, a 81. Now since 81 koopetativ will operate , cocoa SALE SALE 3 gourdes the pounds, it sold 3 gourdes a half, It Expands 5 gourdes, it sold 4 gourdes a half, it sold 7 gourdes, it sold 8 gourdes, cocoa Expands up 25 gourdes inside the cooperative, there is a WHERE leaders of cooperative have RESIDENTS buy cocoa 35 gourdes a fatty cooperative’s. that means if We did not have cooperative,we will not be arrogant to talk about a pounds of cocoa that means , __ pipe cutting We cut pipe courses.
We understand what you say, I want you to tell More, how it helps you ?
How it Help us It is because it search market for us they buy from our people, although forbidden is not in the price and then returns they have a forbidden percentage that we know, we are resigning with what they forbid us,we take it,because that are them who forbid us(laugh)We do not set the price .__ OK!
# 8 (Mervelus Ervenson, Male, 58 years, 5 children, farmers),we, even when the production is From human, when he came he said guy this is what i give to it, people almost come and people told you here is what I give to you,you forced to resign with what they give to you a, you guys,when they give you this hot money, and for all workers working in the floor, workers employed Everything inside, all this is the only condition they get out of it, then you give you that little money sometimes you gotten nearly responsible,the committee an almost do not know what happening, is the only problem we felt in that, we felt that,we felt that they got a little problem to that.
# 5 (Leon, Syrilien, Male, 62 years, 2 children, farmers) __ how the cooperative help you in the production, planting is …
Well, even us when we sell cocoa, we do NOT SOLD cocoa In cooperatives, We filed cocoa, when filing cocoa, give them on the little money the clear price,sell from them so that when cocoa will finish to be prepared,get dried, the cooperative sent SOLD to many places,when the new product will be sell, return them, when that happening,they are ristoun it by them , in this way they need our help as farmers
# 1 __ Pause, pause … you are saying something # 2__ yes!
# 2 (Jardis Rosena, Female, 58 years, 4 children, steward):I told them that the cooperative helps us with some training also,because for making,for making eh eh, you make us look at this small tree making,it is not this way en.wiktionary.org you will make someone does nursery, For now you do a nursery, you must have some training you can do a nursery and across many domains also,you must tell us that because we can not know lots of what we call domains( laugh) training on__management, __ still in training, anhh ok! I think it’s something a lot after training an__ approach that they make, they found some institutions currently help us and training that is management, because if there is no management cooperative can not work, ok!
# 6 (Baptiste Julmiste, Male, 47 years, 3 children, technicians agronomists: And then the cooperative, it helps us because they Place some organizers To make areas decentralization , wherever we are members of cooperatives, they reunited for a small group, to do training for members.
Many ways that the cooperative help us again?
# 9 (Rene StJuste, Male, 30 Years, 0 children, farmers): the cooperative help us to know how we can make more products, because we have systems of key grafting or To show what to do so that we can have more products, and product can provide more.
Is the cooperative, providing services a the Community a not only with members? __yes_ What services it provides to the Community ?
We can talk about …
# 9 (Rene StJuste, Male, 30 Years, 0 children, farmers): __ talk louder__ piping … find it out a bit, cooperative in that file, which set, for a community to get service . (Silence ‘)
Male What do you think that should be done but has not done yet?
(Voice participants are not identified) What we have in ki cho that must not be a reality, __ little sleep talk about cooperative__ from the cooperatives, in which ki cho can help young people in Neighborhoods, young people with factory that the President that ki cho Expands done for us in the area,that making a market __ Who has done it? __ A President, Mr. President a hot come with__ anh ok__ has gotten to do a market we had an income, either for cho gave to produce for the Haitian government to buy products for purchase nuts For Expands mills to make for them, people after all the little guys we have in the area, become hot, they finished enh How should I say this, they have learned how to do everything, and then everything Net, there is no good … this could help the area
# 6 (Baptiste Julmiste, Male, 47 years, 3 children, technicians agronomists : What cooperative la cho For facts, must be made a reality, there are some great producers,who work hard,who have a lot of cocoa even far away should not all members, who prodice, those producers are, cooperatives should have find mules, or quite a few horses.a few donkeys for cho relied producers to goe down with their produce expands In the cooperative.
(Silence) … anymore?
# 4 (Marcelus Noel, Male, 60 years, 2 children, farmers): the cooperative hitself, what it wanted to do that it unable to do it is ( people so loud) A fund to satisfy new farmers ‘all the point of view ‘… (noise chair, speakers)
Can I speak, give me a word
# 1 (Dorestin Jude, Male, 53 years, 5 children, technicians agronomists): To complete man, , one of big big big issue that we have, entice confused inside cooperative towards our members, the ris a farmer who has a problem either on death or on disease And those He hinges you cho piece, a parcel cho, sometimes it is only he has to live, he will oblige mortgaging it or he is going to sell his wealth to do what they have to do, man we do not have a fund, a fund that willing for that to help our farmers, and that make sometimes lost their advantage SALE cocoa a new, lost many advantages,those are problem that we have actually.
Who can enter the cooperative? __ What kind en.wiktionary.org of people? __ Who Can Enter the cooperative or the requirement for a person en.wiktionary.org Expands member?
# 1 (Dorestin Jude, Male, 53 years, 5 children, technicians agronomists): First condition, Be a productor, second condition your son MUST BE en.wiktionary.org people everyone in the neighborhood a son recognize you A PERSON WHO IS YOURS you ever convicted in any moving acts, which can move any files, and to recognize that your child is also citizens in the area, thus since you register you provided your social circle,succed to the cirle of study, or ‘ have dignity to be member’’ of the cooperative. I do not know if you got many thing en.wiktionary.org many people are completed.
# 2 (Jardis Rosena, Female, 58 years, 4 children, custodian): You must be a person en.wiktionary.org Tou know what it’s called collaboration __ok__ (many voices are talking)
# 4 (Marcelus Noel, Male, 60 years, 2 children, farmers): For A en.wiktionary.org Membership in the cooperative, first he must pay rights of registration then,he must do something social according to the principles if it is 50 if it is,it 40 provides it, for it,and even to be allowed to participate as man__ what is 50, 40 … 50 what? __ (Laughs), Hein! 40 dollars, 50 dollars is 250 gourdes__ 250 gourdes to pay for the registration? __ For the registration__you pay 50 pence as rights to participate after you pay 200 gourdes to do a note bank for you,to participate as a member of the cooperative.
And I can also tell …
# 2 (Jardis Rosena, Female, 58 years, 4 children, custodian): … Can I also say en.wiktionary.org For those members of the cooperative en.wiktionary.org that person must be in the area or can not take someone en.wiktionary.org in other places to become members__ as you say in the area, ti domi is talkin aboute …? __ Grande Riviere du nord__ Grande Rivye di No.
# 6 (Baptiste Julmiste, Male, 47 years, 3 children, technicians agronomists: Well, I tell them, all I would say, I see them passing over __ then?
Yes, according to the point my brother got ot, it is two different questions …. To me it speaks well, the only things there are questions being asked that you are answering (voice caller talking on the phone), 50 dollars, blablablablabla __speak louder brother__, not a $ 50 losses,this 50 dollars is in this case it for a door opening to you if you have problems, this has 50, has 50, has 50, has 50, 50 has since all are not wasted, but you don’t buy with them also can put you out of course, but take legal and give the money, but if you say that you are member and you do not have 5 cents in the warehouse (laughs) you put you put you put you put but me,do not put __clap hands__ if i got a problem they do not give me_ yeah_what I will tell__, the man can is unable to provide blablabla … (laughs) the money is our money (laughs) if you have a problem, Big purchases being done,will have complaint for ristoun, but if we had our own money we paid, which gave us open purchase, except FECCANO then we would be Laureates, we would be Laureates sure__we will be responsable__ ahhhhh, you understand.
But what kind of people that we do not want, as if someone would say ok say that he want to be part of it but you do not want this person as a member among us?
# 4 (Marcelus Noel, Male, 60 years, 2 children, farmers): So people that we do not want..an organisation is a socia ,it is respect for one another ,we do not need to have corruption,someone who is not a stealer and someone who does not used to be in trouble in the street, people who are doing bad scene you understand , and someone who respect his social status, those are people who can participate in the organization.
# 8 (Mervelus Ervenson, Male, 58 years, 5 children, farmers): To tell you … to say that you can be member,you have to be on time tomorrow if God wants like those men are president, some committee, tomorrow you could probably be committee members who can also be an cooperative president, but you have to be a clean person_when you say clean,that means he should take good bathe? __ (laugh), that must not waste people money,waste people money, you can not think that you will take members money and spend,purchase fancy car,buy nice house,it will not be this way. __ you have to be honest__ you have to be someone well know, that is why we not obliged to take others elsewhere for undercutting the cooperative from us__at all__.
We do not have anything anymore? __ Is there transparency in cooperative, when we talk about transparency do ehh all members are aware of everything?
# 2 (Jardis Rosena, Female, 58 years, 4 children, custodian): Yes, all members are aware of everything, if that happen meetings are held every third Sunday if that something is happening, I do not know in advance but because of meetings held every third Sunday, and people come to the meeting and share all the necessary point, all discussing before, if someone does not know what’s happening at the meetings do not come.
And it is, and this is why, the secretary makes a retrial litigation, when people come they read it in front of people who were not here. If had something you did not like in it you may … (chair noise and noise moto)
# 5 (Leon, Syrilien, Male, 62 years, 2 children, farmers): Euhhh that is the reason why we have some organizersand 13 ASL son of the cooperative, which grouper to other places where they already know what happened to him, Gone from you about something that happened here even if the third Sunday of the month they would not be there, but it has as a date every month to meet for assembly to tell what happened, we all already aware of what is happening inside the cooperative.
You can tell us what ASL is?
Public: Local Assembly
# 1 (Dorestin Jude, Male, 53 years, 5 children, technicians agronomists): there is something that I can see, for example, something that can happen, for example in the afternoon, the federation called me and said president you must choose 3 people to send to Port au Prince I will management committee assembled by me in discuss about the issue with them, now when I introduced us, we will have seen the assembly but you will choose people, now although you choose them, when there is an assembly meeting required we will be oblige to introduce the thing,at least they will be also aware of the choices that we have made, because what might happen, is why we put a committee, when you put a committee, there are small things that you do notneed to gather assembly and run our committee itself decided it, but that does not mean that after you decide but that does not mean when you have decided to take this affairs by themself, when they have meetings that they presented in front of the assembly to say here is the choice you made, and then, everyone will be aware
Does all the income of the cooperative, all the members are aware? hum
# 1 (Dorestin Jude, Male, 53 years, 5 children, technicians agronomists): Yes, because recently there is a member who has asked me to be presented in front the assembly the note bank of the cooperative, Honestly I was given … .For making people,me, I told that, I said the amount of money that we have,I do not say because they did not believe, but they were seen it with they own eyes, and it is true what I said, I pass by this ehh the note bank for everyone saw, to verify if what I said is true
And what about ristoun,what it is exactly?
Ristoun ..__ __ number1__ 2!
