BY: Mel Santos
An old saying where no man should work on a Sunday may perhaps be true – to most. Here at Plantacion de Sikwate, we can’t help but answer even the smallest kinds of questions.
The other day, as the time stamp reflects, we were asked how to become a member. It is our calling to help. To listen and to inspire those who come our way.
We treat each and every person’s queries with confidentiality. Thank you for entrusting to us with your hopes and aspirations.
Thank you to our page admins who do not fail to help.
Well, we are FILIPINOS. We help each other. Anytime, any day. The only Roman in us is that we love chocolates.
“Carob was very famous in ancient Rome. This is comparable to the cocoa and is also used for chocolate-like flavors. The Carob was introduced to the Romans by the ancient Greeks. In fact, the evolution of the Roman diet was highly influenced by the Greeks whose culinary skills were more advanced than the ancient Romans.” (source)
Should you want to become a member of PDS, CLICK THE LINK /
One of our PDS members called me some time ago regarding their harvested heirloom cacao pods in the mountain province. As members who are really keen on growing and propagating the Heirloom cacao, I told them not to forget the proper way of fermenting the beans. 
I bought some of their FDCBs to help; then evaluated the beans to send off to our fellow members. They will, in turn, give their renditions using the FILIPINO AROMATICO™ single origin cacao beans.
At PDS, we help our members and fellow farmers to perfect the craft within the cacao value chain. We may not be doctors or specialists in the industry but we surely know how the trees sleep, how their branches yawn, and how their leaves dance after the rain.
When a Cacao Producer’s CEO meets the Cacao Authority’s CEO, #CacaoTalks do not stop at R.O.I.s — it goes beyond.
In the Philippines, there are numerous versions of the smaller-sized Empanadas; we call it Empanaditas. It comes with different fillings such as mango, durian, beef, torta or pork with potatoes, corned beef or Reuben, chorizo, and even chocolate.
Don was thrilled to the hilt that he took photos as proof that his travel to our country was worth the miles.
For lunch, we brought our guest to 
I told our guest to try our shrimps, squid, and the famous Kare Kare; that even the late Anthony Bourdain said our food will soon be known all over the world. Don instantly fell in love with the Kare-Kare, bagoong (shrimp paste) and green mangoes.
The following day we woke up real early to catch the Fast Cat Ferry for Bacolod. During lunch, we took Don to the outskirts for him to taste the local food. Still, his new found affinity for Kare Kare continued together with shrimps and calamari.
The experience we had with our guest is one for the books indeed. Simple, close to home, yet inclusive. I am happy that Don appreciated the Pinoy Tour and the chance to come close & personal with our Philippine Heirloom Cacaos.
by Mel Santos
Traveling to Mindanao gives us good memories with dear friends. I was with Kennemer’s Peter Cruz. Over a mug of hot sikwate, we shared with him about the PDS Criollo Search (which is gaining a lot of attention since we launched it) and he was amazed at how white these beans were.