Volunteer at a beautiful organic cacao farm and learn about local traditions in Mangalore, India

Infos

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  Description

  Greetings from our lush 22-acre farm in Dakshina Kannada! We invite passionate individuals to join us in exploring the world of organic cacao cultivation and chocolate making.
  
  After a fulfilling corporate career in Bangalore, I followed my passion to reconnect with the land and create something truly sustainable. Today, we produce bean-to-bar chocolate while practicing regenerative farming and hosting volunteers who want to learn and contribute.
  
  We also share our farm with five friendly dogs (Munchi, Robin, Puli, and Kura), a cow (Babu), a bull (Raja), and a cat (Pilli and her kittens) 🐶🐂🐱.
  
  🌿 What’s Happening Right Now? Cocoa Season! 🌿
  It's cocoa season, which means most of the work will be focused on cacao harvesting, fermentation, drying, and processing. This is an exciting time to join us and learn firsthand how cacao transforms into high-quality chocolate!
  
  🛠️ What You’ll Do (Farm Activities)
  At our farm, you’ll experience the magic of sustainable agriculture and chocolate production. Your tasks may include:
  ✅ Fermenting, drying, and sorting beans to prepare them for chocolate making.
  ✅ Processing cacao into bean-to-bar chocolate and learning the craft.
  ✅ Helping with general farm work like growing vegetables and maintaining the land.
  
  
  🌊 Beyond the Farm – Adventure & Culture
  We make sure volunteers enjoy a well-rounded experience, including:
  🏞 Trekking adventures through the beautiful Western Ghats.
  🏄‍♂️ Weekend surfing at nearby beaches.
  🎭 Cultural experiences – Witness traditional folk dances and local festivals.
  🚗 Sightseeing trips – Explore the region’s scenic beauty and heritage.

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  Types d'aide et opportunités d'apprendre

  Bénévolat

  Projets artistiques

  Aide avec des éco-projets

  Enseignement

  Jardinage

  Bricolage et construction

  S’occuper des animaux

  Aide dans une ferme

  Cuisine/repas pour la famille

  Aide à la maison

  Entretien général
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  Centres d’intérêt

  

  Sports d'aventure
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  Objectifs de développement durable de l’ONU que cet hôte essaie d'atteindre

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  Qu'est-ce que c'est ?
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  Echange culturel et opportunités d'apprendre

  💡 What You’ll Gain
  🔹 Hands-on cacao farming & chocolate-making experience.
  🔹 Exposure to sustainable and regenerative agriculture.
  🔹 Skill development in fermentation, tree planting, and permaculture.
  🔹 A deep cultural experience with local traditions and people.

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  Projets impliquant des enfants

  Ce projet peut impliquer des enfants. Pour en savoir plus, consultez nos directives et conseils ici.

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  Aide

  💪 Help Needed: Join Our Farm Projects!
  We’re looking for enthusiastic volunteers who are passionate about cacao farming, sustainable agriculture, and hands-on projects.
  
  🔧 Special Skills Needed!
  If you have experience in welding, carpentry, website development, product design, or packaging, we’d love your help! We are constantly working on improving the farm’s infrastructure, branding, and digital presence. Your expertise in these areas will be greatly appreciated.
  
  🌱 Regular Farm Activities
  🔹 Cacao Harvesting & Processing
  
  The cacao plantation is about 15-20 minutes away by car, at a friend’s farm. There, you’ll help harvest the cacao pods, extract the beans, and transport them to our farm for fermentation and drying.
  
  🔹 Fermentation & Drying
  
  Fermentation takes 7-10 days depending on moisture levels. Volunteers will check if the beans are ready by cutting a few open to examine the color.
  
  Once fermented, beans need to be washed and moved to the drying room.
  
  Drying takes about 7 days (longer during the monsoon). Beans must be turned daily to ensure even drying.
  
  🔹 Bean-to-Bar Chocolate Making 🍫
  
  Once dried, beans are usually sent to a chocolatiers, but we always keep some for in-house chocolate making!
  
  You’ll get hands-on experience in roasting, winnowing, grinding, and tempering the beans into chocolate.
  
  We make 100%, 80%, and 55% chocolate, often using palm sugar as a sweetener.
  
  🔹 Planting New Cocoa Trees
  
  Right now, most of our cacao trees are on our friend's farm, but we’ve started planting our own cacao orchard.
  
  Since cacao trees take 5 years to mature and another 3 years to produce high-quality beans, we are investing in our future farm production.
  
  You’ll help with digging holes, planting trees, and caring for the young saplings. This is physical work, so be prepared to get your hands dirty!
  
  🔹 Growing Our Own Food
  
  Besides cacao, we also grow our own vegetables and fruits.
  
  Volunteers help with planting, watering, composting, and general garden maintenance.
  
  ⏳ Work Schedule & Expectations
  We work 5 days a week, with 3 shifts 5 hours in total. With 2 days off.
  Since fermentation is an ongoing process, some tasks may need to be done on Saturdays and Sundays. If weekend work is required, it will be compensated with holiday on a weekday.

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  Langues

  Langues parlées
  Anglais: Courant
  Hindi: Courant
  Kannada: Courant

  Cet hôte propose un échange linguistique
  beginner Spanish and German
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  Hébergement

  🏡 Accommodation & Food
  Volunteers stay in our shared dorm room, which is divided into separate sections for females and a co-living space for all. We provide a simple, safe, and welcoming environment where you can relax after a fulfilling day on the farm.
  
  🍽️ Meals & Kitchen Access
  We provide nutritious vegetarian meals and can accommodate dietary preferences upon request.
  
  There is a simple shared kitchen that all volunteers have access to if you’d like to cook your own meals or prepare snacks.
  
  We aim to create a community-driven space where volunteers can enjoy farm life while learning and sharing experiences with others.

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  Autres infos...

  Indulge a little in the local culture, depending on the time of the year you might be lucky to check out local folk dance and drama. We can organise local sightseeing during weekends and beach is close by.

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  Informations complémentaires

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    Accès Internet

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    Accès Internet limité

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    Nous avons des animaux

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    Nous sommes fumeurs

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    Familles bienvenues

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  Possibilité d’accueillir les digital nomads

  We welcome digital nomads, there is good high speed broadband at the farm.

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  Espace pour garer des vans

  Its a farm, there is enough space to park car, campervan or motor house.

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  Possibilité d'accueillir les animaux

  We are pet friendly farm, we have our own pets too. We have a bull, a couple of dogs and cats, all rescue's. So would be more than happy to have a few more at the farm.

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  Combien de volontaires pouvez-vous accueillir ?

  Plus de 2

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  Mes animaux

  Raja

  Babu

  Kura

  Puli

  Robin

  Munchi

  Pili (1 an)

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