# 2 (Jardis Rosena, Female, 58 years, 4 children, custodian): Ristoun is the benefit that you do on the Cacao that you buy, when you purchase your expenses, you withdraw money that you splatter you subtract expenses that you make, and a benefit left, so it can be benefit it can also be lost and it will be this small and benefit now you calculate ehh the amount of pound of cocoa that you bought, but ehh how much you can give for each pound of cocoa that the producers sale .This is a responsible, What I need to know about ristoun, producers are not in all of those things you say, producers make cocoa, sold their Cacao and have a ristoun, for himself what the ristoun represente.because you are talking about expenditure costs, is sufficiently cooperative response, the cost,to buy The producers do not know those things, but for The producers, members of cooperatives, what is ristoun?
# 1 (Dorestin Jude, Male, 53 years, 5 children, technicians agronomists): A benefit! __ 1you are on pause__ (laughs)
# 6 (Baptiste Julmiste, Male, 47 years, 3 children, technicians agronomists): Ristoun represent a benefit for The producer, because it came with the product, it take it to the cooperative, the cooperative sells it for him, it gives the investment so, after another step that save for him, this means what the farmer found as ristoun is the benefits that the cooperative makes, so,it just divides it for all the farmers who have gotten deposited product in the cooperative, and sold it.
Have you got a clear explanation so that I know for example we take a sample, I sell 100 pounds of cocoa,you just buy it per pound,isn’t true __yes__ ok, a producer of cocoa sells 100 pounds, how much ristoun He will have?
How much ristoun He will have? So,if a producer sells 100 pounds Cacao, depending on the benefit that join the cooperative,from now the cooperative will be watching how much savings they have and the amount of farmer has gotten sold cocoa and designing an evaluation divided and to say ok I give this to each pound__cocoa__cocoa,that means if a farmer sold 1000 pounds of Cocoa if they give ristoun in gourdes then this farmer will receive 1000 gourdes, and so if a plant has sold 5 pounds also you know you have 5 gourdes this is an example.
I would say ristoun, so you sent Sale Cacao, you filed Cacao, they give you your investment,they sell it and returning a small benefit to you.
Ristoun is the amount of cocoa pounds …
# 4 (Marcelus Noel, Male, 60 years, 2 children, farmers): … the amount of cocoa pound that you ,that was filed, now’s gotten sell products, to calculate the costs to be done, now if it has benefits they return the benefits given by each farmer for the amount you sell, they give it to you by the amount of pounds you sell
And I can also say …
# 2 (Jardis Rosena, Female, 58 years, 4 children, custodian): Ristoun in itself is an incentive ehh, it means that when you give producers a ristoun if the amount of cocoa pounds that it sells__you the producer or leader, you talk as well as leading the producer? As you know if producer__ you the producers are unable to give, you just the producer__ yes! __, You are not working on ristoun decide for yourself how you talk to for you, you are The producers are unable to speak to leaders now when we asked him what the leader does to give the ristoun he will give you all subterfuge all calculations, but you as producers received a ristoun you understand it, what you receive that is what I need you to explain to me,what it means for you, how it came to you, how you understand it (laughs),you don’t understand__yes__
# 2 … (Jardis Rosena, Female, 58 years, 4 children, custodian) So,that is that, as if when he came over me I feel happy, I am encouraged to provide Cocoa,I’m still in the cooperative because if I give I did not get an incentive so it is to say that (laughs), I will not give again, I will not continue to give anymore
# 8 (Mervelus Ervenson, Male, 58 years, 5 children, farmers): Again, when the lady talking about when finish to give the Cacao, sometimes given the ristoun according to the benefit they give you, some of us used to buy some animals wich can help us with our kids, we bought a few things, some people rent their land for benefit … and this benefit that you hear, it helps us.
Does that happen that you sell and then in a year or in a season, they give you a ristoun and then when the ristoun comes you do not reach where we would wish, or you want more than what comes to you?
Public: Yes __ everyone would want to say more__it is what you are waiting
what do you do when that happen?
# 2 (Jardis Rosena, Female, 58 years, 4 children, custodian): We sell more products__ we sell more products
When that happen,everyone could have 2, 3,pounds of us, they all encouraged now to bring it__ but we do not sell cocoa in fact,we hand it__ WHO selling,this man sell, anhh cooperative selling?
Well, we as we hand it,there is a buyer who come to take the product we hand the product to buyer, buyer sells it,the buyer knows how many pounds he has sold when he finish to sell it return purchase receipt or the selling receipt for us just to know how much money the pound of cocoa sold. That said, although we gave the product … we can do anything with it, we are farmers, that means we have a benefitwe should be satisfy with what they give us back but if only we knew, if it was our selling products, which pushed up the price of our products, that we know we have sold our growing amount of benefits that we would know we earn for the product, but because we provide the product, the federation, the federation sells when it comes, it does not turn back ehh the selling receipt tells you the set price for each pound of cocoa selling in foreign countries, when they come they tell us ok,they are sold Cocoa then ok they remove all our costs but here is what we have as the benefits, that means if they tell you that you have one gourde as the benefits, as ristoun that would be back for you. you will oblige to accept it, you take it and be satisfy to what they bring back for you because that this what they bring for you, you understand but you would also love if they were given you a ristoun which is__more__ cost 20 gourdes__it would be better__if it cost 30 gourdes totally awesomer for us, then we would feel more advanced.
Male does this happen also that we ask them, or searching to find out the last of a hundred cocoa they sale? __ otherwise … __we do not use to do that? We always searching to know but does not happen__you will not find it easily__do you used to ask for that__we ask it but never happen__ We ask this? __ We used to ask en.wiktionary.org those house sold for us (laughs) __ And sometimes members of that may come also are always looking to know, the some members who attended the meeting as 3rd Sundays, is that when our meeting, we are still asking this question man always Ask We should know a duration of hundred cocoa they sell__how much they sell the pound abroad_. Yes. ok
So we have, you know in the project sector CRS cocoa has one who start although ti domi work for them,ti domi makes study for them,it begins,men,even for producer who leads yours,and does not begin yet because what you need they see you are waiting for,it does not happen to you then now,or told me 3 things that you would love accurate in this project so that a cooperative, the producers benefited can be satisfied, 3 Things even if there are 50give me 3 Things you think the most important work would occur __just give it__
# 1 (Dorestin Jude, Male, 53 years, 5 children, technicians agronomists): Fund of providing then,there is a fund of providing, 2.preparation of all the cocoa Fields,3 adequate training To encourage all
Who is going to talk again? __ Thing 3
Me what I said a pipeline, President already said that
In the 3 same thing,that is the same thing, the problem of fund of providing,because the more you have money you can feed more children, or have less money thing __3, 3 things__ Children will never have a belly full, they will saliva if we reach a time to stop saliva, we arrive at a time for getting a belly full.
3 Things just (a lot of talking in the public)
So what would you wish for your kids, what we would like as new?
What we would like our kids …
# 4 (Marcelus Noel, Male, 60 years, 2 children, farmers): we would like our kid, we would like our kids become minister, we would like them to become__agronomist__whatever__engineer and so one.
# 1 (Dorestin Jude, Male, 53 years, 5 children, technicians agronomists): What we would love our children become, I would like to see their life depends on the cocoa directly.
# 2 (Jardis Rosena, Female, 58 years, 4 children, custodian): I would like to see one of my children,as I am a producer tomorrow they can still think of being that too even if yo cho meet any of them,to know that it is the cocoa that supported them and still produce cocoa.
# 6 (Baptiste Julmiste, Male, 47 years, 3 children, technicians agronomists: (rushing) I also would like one of my kid in the future (car horns) to come to the field and work with the farmers in the cocoa trees.
# 8: (Mervelus Ervenson, Male, 58 years, 5 children, farmer) I myself would like that our kids,the geography map forces now,tomorrow if God wants so they could replace us as older people en.wiktionary. org In those cooperatives even though they …
# 4 (Marcelus Noel, Male, 60 years, 2 children, farmers): Consequently children are not have adventure on parents affairs are part of the cooperative because the farmers, oak trees of parents have many years of functioning,that they are new to us an advantage of progressing designed for teaching even gotten involved to Encourage that Sometimes we are new, we operating in cooperatives, we have find a lack of advantages, that is why if we were telling them that cho benefit this would have attracted them to come
(Public is talking)
Men, what is the difference between a woman in the countryside and a woman of the village?
# 2 (Jardis Rosena, Female, 58 years, 4 children, custodian): Well,for real there is some difference..__their age__ if as if the tip and girl completely in the town,and then you have working hard hard for your children in the countryside, or put your children to school or make all of this all of that then if there is a little income your children can benefit it but the children in the countryside can not benefit it,it is en.wiktionary.org people In the village are the one to benefit it,that is the difference between the countryside en.wiktionary.org in people in the town.
# 10 (Eugene Arnold, Male, 79 years, 6 children, farmers): More often, I hear wherethey talk very good,Mrs for me,I see where we sat over here,I would like that is not of you who do not,I would like when a citizenis talking of en.wiktionary.org people in the countryside to talk clear about itwe over here,we all of peasant all is en.wiktionary.orgpeople of Grand river we are new and it is en.wiktionary.org we are peasant people__establish difference is not;the difference is__the difference has everyone who was en.wiktionary.org Grand river population,all of them died already,all of them are abroad,peasants are silly,they are resident in the village, I hate it when you en.wiktionary.org people are talking tos en.wiktionary.org people in the countryside,people in the village ..
# 4 (Marcelus Noel, Male, 60 years, 2 children, farmers): differences among people in the countryside and en.wiktionary.org en.wiktionary.org people in the town__ girls specially, __ specially girl , rural Women Lack know, they are not smart, women in the town are more smart __hmm hmm__ can you give us a brief explanation on this smartness that you said__ said ahahahahaha (en.wiktionary.org people laugh) __ smartness means they have more brain, hoping develop new, for example woman in the countryside you can give 100 gourdes for Jackson in markets, because it is not accustomed to big money, Women city you are unable to give her 100 gourdes it has to be $ 100 for her. (Laughter) __heheheheyyy__
Give me a speech,give me a speech
# 1 (Dorestin Jude, Male, 53 years, 5 children, technicians agronomists): Long long time ago,the geography map Contrast rural girl with urban girl,in village back in the days when you need a good child or insights that this child is a good thing,nowadays, people nowadays,we do not have that__the difference__ difference is parents of the village, tried, I do not know if … keep hard their children, they educate them and give them good instruction they Listening, sometimes the rural child ,when she is in the village,there are some associations to do things ,many Things that help throw her into groups that it does not fall into . It is not the same as back in the days to now, now there is no difference between urban Women __nor rural__and rural Female , girls who lives in the village where does she from,she from rural place in come to live in the village,they have the same knowledge,they do philosophy together,they do rhetorical Together learning things and when one of the village blablabla you will not know the difference,both of them are getting by both of them have knowledge.
Ok, I think we will end completely (noise machines) only to ask if the time that we spend together over here cho has something you judge important in cocoa affairs despite all the question we ask, despite all the intervention each en.wiktionary.org person here judge that there is something that was important in which you did not raise to say, then it is the occasion before we end for you to enjoy saying all you remember that cho forget to say,then say it so that we can end.
# 1 (Dorestin Jude, Male, 53 years, 5 children, technicians agronomists):me personally what I wish, I wish CRS does not take … ehhh our information will never bothering , never We wish as a training … Come back thus to help us with what we have to have more energy and we as farmers,our children can go to several country.
