Some of the cocoa growers out in a cocoa plantation located in the northern coastal area of the Esmeraldas Province, Ecuador.

FONMSOEAM is a small scale cacao farmers association in Ecuador. “FONMSOEAM” stands for “Federation of Black, Mestizos Organization of small scale cacao farmers from the South Western Esmeraldas, Atacames y Muisne”. The FONMSOEAM community-based Center for Sustainable Agriculture and Conservation of Natural Resources helps support an interdisciplinary partnership between small farmers, grass-roots conservation organizations, community-based financial institution, government officials, and the manufacturing and retail sectors of lucrative, high end chocolate products and chocolate byproducts.