PANAMA
Ngäbe-Buglé (Ngäbe) – Western Panama
Ancestral & Ritual Cacao
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Ngäbe communities have cultivated cacao in home gardens and agroforestry systems for centuries, integrating cacao landraces into traditional practices .
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Cacao plays a symbolic and ritual role: used in medicine, protection, and local ceremonies as part of their worldview .
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Rituals include the “ajuito,” a cacao ceremony where elders offer cacao to the ill, weaving food, stories, and spiritual care .
Sustainable Agroforestry
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Cultivation occurs under native forest shade, supporting biodiversity and sustainable land management .
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Cacao offers both nutritional and symbolic value, but also functions as a sustainable income source when connected to fairer supply chains.
🏝️ Guna (Kuna) – San Blas Islands & Coastal Panama
Daily Cacao Traditions
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The Guna consume cacao daily, often as pure ground bean drink, sometimes mixed with banana—up to 5 cups per day, a central staple .
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They prepare it by roasting, peeling, grating, then boiling; from the mass, cacao butter is skimmed and used for skincare or medicinal purposes .
Ceremonial & Health Practices
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Cacao is integral to ceremonies for births, puberty, deaths, and healing rituals led by “nele” (local healers), combining cacao with chants and purified smoke cleansing .
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Medical studies (e.g., Harvard researchers) suggest Guna populations have unusually low rates of cardiovascular disease, likely linked to their high flavanol consumption .