# 5 (Leon, Syrilien, Male, 62 years, 2 children, farmers): Well I wish For CRS, as it come today it was not in vain, it comes up for a specific goal in a way to help Expands us over here Grand rivye di No,in the future we may become en.wiktionary.org human,our children can become en.wiktionary.org become leaders just progress to the material point of viewI hope that it will work to reach this goal,there is something in reward.
# 2 (Jardis Rosena, Female, 58 years, 4 children, custodian): Well, I would hope for CRS can still cooperate together with us and it is not only today that it may still come and talk with us so that we can always exchange opinions together for things to Advance.
# 6 (Baptiste Julmiste, Male, 47 years, 3 children, technicians agronomists: Well, I wish I ehhh that cocoa is one of our family member in Grand Rivye if the family has 6 members en.wiktionary.org cocoa tree is 7, meaning care that we can provide to human it is the same ti domi give to the cocoa tree, I wish to CRS Takethose Complaints in charge where it can make them reach ,make it happen and then what we did not say, so we can succeed so that our cocoa tree become an heritage for us in grande Riviere du Nord.
# 4 (Marcelus Noel, Male, 60 years, 2 children, farmers): me what I wish, CRS come to take information,to return with the information and response to the information that we give.
Thanks
Eben We thank all of us, we expect as we join with us today, we will find the same collaboration, a male partner for us to do the rest Step of the study Together.
Thanks
So,we are counting on you, we rely on cooperative responsible, We are counting on all members also
No matter __leaders themselves will help us, everyone has a point we’ll need is some members of the cooperative, the leaders said they will accompany the team in such areas, such a place, that place, then we rely on we
Thanks__ Thanks a lot
We do not pray thanks__
Let’s clap, plaplaplaplaplaplaplapla
Let’s stand for praying ….
Yes. ok
Translation Focus Group Millot(Ti Bo)
- Mme Antoinette Joseph: F; 52yrs; 7 kids; 5em AF; Market woman; 20yrs in coop
- Laguerre Daniel: M; 42yrs; 3 kids; Rheto; Farmer; 10yrs in coop
- Thelus Edrice: M; 27yrs; no kids; Rheto; Mason, farmer; 3yrs in coop
- Clairsina Colas: F; 78yrs; 7 kids; 2em AF; Farmer; 29yrs in coop
- Jean Enaud Samson: M; 43yrs; 5 kids; Segonde ; 6yrs in coop
- Joseph Jasmin; M; 70yrs; 7 kids; 2em AF; farmer; 29yrs in coop
- Jean Cherinxe Shomane: F; 48yrs; 2 kids; 7em AF; Farmers; 29yrs in coop
- Duval Yvrose:F; 42yrs; 7 kids; 7em AF; Market woman; 4yrs in coop
- Altagrace Laguerre: F; 43yrs; 10 kids; 9em AF; Market woman; 5yrs in coop
- Partisipant(S); male or female; participated without identifying the number associated with their names
_ Chairs are moving around_
How are you all doing?
Sevral Partisipants(M,F): Great.By the grace of God were fine. We are good.
We are very happy to sit down and talk with you a today in Ti Bo for a study that we are doing for CRS on cocoa. _Car is passing by._ Among all the cooperatives that are located here in the North; this cooperative had been selected for this study. Throughout this study we will be talking to sevral members of this cooperative but not all its members will be reached because we will not be able to talk to very single one of you. Your names had been selected randomly for this meeting. In this meeting today, we will be talking about cocoa. We have series of questions we will be asking, everyone can participate and give their own opinions. My name is Pharrel. We have with us:
Nahomie Jeannis : Nahomie
Renande Innocent : Innocent Renee Renande
Let’s get started. We have a method that we used for a participant to answer a question; the paper you have in your hand have a number on it, please raise that paper each time you want to answer a question. Everyone will have enough time to answer each question that will be asked. If someone is answering a question and you feel that they are giving the wrong answer don’t interrupt him let him talk. After he finishes you will have your chance to give your own opionion. Each one of us have our own way of understanding certain things. That is why there are no wrong answers to any question we will be asking.Ok?
Sevral partisipants (M,F): Ok. We agree. Yes. No problem. Ok
Partisipant (M): What is your position or fuction?
Us? We are a group of researchers who are doing a survey on the cocoa production. This survey is being done for CRS and we are working together with Fecano.
Partisipant (M) :Aaahh, research? Ok.
Ok. Can we start?
Several participant (M, F) : Yes, yes, yes.
Why is cocoa good?
#7.Jean Cherinxe Shomane: F; 48yrs; 2 kids; 7em AF; Farmers; 29yrs in coop: Why is cocoa good ?It’s good for hot chocolate and we sell it to make money and raise our kids.
#2 Laguerre Daniel: M; 42yrs; 3 kids; Rheto; Farmer; 10yrs in coop: Cocoa itself, hummmm,according to some studies from other countries cocoa is good. It’s readied food. It’s good for medicine. It’s good to be fermented and send to be sold on the international market to make more money.
Would someone like to add something else?
#4 Clairsina Colas: F; 78yrs; 7 kids; 2em AF; Farmer; 29yrs in coop: As for cocoa we call it something that chages people’s lives. When you produce cocoa and get some cash it gives you a happy heart.
#6.Joseph Jasmin; M; 70yrs; 7 kids; 2em AF; farmer; 29yrs in coop: Well, actually cocoa can be considered as, I can say it presents God_ laughing _. Because since I was little, I grew up in the production. I see it as advancement for eduction and also for my life. Cocoa has done many things for this country, cookies are made from it, hard candies are made from it, it made…._car is driving by can’t hear next thing made from cocoa_. It makes all kind of different things that can help the Haitian people in Haiti. That is why I consider cocoa as hummmm; I don’t have the word for it. I can say it represents God. Anyways cocoa represents a lot of things for us.
Patisipant (F) : The Almighty God!??
#6.Joseph Jasmin; M; 70yrs; 7 kids; 2em AF; farmer; 29yrs in coop: Well, I don’t know, maybe if there is hummmm. Correct if I am wrong!
Do you eat cocoa? If yes, how do you eat it?
#6.Joseph Jasmin; M; 70yrs; 7 kids; 2em AF; farmer; 29yrs in coop: If we eat it ? How do we eat it? We grind it, toast it and make chocolate. We make all kind of different things. When we want to know if it tasts good, we put some seeds and our month and shew them to see if it’s good quality. We see it as something special.
#4.Clairsina Colas: F; 78yrs; 7 kids; 2em AF; Farmer; 29yrs in coop: Tablet[68] are sometimes made from cocoa.
Number #4 , would you like to say more ?
#4.Clairsina Colas: F; 78yrs; 7 kids; 2em AF; Farmer; 29yrs in coop: Yes cocoa, we eat cocoa in cookies, in tablet. People from abroad…_Surveyer starts talking.
Do you make these preparations?
#4.Clairsina Colas: F; 78yrs; 7 kids; 2em AF; Farmer; 29yrs in coop: Cocoa? No, we prepared it and other places come and get it.
But what do you make with cocoa to eat ?
#4.Clairsina Colas: F; 78yrs; 7 kids; 2em AF; Farmer; 29yrs in coop: We made hot chocolate from it. We prepare it for fermentation. It smells so good sometimes we eat some of the seeds.
Do you make any remedies with cocoa?
Several partisipants (F, M): Yes, with the grease.
_Several in the audiance are talking at the same time. Surveyer asked for each one to talk one after the other._
#9.Altagrace Laguerre: F; 43yrs; 10 kids; 9em AF; Market woman; 5yrs in coop: When we make chocolate we take out the grease and set it apart. Then we would fry it to make oil. Anytime you have your body aches you just took the oil and rub it over body_Car is passing by.. If you hard something hard like boils or an enjury you can rub cocoa oil or cocoa grease on them. Before rubbing it the oil needs to be hot. You have to fry the grease to get it into its liquid form, after rubbing it you will be healed.
#1 Mme Antoinette Joseph: F; 52yrs; 7 kids; 5em AF; Market woman; 20yrs in coop:Well, because you said not to comment on what other people say but we need to fix something here. When you are rubbing cocoa oil on muscles you cannot only rub it in one place, no. You have to rub it fast ,fast ,and hard. If you are rubbing slowly like this or like that the boil will grow on someplace else in the body. It’s something that needs to be done very fast so doesn’t give you more problem.
#5.Jean Enaud Samson: Gason; 43 ane; 5 Timoun; Segond ; 6 ane nan kop: Cocoa has so much importance , when you prepare the cocoa in the cooperative and they export it abroad ,the same place where the cocoa was sent would send us cocoa tablet. We all would sit down in the “Aztel” to eat those tablets. Those tablets are made with our cocoa and they send them to us in the cooperative; they are good.
Who send it for you?
Several partisipants (M,F): (Etikad) Etikap(Etikad)
#5.Jean Enaud Samson: M; 43yrs; 5 kids; Segonde ; 6yrs in coop: Etikap, because when we sit down together we share the tabblets.
Have you ever tried to transform it to any other things?
#5.Jean Enaud Samson: M; 43yrs; 5 kids; Segonde ; 6yrs in coop :They can do other things with it but we only know about tablets.
Have you ever try to other things with it besides chocolate?
#5.Jean Enaud Samson: M; 43yrs; 5 kids; Segonde ; 6yrs in coop :No,we have the ladies from Grande Riviere, the ladies from Grande Riviere make rhum and other things with it, the ladies from Grande Riviere.
Partisipant (M): Hurry up, Tibo’s ladies!
#9.Altagrace Laguerre: F; 43yrs; 10 kids; 9em AF; Market woman; 5yrs in coop: If there were people here they would do it.
What are the different varieties of cocoa you have in this area?
#5.Jean Enaud Samson: M; 43yrs; 5 kids; Segonde ; 6yrs in coop: Well, we have Trinitario,we have Forestero, and we have Criolo.But all three type are planted on the same farm, it’s like some kind of one preparation,we planted all three on farm. One farm, all three are mixed together.As a farmer you know the difference between the three; when go the farm you are able to identify Criolo; you are able identify Forestero right away. After the training we got from Fecano we are able to identify the three different varieties as soon as we see them.
Do you all believe there are only these three different varieties?
#3 Thelus Edrice: M; 27yrs; no kids; Rheto; Mason, farmer; 3yrs in coop: Yes , we only have these three different varieties ;if there are more we don’t know them.
Can any producer around here be able to identify all three in any farm if we ask him?
#2 Laguerre Daniel: M; 42yrs; 3 kids; Rheto; Farmer; 10yrs in coop: We don’t know, a technician would be able to. The Criolo system…_Surveyer: We are talking about producers not technician.
What type of varieties do the farmers know?
#3 Thelus Edrice: M; 27yrs; no kids; Rheto; Mason, farmer; 3yrs in coop: Well, 70% of the producers would be able to identify the three different varieties. Some of the producers are getting old and might not be able to identify them, they would just pick them and might not be able which one is Trinitario or Criolo. The younger farmers who took trainings would be able to identify them quickly.
What month do you harvest more cocoa ?
#2 Laguerre Daniel: M; 42yrs; 3 kids; Rheto; Farmer; 10yrs in coop: What season?
Participant (M): He said what month.
#2 Laguerre Daniel: M; 42yrs; 3 kids; Rheto; Farmer; 10yrs in coop:: We harvest, we have big harvest and small harvest.
Big harvest in what month, small harvest in what month?
