The Dominican Republic is widely known as a popular tourist destination in the Caribbean. A place for people to get away from their normal routines and unwind on pristine beaches, enjoying beautiful views as they play golf, or even getting married with a Caribbean backdrop.
You can go from a wild night of partying to a quiet time away in an ecotourist cabin. In a recent article in the Banker, the DR was touted as the star of Latin America as far as growth is concerned.
The Dominican Republic also has some deep roots in agriculture, roots which are looking to spread abroad. Coming in 3rd place behind sugar and tobacco, cacao is the country's largest crop. The Dominican Republic is looking to yield a lot more of the sweet harvest in the coming decades. This past week, diplomat Federico Cuello showcased the DR's Cacao for the first time at London's Chocolate Show.
"The best cacao for the best bars in the most demanding market."
Patrons of the Chocolate show were able to taste different varieties of the Dominican crop. And judging by the photos, it looked like they really enjoyed it. Mr. Cuello said he will be at next year's Chocolate show in London with his growers and new bean varieties, especially as the Dominican Republic looks for new growth through very old roots.
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| Americans are learning to love chinola. WKM |
Other agricultural products to be on a lookout for from the Dominican Republic, are: coffee, and chinola juice. Chinola, also known as passion fruit, is a great new flavor for health drinks, increasingly more important in today's market.
Dominican coffee is so good that Dominicans consume more than they export. Although there have been some rough times for the D.R.'s coffee farms due to a spread of coffee rust a couple of years ago, it looks like it's starting to turn around, and you can remember I said it here first: Dominican coffee will become renowned and start to dominate. As my old grandfather likes to say when he refers to the coffee grown in the high mountain town campos of the DR: "It is the best Coffee in the world..."
By: El Conde
