- After the beans have cooled down, they get separated from their shells through breaking and deshelling.
- Their are two methods to do this.
- Grooved rollers crush the beans into tiny pieces, the result are crushed kernels which are known as nibs.
- A powerful stream of air, a few sieving and vibratory stages separate the lighter shells and the remaining impurities from the cocoa nibs.
- A powerful stream of air, a few sieving and vibratory stages separate the lighter shells and the remaining impurities from the cocoa nibs.
- If Impact crushing, the cocoa beans are shot at high speed against steel plates so that the shell breaks open.
- The advantage of this method is that they perfectly break open and their is a greater yield of nibs.