#2 Laguerre Daniel: M; 42yrs; 3 kids; Rheto; Farmer; 10yrs in coop: The big season starts from September to December. The big season starts from march to June._Several people talking at the same time: Small season is from September to December._ A participant (M): Hummmm, April.
Participant (M): The big season starts in February, yes.
Several participants are discusing the months (M,F): April. Small season. Big season.
One person at time, if you disagree with someone let him finish and raise your number and we will let you talk but we need to let the current person talking finish first. Ok? Number 2 are you finish?
#2 Laguerre Daniel: M; 42yrs; 3 kids; Rheto; Farmer; 10yrs in coop: Yes
Would some else would like to add something else?
#6.Joseph Jasmin; M; 70yrs; 7 kids; 2em AF; farmer; 29yrs in coop: Well, actually cocoa is harvest two times in a year. The big season starts in Febuary, March, April, and May and may end in May. You understand? The small seaon starts in September, October, and November until December._Something is being zipped.
Yes, you can continue.
#6.Joseph Jasmin; M; 70yrs; 7 kids; 2em AF; farmer; 29yrs in coop:I’m finish
#5.Jean Enaud Samson: M; 43yrs; 5 kids; Segonde ; 6yrs in coop :The small season, I can say it starts from September to December. The big season starts in Febuary, March, April and June.
During cocoa season how would you explain your daily routine, how do you spend your days?
#9.Altagrace Laguerre: F; 43yrs; 10 kids; 9em AF; Market woman; 5yrs in coop: I can say it’s a day of harvest.It’s a harvest for us. It’s a day of benefit for us.
But how do you spend your days? How do you pick cocoa? How is the process done?
#3 Thelus Edrice: M; 27yrs; no kids; Rheto; Mason, farmer; 3yrs in coop: Actually we say ehehehe, we harvest cocoa. Ehehehe that day I can say we get our log ready, we have some knives that were giving to us, they are sickles. We go to the farm with our knives ready to harvest cocoa.After harvesting we set all the good pods aside; we don’t sell the ones that were stung to the cooperative. We don’t take them in the cooperative, we only eheheheh sort out the good pods eheheheh because the cooperative takes fermanted cocoa and break them. We put them in a clean container eheheheh very appropriate the way the cooperative asks it to be done and take it to the cooperative. It is a time of great joy when we take the cocoa to the cooperative for us To take the cocoa to the cooperative, do you see what I mean by that?
#8.Duval Yvrose:F; 42yrs; 7 kids; 7em AF; Market woman; 4yrs in coop:When we take the cocoa to the cooperative, they give us money. That‘s the money we us to pay for our kids’ school.
What is the most difficult thing for you in the cocoa production?
#1 Mme Antoinette Joseph: F; 52yrs; 7 kids; 5em AF; Market woman; 20yrs in coop: What appear as the most difficult thing for us is when the danre…,[69] they don’t give money to buy it and we have to sell to outsiders where we could have bring it to the cooporative. Even selling on credit would be good because you know that tomorrow you will get a ristoun[70]. When the get the ristoun that is the biggest gift you can get; cause when you sell you get money for what you sold plus they give you the ristoun that’s is a great thing. The other day they gave me 50 gourds[71]. Some people when they get the 50 gourdes they pass by machann[72] selling sugar and buy a gode[73] of sugar that is going to save their lives, that’s hope. When they bring the money late , I don’t feel good about it. That’s not good at all because it is when the cocoa is finish they bring the money to buy it.
Who brings the money?
Several participants(M,F): The leaders.
#2 Laguerre Daniel: M; 42yrs; 3 kids; Rheto; Farmer; 10yrs in coop: Ehehehe, there is AVAF as a partner who finances Fecano, ehehehe has a movement and buys cocoa.Fecano distributed the money to the cooperatives but sometimes they send the money late. By the time the money comes the danre is already finish and some cooperatives didn’t even collected enough cocoa.
#3 Thelus Edrice: M; 27yrs; no kids; Rheto; Mason, farmer; 3yrs in coop: Ehehehe, you said what is the most difficult thing during the time of harvest cocoa? Ehehehe, when you look at some of the members in the cooperative, they are coming from very far away. They had to walk 7 or 8 kilometers to bring cocoa to the cooperative. We definitely see traveling is hard for them and it is their willingness that cause them to bring cocoa all the way to here.
#5.Jean Enaud Samson: M; 43yrs; 5 kids; Segonde ; 6yrs in coop: The question Ulis asked I was going to ask the same question. What is most difficult for us in the cocoa production? It’s after picking the cocoa you have to carry it all the way to the cooperative.The distance is very far. If there was post that was near to where these people live where they can sell the cocoa , a motorcycle could come and take the cocoa from the post to the cooperative. People would feel much better if that could happen. This is the most difficult thing for the members of the cooperative. This is it.
#4.Clairsina Colas: F; 78yrs; 7 kids; 2em AF; Farmer; 29yrs in coop: Cocoa, is it the same question as Eno. When someone goes to the farm to harvest cocoa, they spend a whole day picking cocoa then he needs to sort the out, break them and take them to the cooperative. When he gets to the cooperative the warden already close it, he suffers yet another time to carry the load of cocoa back home.
#2 Laguerre Daniel: M; 42yrs; 3 kids; Rheto; Farmer; 10yrs in coop: There is always a schedule written on a board, and we open at 8 :30 in the morning and we close at 5 . If you have the schedule written on the board and the person comes with cocoa after 5, the training I took says when you are in the fermantion process no matter who comes with cocoa you can’t help him. By the time you go to help him put the cocoa he brings into a barik[74] the ones you had bought and was in the process of fermanting will be spoiled. Something like that can cost you too lose a lot of money._Alot of noise of cars passing by.
Partisipant (F): The montains are not sweet, no.
#8.Duval Yvrose: Fi; 42 ane; 7 Timoun; 7em AF; Komesan; 4 ane nan kop :You have to analize the distance of carring the cocoa…._Noise of cars passing by can not hear everything that is being said.
Number 8 are you finish?
#3 Thelus Edrice: M; 27yrs; no kids; Rheto; Mason, farmer; 3yrs in coop: Yes, I actually agree with what the warden said a 100% but what right now we are talking about the difficulties the members are facing. It can happen that we have some inconvience, the distance is too far. By the time for him to walk to the cooperative it’s already 5 o’clock, yes.
This has nothing to do with how the cooperative fuction. This is a general survey. We are talking about difficulties you face as a producer. We take all informations from you and report them to CRS in a report. The difficulties we discussing has to do with being a cocoa producer. Ok?
#2.Laguerre Daniel: Gason; 42 ane; 3 Timoun; Reto; kiltivate; 10 ane nan kop: Yes.
What do men do in the cocoa production do that women can not do ?
#3 Thelus Edrice: M; 27yrs; no kids; Rheto; Mason, farmer; 3yrs in coop: I believe men do the grooming on the trees but women can also do it on the ground. As for climbing a cocoa tree, I believe there are difficulties_Silence_Hummmm, the man. There are some giant cocoa trees and I believe a man can pick cocoa from them easier then a woman. I believe we make things easier for the women in all the tasks. In term of breaking, we can do the breaking and have them carry it. We know women are the priority.
#8.Duval Yvrose:F; 42yrs; 7 kids; 7em AF; Market woman; 4yrs in coop: Hummmmmmm? Women pick cocoa, break it and carry it. I plant cocoa.
According to you, there is nothing a man can do in the cocoa production that a woman can not do?
#8.Duval Yvrose:F; 42yrs; 7 kids; 7em AF; Market woman; 4yrs in coop:Only the grooming of trees that are too tall.
OK.
#1 Mme Antoinette Joseph: F; 52yrs; 7 kids; 5em AF; Market woman; 20yrs in coop: As for climbing trees , I can’t climb trees but there is nothing else I can’t do in the production.
Well there is something you can’t do if you can’t climb tree.
#1 Mme Antoinette Joseph: F; 52yrs; 7 kids; 5em AF; Market woman; 20yrs in coop:Even here, even here I can’t climb. Cause each time I come here I always said climbing here will make someone sick one day because I don’t feel good climbing here._ Several in the audience are laughing _ This place needs something.
What ?
#6.Joseph Jasmin; M; 70yrs; 7 kids; 2em AF; farmer; 29yrs in coop: I am always doing some analyses between men an women. There are somethings a woman can’t take direct responsibilities for them.
Tell me what women do and men cannot do.
#6.Joseph Jasmin; M; 70yrs; 7 kids; 2em AF; farmer; 29yrs in coop: Direct, direct; well if there is a cocoa tree that is very tall can a woman climb it ? No she cannot.
No she can’t.Anything else?
#6.Joseph Jasmin; M; 70yrs; 7 kids; 2em AF; farmer; 29yrs in coop: But on the contrary if the cocoa tree is very low she needs to pick cocoa from it.
Just say what a woman cannot do.
#6.Joseph Jasmin; Gason; 70 ane; 7 Timoun; 2em AF; Kiltivate; 29 ane nan kop : No, she can‘t climb all trees. Well, I am done.
Is there anything in the production you think women can do but men cannot do?
#1 Mme Antoinette Joseph: F; 52yrs; 7 kids; 5em AF; Market woman; 20yrs in coop: Men do everything. You have no idea how men love the money they get from selling cocoa!?_Several in the audience laughing_ For them not to do everything?
#3 Thelus Edrice: M; 27yrs; no kids; Rheto; Mason, farmer; 3yrs in coop: Only carring cocoa is difficult
We are talking what women does but men can’t do.
#3 Thelus Edrice: M; 27yrs; no kids; Rheto; Mason, farmer; 3yrs in coop: My gosh!? We do everything! _ Laughing.
Partisipant (M) : Women can carry a kivet[75] but we can’t do that.
#7.Jean Cherinxe Shomane: F; 48yrs; 2 kids; 7em AF; Farmers; 29yrs in coop: In these days I can say I planted 35 cocoa trees. I dug all the holes remove them from their bags and planted them all.
How do you pick cocoa to sell ? What is the process?
#7.Jean Cherinxe Shomane: Fi; 48 ane; 2 Timoun; 7em AF; Kiltivate; 29 ane nan kop :What do you do when go pick cocoa to sell? What do you do, you go to the farm and when you arrive you start picking cocoa.The ones that are not good, the ones that got sting on them you set them apart. Then you take a clean container break them and put them coantainer to carry to the cooperative.
Anyone else ?
#9.Altagrace Laguerre: F; 43yrs; 10 kids; 9em AF; Market woman; 5yrs in coop: When it’s fermanted cocoa you don’t need to wash it. But if it’s not for fermanting but for selling you need to wash and set it out to dry.
Who sells cocoa more, woman or men?
#8.Duval Yvrose:F; 42yrs; 7 kids; 7em AF; Market woman; 4yrs in coop: Both . Both of them sell.
#7.Jean Cherinxe Shomane: F; 48yrs; 2 kids; 7em AF; Farmers; 29yrs in coop: It can happen eheheeh every women have their own farm , men have their own farm. The man might say today I need a hoe and I going to pick cocoa and sell it mysef to buy the hoe or a machete. Today he said that the woman is not envolve in selling. Sometimes he comes with it and give it to the woman to sell and the woman give him money to buy what he needs. That means everyone is envolve in selling cocoa.
Who sells the most?
#7.Jean Cherinxe Shomane: F; 48yrs; 2 kids; 7em AF; Farmers; 29yrs in coop: More selling would be women.
