Hand pollination, not pesticides or fertilizers, increases cocoa yields and farmer income

Abstract

Increasing demand for cocoa and climate-related yield declines have sparked a multi-stakeholder debate on cocoa production strategies. Agrochemical inputs and pollination enhancement through hand pollination are two strategies to increase yields. Here, we test both strategies with field experiments in Indonesia. We show that even partial hand pollination (13% of easily accessible flowers/tree), and not fertilizers or insecticides, increases yield/tree by 51%. The more laborious 100% hand pollination of the entire tree increases yield/tree by 161%, and farmer’s annual net income from 994 USD/ha up to 1,677 USD/ha, or 69% in the study area, after accounting for farm operational, hand pollination labor, and opportunity costs. Thus, intensifying cocoa pollination appears to be a potential solution for closing cocoa yield gaps and should be considered in the current industry-led discussion of designing farms for mitigation of climate change.