Sweet comeback

Just a week after opening its doors, the Pure Chocolate factory in Ocho Rios, St Ann, was battered by Hurricane Melissa. A massive guango tree lodged in its roof, leaving production at a standstill and causing millions in losses.

But since last month, the business has started to bounce back, with staff, chocolate, and some of the island’s cocoa farmers all rising from the wreckage.

On top of that, the company was nominated days ago as one of the top three businesses of the year by the St Ann Chamber of Commerce.

Commenting on the recognition, co-founder Wouter Tjeertes said: “It was great, great acknowledgement for what we’ve been doing. Boot Gas Station won, and they did a great job.

“We were going up against JPS (the Jamaica Public Service Company) and Boot Gas Station. To be considered among those giants is already a huge honour. It just means that doing the right thing is being recognised, and that’s really fulfilling.”

However, for Tjeertes, a Holland-born pastry chef, the storm was a nightmare.

LOSS IN REVENUE

“The loss in productivity alone ran about $9 million to $10 million in revenue in the first month,” he said. “We had at least a month and a half – almost two months – where there was no business at all. Business just started picking up in March.”

The company, he said, had suffered significant losses over the four months since the hurricane, totalling close to $20 million. The factory had barely produced two batches of chocolate when Melissa struck, halting operations entirely.

He described the setback as deeply demoralising, noting, “It felt like the rug had been pulled from under us.”

Staff, however, he said, were sent home on paid leave, but rallied around the nearby branch at Island Village.

“Even though they were on time off, the team came to the shop and supported us, and we had lunch together. Everybody got a chance to charge their batteries and talk about their issues. It sort of created an atmosphere where everybody could talk about their grief and their experiences and support each other, so that really worked well,” he recalled.

While his staff was his first priority as an employer, it was terrifying to watch his business crumble. The first hurdle, he said, was removing the massive tree.

The businessman explained that all the heavy equipment needed to remove the century-old tree from the roof had been mobilised to other, harder-hit parishes, leaving him to wait for over a month to have the roof repaired and the resulting water issues corrected.

Luckily for the company, the owner of the Pineapple Mall Complex, which houses the factory, stepped in and covered the cost of the repairs.

While waiting to restore operations at the factory, Tjeertes and his partner turned their attention to local cocoa farmers, with whom they have partnered to provide Jamaica’s highly rated cocoa beans, whose crops were battered by Melissa.

“So we started a GoFundMe and secured two pallets of fertiliser, which we immediately distributed to farmers on nearly 100 acres,” he said, noting that the farmers were from St Thomas, Portland, and St Mary.

Tjeertes credited his co-founder and wife, Rennae, with orchestrating the relief efforts.

“Now, so many months later, finally, there are blossoms on the trees again. Things are starting to grow again. And we hope that by November, December, we get a good crop,” he said.

But Tjeertes remains cautious.

LOCAL CROP PREFERRED

“If the crop doesn’t meet expectations, we’ll need a plan B. Importing beans is an option, but we want to grow Jamaican chocolate, not rely on imports,” he said.

At the same time, he stressed the importance of his cocoa farmers, noting that they are paid well above market value in return for maintaining their crops at the highest quality standards.

“That’s how we ensure excellence in every bar,” Tjeertes said.

He explained that each farmer’s cocoa undergoes careful processing at the factory’s fermentaries in St Mary and St Catherine before being turned into chocolate.

Pure Chocolate Factory has cemented its name on the island as the producer of premium chocolate, producing 1,000 to 1,500 bars daily. Flavours range from coconut, coffee, cinnamon, and milk chocolate to bold choices like jerk and bacon, some of which have earned global recognition such as the Cocoa of Excellence Awards (Gold) and the International Chocolate Awards.

A brief tour of the factory reveals the intoxicating aroma of roasting cocoa beans filling the air. Machines grind the beans for 36 hours before the chocolate is carefully tempered, moulded, and wrapped.

In the packaging room, staff manually inspect every bar, ensuring it meets the highest international standards before carefully packing it into creatively designed packaging.

In the meantime, Tjeertes says the company is committed to expanding its exports to international markets.

“Very proud to say that we recently started exporting to Kenya, which is a notoriously difficult market to get into. We sent our first order to Kenya. We’re into Japan, the UK, a little bit in Canada, America, and we have eight countries in Europe that we also sell to. I want the whole world to know that Jamaica has the best chocolate in the world,” he proudly shared.

With the new factory, Tjeertes says the company is looking forward to expanding and increasing its staff and output.

Despite the setback caused by Hurricane Melissa, Tjeertes remains resolute.

“There’s no backup plan. Jamaica is home, and this is our life. We have to make this work, and we will,” he said.

tanesha.mundle@gleanerjm.com