#7.Jean Cherinxe Shomane: F; 48yrs; 2 kids; 7em AF; Farmers; 29yrs in coop: More selling is women. Women sell more.
#6.Joseph Jasmin; M; 70yrs; 7 kids; 2em AF; farmer; 29yrs in coop: There are consequences if a man is married or is living with a woman no matter what he possesses I believe doesn’t belong to the man along or the woman along; because if you are married there are responsibilities. You have the cocoa farm, the farm is for your wife, the farm is the husband. That means both of them participate in the farm. There is no my own.
#7.Jean Cherinxe Shomane: F; 48yrs; 2 kids; 7em AF; Farmers; 29yrs in coop: You see, people who are old now, I have a cocoa farm that is very far away. It’s a man that is responsible for it. Each time he goes to harvest the cocoa I tell how to clean it because he didn’t grew up in the cooperative system. I am the one who is in the cooperative. I told him how to treat the cocoa, clean the trees. When he picks cocoa the ones that are not good and not to put them in the pile that will be coming to the cooperative for fermantion. I told him about everything he needs to know.Well, as for me I don’t go to the farm anymore I only see cocoa is being sold. Sometimes after selling he comes to me and tell me go see the warden to get the cocoa money. This morning I got up and I didn’t have anything it was the cocoa he sold to ehummmm, A participant (F)_Voltije[76]? The voltijes. I was standing on roadside and he said,” Come here”and he put $10HT[77] in my hand. He is my son. You see everyon has rights.
As women what do you find as the most difficult thing in the cocoa production?
#7.Jean Cherinxe Shomane: F; 48yrs; 2 kids; 7em AF; Farmers; 29yrs in coop: Planting appears as the most difficult.
#4.Clairsina Colas: F; 78yrs; 7 kids; 2em AF; Farmer; 29yrs in coop: Cocoa, what is most difficult for us when we plant the cocoa? Sometimes we have the nursery and it dried up in thatches. It does not rain, that is something that is very difficult in planting cocoa. As for me , I was lucky . When I planted cocoa my children were here. The water could be far away I never lose one tree! They went and brought water to water the plants. Well, I have a cocoa farm when I arrived at the farm_Several people are talking very low_. When I arrived to the farm there was a coca tree that was growing and it was plunged down and I said,”No! I am going to lose this cocoa tree.” I said.” What am I going to do?” Then God gave me the intelligence to take three sticks and a rope and put the tree straight . When I came back, the tree was standing tall and strong!
#1 Mme Antoinette Joseph: F; 52yrs; 7 kids; 5em AF; Market woman; 20yrs in coop: What I see as being difficult for women is during the dry season it is very hard for us to dig holes to plant cocoa. After that I don’t see anything being hard for women to do besides picking.
Do you plant cocoa or it grows by itself?
#9.Altagrace Laguerre: F; 43yrs; 10 kids; 9em AF; Market woman; 5yrs in coop: We plant.
#5.Jean Enaud Samson: M; 43yrs; 5 kids; Segonde ; 6yrs in coop: I see all th agronomist said that cocoa needs to be planted 3meters by 3meters, I found that the land here is diffirent. When we look at the land here, by principal cocoa should not be planted 3meters by 3meters. I don’t know if it’s being planted abroad 3 meters by 3 meters but when we plant it like that here, the cocoa is not even 1 year or 2 years old the trees are almost touching each other. The land is too rich you can’t plant cocoa 3meters by 3 meters maybe it could be planted 4meters by 4 meters. Now a day, you see all the cocoa are dying because not enough wind is passing under the trees. The trees are almost sticking together that is why I said if I have a piece of land now and plant cocoa on it 3 meters by 3 meters before a 1 year and half you see them almost sticking together.
How would explain you the planting the process from the saplings to the planting?
#5.Jean Enaud Samson: M; 43yrs; 5 kids; Segonde ; 6yrs in coop: Yes, before that ,before we take the cocoa trees from the saplings we go to the farm to do the bumps . We have a measurement tape to measure; if it’s 3 meters by 3 meters we measured that. When we finish with bumping the whole farm, we evaluate the amount of plants the land would need. Another day we get up go to the farm and dig all the holes we would need. Either the wife or the husband digs the holes. The wife carries the plants to the farm and the husband plants them. That is how it is done here.
#7.Jean Cherinxe Shomane: F; 48yrs; 2 kids; 7em AF; Farmers; 29yrs in coop: That is how is it. When the land is ready, you clean it. You take a day to do all bumps then you measure it after that you dig your holes.
Partisipant (F) : Depending on where the saplings are , you carry them to the farm. When you get to the farm the man digs the holes then you scatter the after scatting you put each sapling in a hole then you cover them. When they need mowing you mow them. That means this something that takes time to produce fruit; you can not evaluate the producing process. If it is small it needs to grow. It takes time. It needs to grow properly.
What is the biggest problem you have on cocoa prices as a producer? What do you consider as you biggest problem?
Partisipant (F) : Prices
#2.Laguerre Daniel: Gason; 42 ane; 3 Timoun; Reto; kiltivate; 10 ane nan kop: Ehehe , as for me, if all the cocoa producers were more focus on bringing cocoa to the cooperative, cocoa that is being sold for 30gourdes[78]could be selling for 100gourdes[79]. Throught my study, it is the producers that are costing the cocoa not to have a higher price. When I look at the compition with ….voltijes that are buying cocoa from the outside; Novela has a team of voltije that are buying cocoa. Cooperative members dried their cocoa and sell to them. We had a contract with them and they don’t honor that contract that is one thing. A problem that is causing the producers to not get a fix price on the cocoa.The producers are the one preventing us from getting a fix price. Novela signed a contract and they don’t honor the contract, that’s a headache. The cocoa needs to have a fix price. It is the producers’ fault that we are in this situation I believe.
#6.Joseph Jasmin; M; 70yrs; 7 kids; 2em AF; farmer; 29yrs in coop: That means we can’t control everything that happens in this situation . Not everyone has the same problem because there might be a producer who has cocoa, let’s say today is a school day and I don’t have the means to buy food to cook for the kids when they come home from school who went to school hungry in the first place. He has to give the cocoa for cheap to save the mother and the children who are
coming home from school. That is why we always have the compition between Novella and the cooperatives. Becaue Novella put the speculators to buy cocoa and they never lack enough money to but cocoa even if the harvest is finish. The cooperative is always late, they have problem to deposit the money for the opening. The opening is always late that is why we have a compition. It is not the producers fault the cooperative cannot gather all the producers; they have their own problem too. Thank you.
#1 Mme Antoinette Joseph: F; 52yrs; 7 kids; 5em AF; Market woman; 20yrs in coop:There is something I would like to say. In the past they used to give a ristoun now you might sell cocoa but you never get a ristoun; that caused people to be discourage.
Partisipant (F) : When the cooperative used to give the ristoun, eheheh , we would just prepared the cocoa,the ordinary cocoa, and they bought it. We prepared the cocoa , they bought and sold it . Just like a market business all the profit came back to us. There was no fund for education, provident fund or any amortization taken from the profit. The whole profit would come back for the cooperative members. We used to get a good amount of money from the ristoun. But, but, but now Fecano itself do it another way. That is why when you come here you see chairs, benches, many other things,and many electronics in the cooperative.They used some of that money to buy those things. Some members get a ristoun but they think they should have got more. You see last June the cooperative give a ristoun of 6 gourdes[80];some other cooperatives only give 2 gourdes[81]or 3 gourdes[82].
#8.Duval Yvrose:F; 42yrs; 7 kids; 7em AF; Market woman; 4yrs in coop: What problem causes that, when the money comes to the cooperative we buy_Alot of noise can be heard can’t hear what is been said_ .If there is a remaining balance they should tell us who they loan it to. The members would not have a problem with that. If there is a remaining balance and I borrow from it, the person who borrows always has a problem with the ristoun.
#5.Jean Enaud Samson: M; 43yrs; 5 kids; Segonde ; 6yrs in coop: To follow what the lady said _Surveyer said : You have to say your own thing._ #5 continues : I want to properly explain what she said . It’s a question of managing the fund. Money is giving to the cooperative by Fecano to buy cocoa. When the money is here, the coopearative does the transaction of buying cocoa. It was in my presence that Fecano gave $2000HT[83] to buy cocoa. The cooperative bought for $1800HT[84] there was a balance of $200HT left. The 200HT according to the rules should be giving back to Fecano. Now if they leave $200[85] HT in the cooperative, this member would say I borrow this amount, the warden would say I borrow this amount or the president would say I borrow this amount; that money is loss .Now that the money is loss when you are giving the money back to Fecano , that $200HT will be taking out from the ristoun. They will take the amount you didn’t return. Now the members don’t get a good ristoun like they should. There is no where it listed that money was taken out form the cooperative. If no money was taken out, now when we do all the preparation on cocoa to send it to the Fecano center we members get together and do all the preparations and don’t pay an outsider to do the work you will not lost much. Not too much will be loss. But when everything that needs to be done we hire someone else to do them, the money to pay them will be taking out from the fund we have. Now when you give ristoun there will be more problem. If we all get together and put all our hands in the dough and do everything with discipline we will not have a problem with the ristoun or with the pricing. As for the price of the cocoa, it is Fecano that looks for an international market for us. Fecano is helping with moving the country forward. It looks for the best market to sell the cocoa with good price. In that case we can say that Fecano is the expert in selling because it finds the best market to sell the cocoa. Now we have a buyer who asked for 200 ton of cocoa we have to put our heads together for us 7 cooperatives to give that 200 ton of cocoa.
How does the ristoun is calculated? How do they determine how much ristoun each person should get? Do you know much you should get?
#7.Jean Cherinxe Shomane: F; 48yrs; 2 kids; 7em AF; Farmers; 29yrs in coop: No, we don’t know. The reason we don’t know is because the manger does the selling. After he covers all the expenses the rest will be divided among the members. Now the cooperative calculate how many pounds of cocoa it sold and divided it among the members.
#4.Clairsina Colas: F; 78yrs; 7 kids; 2em AF; Farmer; 29yrs in coop: Well, ehehe I am going to say that when they have the working capital in their hand after all the expenses if $200HT is left they should return it to the office.All that $200HT should not be taking; not all of us have the same conscience . I can come to sell cocoa for $80HT[86] and the warden give me $100HT[87] because there is no change and to return $20HT[88]. When I get home I said’’Ahhhh, I already give that $20HT.” Two days later I still didn’t don’t bring it back and it was already marked down; from the working capital if each person owns $25 or $30 that’s a deficit. You can’t find $200 to take back .Don’t you see even 5 gouds is counted.
#2 Laguerre Daniel: M; 42yrs; 3 kids; Rheto; Farmer; 10yrs in coop: Sometimes, oftentimes they put all the blame on my back because when you have 50 gourdes[89] in your hand you have to give every single details on how you spend it. Well if 2 gourdes[90] is left and sometimes a producer have owns that 2 gourdes but he doesn’t return it_ Laughing.
