Worth knowing that the cacao variety matters more than most folks realize. Criollo beans, which is what most single-origin craft bars use, represent less than 5% of global cacao production. The other 95% is Forastero, bred for disease resistance and yield, not flavor. That flavor gap is roughly analogous to heirloom tomatoes vs grocery store ones, except the price differential is 4-8x at the farm gate.
The bean-to-bar movement has shortened supply chains from 7-8 intermediaries down to 2-3. A Ghanaian cacao farmer on the commodity market gets about $1,800/ton. Direct trade single-origin pays $3,500-6,000/ton. Lightning removes the last friction: remittance fees that eat 8-12% on West African corridors drop to near zero.
Worth knowing that the cacao variety matters more than most folks realize. Criollo beans, which is what most single-origin craft bars use, represent less than 5% of global cacao production. The other 95% is Forastero, bred for disease resistance and yield, not flavor. That flavor gap is roughly analogous to heirloom tomatoes vs grocery store ones, except the price differential is 4-8x at the farm gate.
The bean-to-bar movement has shortened supply chains from 7-8 intermediaries down to 2-3. A Ghanaian cacao farmer on the commodity market gets about $1,800/ton. Direct trade single-origin pays $3,500-6,000/ton. Lightning removes the last friction: remittance fees that eat 8-12% on West African corridors drop to near zero.