The hot and humid climate in Pingtung makes it ideal for growing cacao. It was during the period of Japanese occupation that visiting officials first tried to plant cacao seeds brought over from Indonesia. Processing techniques at the time, however, were sadly not sophisticated enough to ensure an agricultural breakthrough, and the practice gradually declined. This continued until just over a decade ago when local Neipu farmer, Qiu Mingsong, first succeeded in cultivating cacao on a larger scale after introducing personallyobtained foreign cacao seeds. Mr. Qiu was also the first to pioneer successful chocolate production in Taiwan, leading the way for other producers in the Neipu and Wanluan areas and sparking the industry’s recent rise.

Support from the local Pingtung County government has further assisted this growth, helping not only to ensure a healthy and fully developed bean-to-bar supply chain, but also to establish Pingtung as the home of Taiwanese chocolate. The latter has since snagged numerous awards in various international competitions, thereby firmly placing Pingtung cacao and Taiwan chocolate on the world map.