#3 Thelus Edrice: M; 27yrs; no kids; Rheto; Mason, farmer; 3yrs in coop: Yes, we return to the price of cocoa again. Like you know we are living in a poor country some buyers would pay 30 gourdes to 35 gourdes per pound. When you see a farmer with 6 to 7 kids to send to school and to feed when the voltije buys from him he pays him in cash right away. He doesn’t need to know if you give 20 30 40 pounds of cocoa, he gives you your money right away. When you sell to the cooperative, you don’t know if you will get pay in 2 or 3 weeks , you don’t know that. Well, you have kids in school even if the price bothers me; true I would get $7HT[91] from the cooperative but I can’t let the children died when the voltije can pay me in cash right away. _ #6 : That is clear. I have to sell to the voltije. He has to sell to the voltije. It is a relief. Give me my money to save my children! I don’t know what they will do for me tomorrow. I don’t need to know. That is price and that the thing that bothers us the most.
#6.Joseph Jasmin; M; 70yrs; 7 kids; 2em AF; farmer; 29yrs in coop: Actually as for me _Laughning_I am a past president.Today I am not the president but I am still in the service of the cooperative. For me during my reign when I was managing the cooperative we didn’t have the fermenting process yet ; we were taking cocoa Tinye and cocoa Sanytes. Me and the warden with some other members we did use not take many employees. The president did not used to act like the president; the warden did not used act like the warden ; and it was not only three of people who were in charge of the cooperative. We took our responsibilities and we all put out hands in the dough to move the cooperative forward. The last ristoun we gave was 12 gourdes and 20 cent because we did not abused the cooperative. But since Fecano came with all its employees in La Plain du Nord and employees all over the place all I hear about is money being spend, then ristoun comes all the expenses will be taking from it. That is why the ristoun is small. Well, that is why as an ex-president of the cooperative , if there is something I want it to be in advantage of the members and cooperative. Now when you take a bunch of employees and send them here and this president comes and he does whatever he wants_Alot of noice can heard_ I am the president, I have to put my hand in the dough; I need to put my shorts on and find cocoa, put cocoa out to dry, turn the cocoa and every single today set it to dry. The work was moving forward. You come with the fermenting cocoa and it’s losing we are losing. This is the old president talking.
#5.Jean Enaud Samson: M; 43yrs; 5 kids; Segonde ; 6yrs in coop: To follow what the presidnt said , in Fecano there is a technical staff that is placed. They are here for them to help us. To find the best market for you to sell your cocoa.In Fecano, it is not your cocoa that pays the staff. In Fecano it’s NGO’s project, NGOs who pay the staff. There is noone , oneone from all the 7 cooperatives who gets pay from the money the cocoa makes, not even one. NGOs pay them. Your little cocoa cannot pay these people.Not even 1 gourdes is taking from your money to pay these people. I was the general secretary in Fecano I know all these things no one gets pay from your money. I can tell you this person gets pay by this NGO; that person gets pay by that NGO. There is no question that is your eheheheh your cocoa that pays these people. Your little cocoa cannot do anything for these people. It cannot pay these people to work for you and find the best market to sell the cocoa for you. When you finish with harvesting the cocoa , where are you going to sell it? You don’t have the way, how can I say that, good way ehehehe of preparing to find good container; to have influence abroad. Do you have any cooperative that have all those things? My man nothing to say, these people are here to help you. They are here to find the best market for you; there are not here to live from your cocoa.
#6.Joseph Jasmin; M; 70yrs; 7 kids; 2em AF; farmer; 29yrs in coop: How come since Fecona existed it has NGOs to pay it employees? Yesterday the ristoun came and it couldn’t cover all the members. If it’s not the cooperative,if it’s not the cocoa who are paying these employees how come the ristoun is not enough for everyone?
We are not doing a reseach to find what is in Fecano, were doing a research on cocoa. We are talking about the ristoun,you said it is not you who decided on the price or how much it should be sold, but do you find the ristoun to be just on what you sold to the cooperative?
#7.Jean Cherinxe Shomane: F; 48yrs; 2 kids; 7em AF; Farmers; 29yrs in coop: The reason why I said it matches, if i sold 10 pounds of cocoa and they paid me. When the ristoun comes it is $1HT[92]and they give me $10[93], a $1HT per pound that is correct. If it is 3 gourdes[94] they give me 3 gourdes.
On what term is it $1HT? Is it just? Do you believe you should only get $1HT on ristoun? That’s what I want to know.
#7.Jean Cherinxe Shomane: F; 48yrs; 2 kids; 7em AF; Farmers; 29yrs in coop: I already told you about that. After the calculation is done and all expenses are cover_ Surveyer did not let participant finish talking.
Is the difference, producers are not part of the expenses, they only sell cocoa. For example you sell 100 pounds of cocoa but you didn’t cost the cooperative money to sell your cocoa, right? You are the producer and you sell your cocoa but you expect to get a ristoun, I want to know if the amount you get from the ristoun if you things it’s just; should you have get less or more?
#9.Altagrace Laguerre: F; 43yrs; 10 kids; 9em AF; Market woman; 5yrs in coop: What I can say, if you give 50 pounds of cocoa and they already warned you that the pound is $1HT then your profit should 5 gourdes. Now if you give 50 pounds you know you will get $50HT. That is common sense, you know it’s $50HT [95]if the pound is $1HT.
#3 Thelus Edrice: M; 27yrs; no kids; Rheto; Mason, farmer; 3yrs in coop: I actually understand your question very well, but for example if know that Madame Intel[96] is going to Port au Prince and I give her a dozen of plantain to sell for me and I give her money for transportation when she comes with the money, I will take my money and the money I spent on getting the plantain to Port au Prince. Now let’s say she ate a pate[97] from that money she will not tell me that and I can’t justify that, I can’t justify that. Now if I send Fecano and it tells that it spent this amount on containers, this amount to pay someone to dry the cocoa, how much was taken out, this amount was spent on transportation and brings me receipt for everything and say here is your receipt , here is your receipt; if we give Fecano our cocoa that means we trust it. If it comes and gives us a ristoun, honestly it is just.
#8.Duval Yvrose: Fi; 42 ane; 7 Timoun; 7em AF; Komesan; 4 ane nan kop : Afer they take money for the expenses if the cooperative owes them they will take it from it before they bring it to you.
All the answers are ok, but we mixed all the answer together. I feel like I am taking to the cooperative not the producers. Our next survey will be with the cooperative but now let’s talk as producers. Does anyone know any producer who would ever say they spend an amount of money on picking cocoa? Do you spend money on picking cocoa?
We are producers, are we talking as producers?
Several partisipants(M,F): Yes. Of course
Ok.
#7.Jean Cherinxe Shomane: F; 48yrs; 2 kids; 7em AF; Farmers; 29yrs in coop: The way the question is asked should be simple but it has hummm, what do you did not want to be part of the answer becomes part of it. Why? I come to sell cocoa and when I got my money I left. That means they come to pick the cocoa here and take it to Plain du Nord if they said there is an expense you don’t have a car you have to accept that. One other reason you can’t say you are not satisfied with the ristoun is because before they give it to you they have a meeting, a general assembly where they show you for example if they sold the pound $8USD and how much $8USD is in gourdes. It is always the same thing, it is the expense that were taken out and that’s why you get 5 gourdes as ristoun. If it was easy after the $8USD is converted into gourdes you suppose to have a good ristoun. That means as for satisfying you will never be satisfied with one dollar; but that is what is giving to you , you don’t have a choice but to take it.
Several partisipants(M,F): You take it.
#2 Laguerre Daniel: M; 42yrs; 3 kids; Rheto; Farmer; 10yrs in coop:: And ,eheheh, because we are talking about the result from the ristoun,well ehumm before the campaign starts there is always a group that come to do a provision with ehumm the members. On how many pounds that can be harvest for the season, from that they remove the cost for someone to dry it and other expenses. That is when they can count the amount of ristoun. If they collect 10,000 pounds they already calculate how much the ristoun will be. That means counting all the expenses and fees from the beginning.
Where is the cocoa being sold to?
Partisipant (M) :They sell them in Europe and New Zealand.
Abroad ?
Partisipant (M) : Yes
You sell per pound?
Partisipant (F) : Per pound
Partisipant (F) : One person is talking, excuse me . One person is talking. The name that is called. Excuse me. The name they call on should be giving the explanation_Several people are talking at the same time.
How do you sell cocoa?
#7.Jean Cherinxe Shomane: F; 48yrs; 2 kids; 7em AF; Farmers; 29yrs in coop: How do we sel lit when sel lit here ?
I am asking about the measurement you use. Do you sell per pound or by a sack?
#7.Jean Cherinxe Shomane: F; 48yrs; 2 kids; 7em AF; Farmers; 29yrs in coop: It’s a small bowl.
A pound?
Partisipant (F) :Yes, per pound
#7.Jean Cherinxe Shomane: F; 48yrs; 2 kids; 7em AF; Farmers; 29yrs in coop: Yes, we sell per pound. After selling per pound during the dry season you know that things go down? You know that you give a pound_
Surveyer: We don’t know that, you are the producer, if you sell you don’t need to know if it decreases or not. Partisipant(#7): No, you know that you give a pound _Surveyer: As the producer they can through it away after I sell it as long as I get your money.
Ok, you sell per pound. How much is the pound worth abroad?
Partisipant (F):56 gourdes[98], 56 gourdes
Abroad. We are asking how it’s being sold abroad not in Haiti.
Partisipant (F): 1.20USD,$1.30USD that’s the price is for a ton of cocoa abroad.
Do you know or you not sure ?
Partisipant (F) : We can say we don’t know
You don’t know ?
Partisipant (F) Before he starts with the transaction he alway said there is a buyer who wants this amount of ton and at this price_ Several are talking at the same time
Would you like to add something else on the ristoun ?
#4.Clairsina Colas: F; 78yrs; 7 kids; 2em AF; Farmer; 29yrs in coop: I would say a little thing; they say that we Haitian people are people who are stupid; the cooperative came to change the lives of the Haitian people. I can say that is a business. We brought it here for us to know where to that business.
During the cocoa season, do you see a different on how you spend your days from how your parents had spend theirs?
#8.Duval Yvrose:F; 42yrs; 7 kids; 7em AF; Market woman; 4yrs in coop: What we can say there is no differences. When the parents went under the coffee they didn’t do anything; when we go under the cocoa we don’t do anything; when we pick the cocoa we don’t do anything _Surveyer: What do you mean by not doing anything?. #8: That means they did not cook food under the cocoa tree they don’t cook food in the bushes.
#2 Laguerre Daniel: M; 42yrs; 3 kids; Rheto; Farmer; 10yrs in coop: Well, the difference is in the past the amount the parents used to harvest now a day we harvest more.
#1.Mme Antoinette Joseph: Fi; 52 ane; 7 Timoun; 5em AF; Komesan; 20 ane nan kop : Harvesting more, the less in the past was better for them. Even if we harvest more than them, they used to buy land and they used to buy cows with what they made. Now you cannot even buy a sandal.
#5.Jean Enaud Samson: M; 43yrs; 5 kids; Segonde ; 6yrs in coop: Well, I think now you too if you have, if you , if you have alot of cocoa you can harvest enough to also buy land because I saw, I saw, I saw when the president was president a member from the cooperative bought a piece of land from the ristoun money. Right President? #6: Of course. #5 continues: From the ristoun money he brought a piece of land because he had a lot of cocoa. When they give him the ristoun he bought a piece of land.
#8.Duval Yvrose:F; 42yrs; 7 kids; 7em AF; Market woman; 4yrs in coop: Land was not that expensive!
Do you like working as producers? You feel comfortable? Do you feel proud of yourself?
