At Chokao 2026, Conexión Chocolate founder Jenny Samaniego served on the expert tasting panel for Cacao de Excelencia Ecuador 2026. Her participation reflects Conexión’s ongoing work a round cacao quality, sensory evaluation, and the importance of understanding every stage of the process at origin.
The 2026 edition of Chokao once again brought together some of the leading voices across Ecuador’s cacao and chocolate value chain, creating a space to share knowledge, strengthen business relationships, and recognize the quality of Ecuadorian cacao.
As part of the event, Jenny Samaniego, founder of Conexión Chocolate, served on the expert tasting panel for Cacao de Excelencia Ecuador 2026, an initiative that evaluates cacao samples from different regions of the country and selects those with the greatest potential to represent Ecuador on the international stage.
Her participation as a taster reflects the work Conexión Chocolate has developed over the years around understanding Ecuadorian cacao, its sensory profiles, and the factors that determine its quality. For us, understanding cacao at origin is not simply one step in the production process—it is the foundation for creating chocolates that clearly express the identity of each region while also meeting the demands of professional applications.
Evaluating cacao through an initiative such as Cacao de Excelencia also highlights something essential to the industry: quality begins long before cacao reaches a factory. Genetics, farm management, harvesting, fermentation, and drying all have a direct impact on the final result and form part of a value chain that requires knowledge, precision, and collaboration.
Participating in platforms such as Chokao and Cacao de Excelencia allows us to continue contributing to that goal while staying closely connected to the ongoing evolution of Ecuadorian cacao.