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K–12 teaching and learning · from the UNC School of Education

Turning the hand crank

About this photograph

Creator
Janel Monroe
Date created
June 2008
Location
Barlovento, Venezuela
License
This photograph copyright ©2009. Terms of use

See this photograph in context

  • The transformation of cacao into chocolate: Transforming cacao into chocolate is a labor-intensive process that involves many steps. This slideshow tells the story of that process, focusing on one cacao plantation in the Barlovento region of Venezuela. (Page 16)

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In the classroom

  • See our collection of articles on visual literacy for ideas on using photographs meaningfully in the classroom.
woman turning a metal hand crank to grind cacao seeds

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On a cacao plantation in Barlovento, Venezuela, a visitor turns a metal hand crank to grind cacao seeds into a paste. She braces herself against the table and leans into the crank, demonstrating the tremendous effort needed to grind the seeds.

The seeds come from the cacao tree (Thebroma Cacao), which is native to tropical Central and South America. Cacao seeds go through many steps on their way to becoming cocoa. These seeds have been picked, removed from their pods, fermented, dried, and roasted. Grinding the seeds is one of the final steps in the cocoa-making process.