#1.Mme Antoinette Joseph: Fi; 52 ane; 7 Timoun; 5em AF; Komesan; 20 ane nan kop : The reason we feel proud is because if you have the danre you would not die from hunger. If they see you have the danre they will sell you on credit. If you want to feed 50 people they will sell you food for them all. Now people will sell things to you because you have cocoa, that is a kind of respect.You can go to the principal office in the school and said “Sister wait there is someone I will sell cocoa to this week and will bring the money to you_ A lot of noise can be heard_Cocoa is our cow in Haiti_More noise can heard_It is our cow_Alot of noise_
#3 Thelus Edrice: M; 27yrs; no kids; Rheto; Mason, farmer; 3yrs in coop: Yes, I feel proud of myself for harvesting cocoa. One of the things that make me feel good is when I go to the Fecano office knowing our cocoa is the best quality. I feel this is a good thing for Haiti. It is also an honor for Fecano when they send cocoa abroad and they tell them that their cocoa is the best. That is not a small thing.
What is the role of the children in the cocoa production, what type of work do they do?
#2 Laguerre Daniel: M; 42yrs; 3 kids; Rheto; Farmer; 10yrs in coop: The children sometimes shoot the woodpeckers in cocoa trees. They kill the woodpeckers that are destroying the cocoa.
#9.Altagrace Laguerre: F; 43yrs; 10 kids; 9em AF; Market woman; 5yrs in coop: As for me , I see at the front door here during the harvest the children breaking the cocoa pods and drink the juice , it’s sweet.
Yes, do the children work in the production?
#3 Thelus Edrice: M; 27yrs; no kids; Rheto; Mason, farmer; 3yrs in coop: Yes, the children work. Someone can have 7 to 8 children when he is planting he brings them along while he is taking the plants out of the bags the children are planting them.
#1 Mme Antoinette Joseph: F; 52yrs; 7 kids; 5em AF; Market woman; 20yrs in coop: They make good money from the cocoa, they make good money.
When you say they make money does that mean the children sell the cocoa too?
#6.Joseph Jasmin; M; 70yrs; 7 kids; 2em AF; farmer; 29yrs in coop: Yes,_Silence_ In the past , cocoa didn’t have a price on it; it did not have an occupation. In this actual moment I see that cocoa has a great importance and value. Because I see my kids, I can say that it is cocoa that gave them an eduction and raised them. Sometimes when I have cocoa, I do nursery sometimes, they got up in the morning take water and watered the plants. Anywhere they saw some kind of weed in the nursery they removed them. Now when the cocoa is being planted they carried the trees to the holes and we took them and set them in the holes. Well, I see the importance and they see how valuable cocoa is. If they are hungry the came to me, “Father, we need cocoa today.” I told them, “Go take care of you, go to the farm and pick cocoa to sell’. All of this is a glory because we work and we send them to harvest for themselves. If they make $100HT[99], $80HT[100], or 5 gourdes is because I worked for that. Thank you.
Is the cocoa production very important to you, is it more important than any other production?
#6.Joseph Jasmin; M; 70yrs; 7 kids; 2em AF; farmer; 29yrs in coop: The cocoa production is very important to us. In Haiti now, cocoa is the most popular product. It is more important than everything else.
Partisipant (F) : It is popular now.
Partisipant (F): I see that it is so popular where there not enough trees they are planting more.
Besides cocoa, what other products do you plant?
Partisipant (F): We plant plantian, corn, beans, malanga[101] and green beans, all different type of danre like oranges, grapefruits, and breadfruit.
Let’s talk about the cooperative, what do you judge to be a good thing in the cooperative; how does the cooperative helps you in the production?
#1 Mme Antoinette Joseph: F; 52yrs; 7 kids; 5em AF; Market woman; 20yrs in coop: Sometimes they do nursery and give us to plant, we don’t pay for them. The cooperative give them all to us, it is an honor because you would have pay 10 to 15 gourdes for one sapling but you get it free my dear. The cooperative also opens many people eyes. They give us trainings, lessons and seminars. I would say that the cooperative helps a lot of people.
#3 Thelus Edrice: M; 27yrs; no kids; Rheto; Mason, farmer; 3yrs in coop: The cooperative has been helping us for a long time. I used to see the older planters plant cocoa anywhere but now because we are getting some really good trainings from time to time the members do bumps; they plant cocoa by measurement because of the cooperative. If we didn’t have the cooperative we would be like the old planters.
Partisipant (M): Hummmmm!?
#4.Clairsina Colas: F; 78yrs; 7 kids; 2em AF; Farmer; 29yrs in coop: As for the cocoa, I could say the cooperative is like a mother and a father for me. I remember a time when I had a husband and was having kids I was an adult but was treated like a child. The reason I was a child is because if my husband left me home and I went to a market woman and bought 5 gourdes of bread when he came home I had to tell him I owe Ms. Intel 5 gourdes . Since I became a member in the cooperative I felt like I am an adult like my husband.
What other service does the cooperative provides?
Partisipant (M): The service it gives is when the members prepare the cocoa Ficano buys it and sell it on the international market._ Cars are passing by.
#6.Joseph Jasmin; M; 70yrs; 7 kids; 2em AF; farmer; 29yrs in coop: As for myself I can say that the cooperative does a lot of services for me. Because of the meetings, seminaries, and the training we get from the cooperative people did not have a social life now do. That means we have a base to help us develop as people. Thank you.
#5.Jean Enaud Samson: M; 43yrs; 5 kids; Segonde ; 6yrs in coop: As for the question, because of the cooperative all the members have a badge. Let’s say today you go to Port Magot and you have your badge in front of you, with your badge in front when people from Port Magot know that you are a member in the cooperative. Because of your badge they can they can say “You are a member of SOKAD from this area, you are my brother.” Because they see you as member, they will take you to either the cooperative in Port Magot or the one in Oboy. The president of that cooperative will welcome you , feed you and take care of you. In the future they will come to your house. All that is because of the cooperative, the cooperative has done great things for us.
Is there anything you think the cooperative should have done but did not do it?
#1 Mme Antoinette Joseph: F; 52yrs; 7 kids; 5em AF; Market woman; 20yrs in coop: To find someone to teach somethings, every year they promise us 2 or 3 things but we never get them.
What do you mean by 2 or 3 things; what are they?
#1 Mme Antoinette Joseph: F; 52yrs; 7 kids; 5em AF; Market woman; 20yrs in coop: Like teaching us how to prepare the cocoa another way.To make some money on the transformation process. Once they told us they will show us how to make pomade for when the danre is finish we can still make money. Each time they offered us something they never give it to us. Also there was a loan that they were giving us but some of us didn’t return the money that we can’t complain about it.
A credit?
#1 Mme Antoinette Joseph: F; 52yrs; 7 kids; 5em AF; Market woman; 20yrs in coop: Yes to give us a loan. They did give us a loan but some of us did not return the money for that we can’t complain.
#3 Thelus Edrice: M; 27yrs; no kids; Rheto; Mason, farmer; 3yrs in coop: On what the member just said , let me put some light into it. If the cooperative could give the women a loan to do business that would benefit everyone. Because they would have the cocoa plus a small business(trade) they would not mind if the cooperative don’t pay them on time when they sell their cocoa. They would just bring the cocoa to the cooperative and the cooperative can pay whenever it wants with not pressure.
Can anyone be a member in the cooperative ?
#5.Jean Enaud Samson: M; 43yrs; 5 kids; Segonde ; 6yrs in coop: No.
What are the conditions of being a member?
#5.Jean Enaud Samson: M; 43yrs; 5 kids; Segonde ; 6yrs in coop: For someone to become a member, he needs to pay a social fee and a registration fee. He needs to pass 3 months in certain seminaries to learn about all the rules and regulations. He needs to follow all the rules of the cooperative. If he follows all those steps and adapt all the rules and regulation he can be a member. Afer some studies an agronomist who is in charge of quality will give him a test to see if he truly all the rules and regulations.
#4.Clairsina Colas: F; 78yrs; 7 kids; 2em AF; Farmer; 29yrs in coop:: If someone in the community is a thief , does violence on people and have a bad reputation he can’t become a member.
Are there many women in the cooperative?
Several partisipant (M,F): Yes. Many. Yes.
Why are there so many women in the cooperative?
#7.Jean Cherinxe Shomane: F; 48yrs; 2 kids; 7em AF; Farmers; 29yrs in coop: We used to have problem with the working capital in the past to buy cocoa now that problem is resolved. We don’t have that problem anymore.After buying cocoa we still have some money that is left, there are no problem.
#4.Clairsina Colas: F;78yrs; 7 kids; 2em AF; Farmer; 29yrs in coop: The reason men are not so interested in t he cooperative is because they don’t have time. We have meetings very often if one the animal breaks its leach during one of these meetings_the room is noisy cannot here all that is being said.
Is there a difference between man and woman in the cooperative?
#7.Jean Cherinxe Shomane: F; 48yrs; 2 kids; 7em AF; Farmers; 29yrs in coop: The difference I would say is that the women get loans and the men don’t. They only give loans to women. In the committee we see only men are in action until the harvest is finish. As a woman I know that the cocoa can get people to be involved. I don’t have a problem.
Do you think both men and women get the same privilage in the cooperative?
#7.Jean Cherinxe Shomane: F; 48yrs; 2 kids; 7em AF; Farmers; 29yrs in coop: The differences there could be again ehummmmm, if the women can get some special training._ Several woman are laughing
Partisipant (M) :You here that!?_Laughing
Partisipant (M) : Everyone is equal in the cooperative.
#7.Jean Cherinxe Shomane: F; 48yrs; 2 kids; 7em AF; Farmers; 29yrs in coop: The difference is only in the credit. A woman is leaving and she slames the door BOOM, Gito said”Ha, look at what that woman did to me” _Laughing in the audience_”Look at what she did to me, she is being disrespectful”. Fuel doesn’t stay near the fire_Other woman_ I know. She has good merchandise.
Is there a difference between woman from the towns and the ones from countrysides?
#1 Mme Antoinette Joseph: F; 52yrs; 7 kids; 5em AF; Market woman; 20yrs in coop: There are no differences. Women from towns in cities think they are better than women living in the countrysides. As women from the countryside we carry food our head to feed them.
#6.Joseph Jasmin; M; 70yrs; 7 kids; 2em AF; farmer; 29yrs in coop: Difference between men and women,no. Between women from the towns and women from the countryside, yes; would a one of those women carry a load of cocoa on their head to the cooperative? No , they will never do that. Women from the countryside already know the business they will carry it no matter what. There is a difference between women from towns and women from the countryside. Women from the countryside are looking for a way to survive. There is a difference.
Is there any transparent in the cooperative?
#1 Mme Antoinette Joseph: F; 52yrs; 7 kids; 5em AF; Market woman; 20yrs in coop: I don’t see that, all the members are equal.
By transparant I mean if a member lives far away does he still get the information regarding the cooperative ?
#3 Thelus Edrice: M; 27yrs; no kids; Rheto; Mason, farmer; 3yrs in coop: Yes there is transparant. Because we have ehumm ASM, if someone live in Tikos he doesn’t need to come all the way here for trainings. Ehummm I believe every Sunday the guys spend time in all the different places.The trainers, we have two, every Sunday at 2:00PM they go over there to give them trainings. There is transparent
#5.Jean Enaud Samson: M; 43yrs; 5 kids; Segonde ; 6yrs in coop: By telephone, you know about everything that is going on via a SMS. You know the date for each meetings, they even get a calandier.
