I think there's a better way. I think a reasonable venture capital firm could fund cacao cooperatives on Hawaii. I think that in five years they'd have American chocolate that they can sell varietals grown in a climate that is only going to get more appropriate for cacao as global warming gets worse. I think if macadamia nuts can make a few select Hawaiians rich where Hershey bailed hard, the farmers growing tomatoes and other subsistence bullshit could probably make a pretty good living switching over to an export crop. I would love to get an NGO involved in building out a varietal cacao culture in Hawaii. I think it would be the best thing for the economy since before statehood.
I’m still interested in this idea. Have a couple roadblocks to it though.