A characterization of the phenolic profile of 25 cocoa genotypes established in a Mexican gene bank was carried out. From five different extraction methods commonly used for phenols, extraction with acidified methanol-water was chosen as the best to quantify the concentrations of theobromine and individual phenols in cocoa beans. High concentrations of individual and total phenols were found for genotypes native to Mexico (like RIM105, M031, and M033) or from Peru and Ecuador (INI10), but not the commercial mix (CAF), and were directly associated with their antioxidant activities. Despite the loss of some theobromine and phenols during fermentation, epicatechin remained in the fermented cotyledon in high concentrations. This study could help promote the commercialization of Mexican genotypes of cocoa and reports the possibility of upcycling fermented cocoa husks, which are rich in bioactive compounds and fiber, as novel functional extracts for use in food formulation or for nutraceutical purposes.

At a time of increasing demand, the extremely high cost of manual labor required to harvest fruit in table olive groves is limiting the economic survival of the crop in many producing countries. New grove designs and management practices such as superhigh-density (SHD) groves now in use in oil olive production should be explored as an option to facilitate mechanical harvesting in table olives. The feasibility of two table olive cultivars, Manzanilla de Sevilla and Manzanilla Cacereña, to be harvested in a 5-year-old SHD grove (1975 trees/ha) was studied in 2012 when trees of both cultivars formed highly productive continuous hedgerows (≈10,000 and 18,000 kg·ha ⁻¹ , respectively). The differences between manual and mechanical harvesting using a grape straddle harvester were evaluated taking into consideration harvesting time, efficiency in fruit removal, and fruit quality both before and after processing as Spanish-style green olives. The average harvest time per hectare with a grape straddle harvester was less than 1.7 hours compared with 576 person/hour or more when done manually. Fruit removal efficiency was high in both cases, 98% for mechanical treatment and 100% for hand treatment. Mechanically harvested fruits had a high proportion of bruising damage (greater than 90%) and the severity of the damage was greater in ‘Manzanilla de Sevilla’ than in ‘Manzanilla Cacereña’. After Spanish-style green processing, however, the proportion of bruised fruits was below 3% in each cultivar. The fruit size in both cultivars was suitable for table olive processing and only 7% and 4% of ‘Manzanilla de Sevilla’ and ‘Manzanilla Cacereña’ fruits, respectively, were diverted to oil extraction as a result of insufficient size. Small differences were found between processed ‘Manzanilla Cacereña’ fruits that were manually or mechanically harvested. In contrast, mechanically harvested ‘Manzanilla de Sevilla’ fruits showed a significantly higher proportion of cutting (18%), a type of damage that may take place during harvesting, and lower firmness and texture than those harvested manually.