#7.Jean Cherinxe Shomane: F; 48yrs; 2 kids; 7em AF; Farmers; 29yrs in coop: What I could say is that is not the board of the cooperative that is in charge of that. Whenever there is a meeting the lady would just call the president and say we have something going on.When the president say why I don’t about that before she said you don’t need to know about it.Only when they send something to do he has to make sure it’s done and spend the money the right way.
You are not aware what is going on ?
#7.Jean Cherinxe Shomane: F; 48yrs; 2 kids; 7em AF; Farmers; 29yrs in coop: The warden is usually near when this going on, the president is always fighting about that.You see for this meeting he called me and told me the meeting is at 10 AM, and to come on time not to come late.Now if he didn’t say that.
#1 Mme Antoinette Joseph: F; 52yrs; 7 kids; 5em AF; Market woman; 20yrs in coop: Because they are giving things to you, there is a proverb that says when they giving a gift to you you are obligated to receive it. But that gift you are getting is coming from you in the first place. Even if you go all the way to Plain du Nord and make a complaint they told you they were running out of time. Althought they came to do it for you, you were supposed to be there but they are one who did the traveling. They don’t welcome you.
Do you mean because of the meetings and the invitations that is why there is transparant?
#1 Mme Antoinette Joseph: F; 52yrs; 7 kids; 5em AF; Market woman; 20yrs in coop: Transparant means when we are working together. Like I said when we are working together there is not transparant. But when there is one person who has more power over you that is transparent, yes.
At the beginning we spoke about 3 objectives for this study, if CRS says today it will give you 3 things, what would they be?
#9.Altagrace Laguerre: F; 43yrs; 10 kids; 9em AF; Market woman; 5yrs in coop: We would like a loan.
#1 Mme Antoinette Joseph: F; 52yrs; 7 kids; 5em AF; Market woman; 20yrs in coop: I would like for them to make us feel welcome. They should not only come here and give us nice speeches and then leave.They always said that they are searching something for us to do after the harvest I want them to give it to us. For tomorrow we can leave it behind for our children.
Partisipant (F) :I want to know how much the price for a pound of cocoa.
You would like to know for how much the pound is being sold abroad?
Partisipant (F) :Abroad
#9.Altagrace Laguerre: F; 43yrs; 10 kids; 9em AF; Market woman; 5yrs in coop: Would like to still have money even after the harvest is over.
#6.Joseph Jasmin; M; 70yrs; 7 kids; 2em AF; farmer; 29yrs in coop: When those surveys are done about the producers and the cocoa production, we do not want to sit in silence. When the guys are done with the survey they just left. They don’t give us a result about us producer, we want to see the result. Can you send us the result for a survey that was done on that time, that date, and that time? We want them to send to the result to the hand of the cooperative, we want to know if the project will continue or not. .
You want to know what came out of the report?
#6.Joseph Jasmin; M; 70yrs; 7 kids; 2em AF; farmer; 29yrs in coop: would like, what I would like is by this report ehummm by the report on this survey together with Fecano to find a better condition , to improve the condition of the producers in the cooperative, in the cooperative._Voice of children playing.
What are the hope you have for you children?
Even if we don’t benefit from it our children should.
But what is it ?
#3 Thelus Edrice: M; 27yrs; no kids; Rheto; Mason, farmer; 3yrs in coop: Me , what I want for my children in the future as I am farmer in cocoa production , I want my child to be a great agronomist._A car bumping_So he can better support to continue cultivating cocoa because it is something good.
__ Cars are passing by covered voice of partisispant_
#6.Joseph Jasmin; M; 70yrs; 7 kids; 2em AF; farmer; 29yrs in coop: Maybe I have dreams for my child but maybe he has his own dreams of what he wants
What would you want him to be?
#6.Joseph Jasmin; M; 70yrs; 7 kids; 2em AF; farmer; 29yrs in coop: Something that is very important like a priest, a reverand mother, an agronomist, anengineer, an technician,and a builder all kind of major. He will choice one of them.
Do you have the same dream for both your daughters nad sons?
Partisipant (F) : Yes, the same thing. What my daughter likes is to be a doctor. Everyone cannot want the same thing, each one like a different branch so they can become pioneers.
#6.Joseph Jasmin; M; 70yrs; 7 kids; 2em AF; farmer; 29yrs in coop: In the past something was happening specially in Haiti . What was that? Women used to stay home but now the power is almost 100% between women and men.
#5.Jean Enaud Samson: M; 43yrs; 5 kids; Segonde ; 6yrs in coop: For my children what I want for them, I had an uncle who died, Francois Magloire a lawyer,he was the first lawywer in the North.In my position I should have rich_Laughing because he is our cousine. Now one of us can have our sons replace those guys.They are already in right direction from what they are study.
#3 Thelus Edrice: M; 27yrs; no kids; Rheto; Mason, farmer; 3yrs in coop: We here cultivate cocoa. First what I would like someone here in cooperative to have a child who becomes the minister of agriculture. Because we love cocoa, when that child becomes minister of agriculture it will be us who will be leaders. We know what we would do, we will give a more importance.
Partisipant (F) : We gave the rulers of the game before we started I don’t know time we will end. Before we started did we have rules to the game?
If you ask us to finish, we are done.
Partisipant (F) No, I didn’t ask for us to finish. I said what time. If there is a beginning there should be an ending._Laughing
there someone here who would like for their children to become cocoa producers?
Several Partisipant (F,M) :Yes, we all; we all; when we die they can continue.
Partisipant (M): Because in general the direction we want to take with cocoa is to take it far.If our children can leaders in the production thery would accomplish our misssion_Several in audience are talking at the same time.
We thank all of you for partciping in this meeting, if someone would like to add something else about the production he can say now.
#6.Joseph Jasmin; M; 70yrs; 7 kids; 2em AF; farmer; 29yrs in coop: We have 3 personnel here with us is it because of their position that they sitting here with us? Will this branch continue to work with these 3 personnel?
Which 3 personnel ?
#6.Joseph Jasmin; M; 70yrs; 7 kids; 2em AF; farmer; 29yrs in coop: The ones that are sitting on this table.
We are doing a research, when we finish with the survey we will give CRS the report our job is basicly over. If we continue to work for them that is an opportunity we will have.
#3 Thelus Edrice: M; 27yrs; no kids; Rheto; Mason, farmer; 3yrs in coop:Yes we like would for this organization to come not only to accompany Fecano or the cooperatives, we hope it comes in person.Because according to guys who came here to give us trainings they told us those guys are working over there,I don’t remember,in Oboy. No, not in Oboy.I don’t remember.Over there by the Grand Anse if I am not mistaken.
Yes, we are working in the Grande-Anse. We are doing the same work there. We have a group of surveyers who are doing a survey with the producers; as we talking some of them are in Chambellan, Les Irois, and Ans dHainault. When they are finish in the Grande- Anse they will be coming here also.
Partisipant (M) : We wish places like Les Irois and the places you just mentioned they come here. We don’t only wish they come only as partners but normal as coworker so they can assist us.
#8.Duval Yvrose:F; 42yrs; 7 kids; 7em AF; Market woman; 4yrs in coop: I would like when people say we need assistance, we need some kind of transportation to transport the cocoa to Fecano. I would even like you to help Fecano give us a motorcycle.
Help Fecano or help the cooperative?
#8.Duval Yvrose:F; 42yrs; 7 kids; 7em AF; Market woman; 4yrs in coop: To help the cooperative. We need transportion to transmit the cococ to Fecano.
If any kind of help will be giving to the cooperative should it be giving directly to the cooperative or to Fecano?
Several partisipant (F,M) : No
Partisipant(M): To Fecano, it should go to Fecano. Fecano will do the distrubition because there some coordinators who work for the good of the cooperative with Fecano.
Well, thank you very much. We thank all of you.
Notes
[1] What animals carry on their backs to carry loads
[2] A term used to refer the whole harvest or everything that ones had planted in a farm
[3] Refered to cocoa buyers who visted planters to buy directly from them also known as zombies.
[4] Type of measurement
[5] A seller
[6] A pallet made out of straw
[7] Famous Haitian snack made with sugar and nuts such as peanuts
[8] Liqour drink made with rum, milk, sugar, and coconut milk
[9] Also known as esqwad, group of farmers hired for farm work.
[10] Look up kove
[11] $4USD
[12] Type of measurement
[13] With no importance
[14] UN peacemaker in Haiti
[16] Tone was used to say they are having a hard time with the drying system.
[17] $1.22USD
[18] $1.33USD
[19] $.55USD
[20] Bonus
[21] Type of mango
[22] Many trees
[23] Thief, lier
[24] Gourde: Haitian currency
[25] Mamit: A large can
[26] Gui: Creeping vine that suffocates the cocoa tree
[27] Malanga: Type of vegetable
[28] Ristourn: A bonus offered at the end of the cocoa season to producers who participate in the cooperative
[29] Zombi: An independent cocoa distributor that buys the cocoa directly from the farmer to sell in the market.
[30] Tranpe kakawo: Cocoa soaked in alcohol
[31] Kakawo karaf: A variety of cocoa
[32] Criollo: A variety of cocoa
[33] Forastero: A variety of cocoa
[34] Trinitario: A variety of cocoa
[35] Kakawo Nasyonal: A variety of cocoa
[36] Gourde: Haitian currency
[37] Mamit: A large can
[38] Gui: Creeping vine that suffocates the cocoa tree
[39] Malanga: Type of vegetable
[40] Ristourn: A bonus offered at the end of the cocoa season to producers who participate in the cooperative
[41] Zombi: An independent cocoa distributor that buys the cocoa directly from the farmer to sell in the market.
[42] Tranpe kakawo: Cocoa soaked in alcohol
[43] Kakawo karaf: A variety of cocoa
[44] Criollo: A variety of cocoa
[45] Forastero: A variety of cocoa
[46] Trinitario: A variety of cocoa
[47] Kakawo Nasyonal: A variety of cocoa
[48] $22USD
[49] Bring and stick
[50] .55USD
[51] .44USD
[52] Another name for speculators
[53] Shifter,witch
[54] Group of farmers working together in a farm
[55] Plantation
[56] 44USD
[57] 66USD
[58] A type of root vegetable
[59] Big can for measuring
[60] 4USD
[61] 6USD
[62] Slowly slowly
[63] .1USD
[64] 22USD
[65] 33USD
[66] .6USD
[67] .8USD
[68] Type of snack made with boiled sugar and nuts(most popular is peanuts)
[69] Another name for a whole harvest, can be cocoa or any other production
[70] Bonus
[71] 1.11USD
[72] Market woman/ seller
[73] Type of measurement
[74] Big wooden container use as storage
[75] Big plastic container woman carry on the head to transport goods and other things
[76] Cocoa buyer
[77] 1.11USD
[78] .6USD
[79] 2.22USD
[80] .6USD
[81] .2USD
[82] .3USD
[83] 222USD
[84] 200USD
[85] 22USD
[86] 8.88USD
[87] 11.11USD
[88] 2.22USD
[89] 1.11USD
[90] .02USD
[91] .77USD
[92] .1USD
[93] 1.1USD
[94] .06USD
[95] 5.5USD
[96] Unknown
[97] Fried dough with meat inside
[98] 1.19USD
[99] 11.11USD
[100] 8.88USD
[101] Type of root vegatable
