Episode 1 - The Harvest | Food

Willie's Wonky Chocolate Factory Episode 1 - The harvest

Date Published:: 29/02/2008

Willie Harcourt-Cooze has a mission to grow and produce his own chocolate from bean to bar. It's harvest time and Willie takes his family to Venezuela to oversee their first major harvest. But is the crop good enough to get their chocolate business off the ground?

Willie's first harvest

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Willie's first harvest

Willie may have found his dream beans but getting them into production is a long way off. In 10 years, his farm has never yet produced enough crop to let him start his chocolate making business.

The beans are high quality but they are also prone to low harvests. And then there's pests. One year's crop was destroyed by an infestation of caterpillars. Another year, Willie had to bury his whole harvest when he discovered the cocao pods were full of butterfly larvae.