Bead Factory and Cocoa Farm

Bead Making Factory

We went to a bead making factory where we learned the process of how they make all the beads and the 2 types of processes to make transparent or solid glass beads. The picture to the left is the pile of glass bottles they collect that they than smash to make the beads. On the right is the fire pit they use to heat up the molds for about 5 minutes. Below in the center is the big picture of the entire operation for the solid beads. We also got to paint our own beads which was really interesting because we actually got to see what talent goes into the painting skills and the overall process.  

 This is the end product for the solid beads that the people at the factory made. The detail that went into each bead was so amazing to see. The blue bead is an example of a transparent bead that has a different process than the solid ones. The bead factory was so cool to see and I learned so much about what it takes to make intricate beads in Ghana and the amount of recycling is done there which is great to see because most people hear are not concerned about that process.

 Tetteh Cocoa Farm

After the bead factory we traveled to the cocoa farm up in the mountains. The actual farm was hidden in the back part of a town where miles and miles of cocoa trees, peppers and other plants fill the land. Here is the guy who was the founder of the farm and the one who brought the first cocoa tree to Ghana. Because he brought the tree to Ghana they were able to establish exportation of cocoa and most chocolate now has contents of Ghana cocoa in it which is pretty cool. 

 Here is an actual cocoa bean that is attached to the tree. What is interesting about cocoa is that the beans sprout all over the tree trunks which makes it a lot easier to harvest. So as we walked we saw beans as far down the trunk as inches below the ground.

They even taught us the way the cocoa nut is harvested and than transported out of the country to turn into chocolate. When you open the shell you see a membrane looking mass that is full of nuts. The beans are surrounded by a sweet tasting outer film and when we tried it we thought you eat the whole nut but turns out the inside of the nut is super bitter. Once you open the bean you take out the membrane and you are left with just the nuts. Than they cover the beans in plantain leaves until no air can reach the beans. They place it in the sun for a few days and than remove the nuts and place them in more leaves for a few more days and they are finally ready to have the outer hard shell removed from the nut and than sent off to the various chocolate factories.