How It Works

The
Science

Temperature as a proxy for microbial activity. A minute-by-minute record of the aerobic stage. Simple calculus that tells a farmer exactly when to turn the beans — no expertise required.

GOcacao device in a fermentation box
Device — Active Fermentation Monitoring
The Hardware

One device.
Everything you need.

GOcacao fits in your hand and costs $100. A food-grade stainless steel probe inserts directly into the fermentation box and logs temperature every single minute throughout the aerobic stage.

Every reading builds the temperature curve in real time. When the curve signals the right moment — the device alerts the farmer. No data science degree, no manual guesswork.

Probe material

Food-grade stainless steel

Log interval

Every 1 minute

Power

Hardwired power output

Connectivity

WiFi or standalone

Alert delivery

Real-time app + LED

Data export

Excel / CSV — full curve

The Logic

Peak temp.
Sustained drop. Turn.

Temperature rises as microorganisms consume the sugars in the cacao pulp. When it reaches its maximum and begins to fall — and holds below that peak for a set number of hours — the aerobic phase is over. That is the turn window.

GOcacao detects that transition and fires the alert. The farmer sets the drop threshold themselves — adjustable by bean variety, climate, and personal fermentation preference. The device does the watching.

peak temp → sustained drop → turn alert
Customisable threshold — farmer-set · per-batch · per-region

1
Continuous Logging

Temperature is recorded every minute throughout the aerobic stage. Each reading builds the curve — a minute-by-minute record of what is happening inside the fermentation box.

2
Peak Detection

GOcacao tracks the rolling maximum temperature. When the live reading falls below that peak and begins to hold, the device registers that the aerobic phase has reached its high point and started to decline.

3
Sustained Drop Confirmation

The device waits until temperature has remained below the peak for the farmer's chosen number of hours. Fully customisable — every farm, bean variety, and climate can have its own setting.

4
Turn Alert

Once the threshold is met, the device fires: app notification and onboard LED. The farmer turns the beans. No manual guesswork. No missed windows. The data does the watching.

The Signal

One sensor.
One minute intervals.
All the information needed.

GOcacao measures temperature — and temperature alone. But a temperature curve logged every minute tells you far more than a spot-check ever could. It shows you when microbes wake up, when they peak, and when it is time to act.

Temperature 20 – 60 °C · every 1 minute

The aerobic fermentation stage is driven by microbial heat. As yeast and bacteria metabolise sugars, temperature rises. GOcacao logs this curve minute by minute — the shape of that curve is the data.

Turn Threshold Farmer-set · customisable per batch

The farmer sets how many hours below peak temperature trigger the turn alert. Fully adjustable per bean variety, region, and personal fermentation style. No two farms need the same setting.

Fermentation Passport Full curve · exportable

Every batch is a complete data record — minute by minute from start to finish. Export to Excel, generate a fermentation passport, and give buyers, researchers, and certifiers full traceability of every ferment.

Real Batch Data

What the curve
actually looks like.

These are real temperature curves from GOcacao-monitored fermentation batches across Thai cooperatives. The rise, the peak, the turn signal — visible in every graph.

Fermentation temperature curve — batch 1
Batch curve — aerobic phase
Fermentation temperature curve — batch 2
Peak detection — turn signal
Fermentation temperature curve — batch 3
Completed fermentation — full curve
The App

All your data.
On your phone.

The GOcacao app displays the live temperature curve, the current rate of change, and alert status in real time. When the peak is detected, the alert fires instantly.

Every batch is stored — a permanent record of every minute of every ferment. Download to Excel, share with buyers, or build your fermentation passport library over time.

Available for

WiFi-connected version — live dashboard
Standalone version — fully live via your own internet connection

GOcacao app interface showing live fermentation data
The Farmer's Reality

The only tool
built for this.

No purpose-built cacao fermentation monitoring device exists on the market. Farmers have three options: carry on with traditional methods, invest in industrial fermentation equipment adapted from other sectors (economically unfeasible for smallholders), or use GOcacao — the first tool designed specifically for cacao.

Traditional Methods Industrial Equipment † GOcacao
Built for cacao Informal knowledge — no instrument No — adapted from other sectors Yes — purpose-built
Cost Labour only $3,000 – $8,000+ USD per unit ~$100 USD
Turning alert None — experience and guesswork None — manual data review Dynamic — farmer-set algorithm fires when the ferment is ready
Deployment Any location Fixed lab or site — not field-portable One device per box — fully decentralised
Scalability Scales with labour Very expensive to scale Unlimited — one device per box, no shared infrastructure
Setup required None Technician installation and calibration Plug in — no training needed
Data capture None Proprietary — data locked to vendor Full export — CSV / Excel, farmer owns every point

† No purpose-built cacao fermentation monitoring equipment exists commercially. Industrial fermentation tools shown here are adapted from other agricultural sectors and designed for large centralised operations — not smallholder cacao cooperatives. The vast majority of farmers worldwide ferment entirely by traditional methods.

Intellectual Property Protected

The GOcacao temperature-curve algorithm and device architecture are patent-protected. Available for licensing to manufacturers, NGOs, and research institutions.

Thai Utility Model Patent No. 2503004891
Chulalongkorn University Chulalongkorn
University
Acknowledgement

Supported by
Chulalongkorn University.

The Thai Cocoa Innovation and Research and Development Center for Sustainability (ISTC), launched at the School of Agricultural Resources, Chulalongkorn University, supports the development of Thai cocoa value chains — with a particular focus on Nan Province.

Professor Thansiphorn Na Nan of ISTC has provided expert guidance throughout the development of the GOcacao device. Her support has been instrumental in grounding the technology in rigorous agricultural science.

ISTC at Chulalongkorn →
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Independent Validation

Eight competitions.
Two research papers.

GOcacao has been judged by international juries across three continents and independently validated by the Thailand Craft Chocolate Festival.

Read the Research