The tree the trade is built on

Theobroma cacao — literally food of the gods — was cultivated in Mesoamerica and drunk as a bitter beverage centuries before Europe tasted it. Nigeria's cocoa belt came much later, and Ogun State sits inside it.

The economics have not followed the reverence. Many cocoa farmers still earn less than two dollars a day. Raising farmer income and eradicating poverty in the supply chain is the reason Rasad trains, maps and pays at origin rather than only buying.

Yield work is practical: pruning, shade management, input use, post-harvest handling. Where training has been delivered, 60% of farmers report up to 20% more yield.

Alongside cocoa, Rasad sources cashew, soya beans and sesame from the same network of farmers and licensed buying agents.