Author : Tuates Jr., Andres M.; Santiago, Ian Jhosua; Villota, Shiela Marie A.; Caparino, Ofero A.

Summary : Hull is the most contaminated part of a Cacao bean, most of the mycotoxins especially Ochratoxin A was found in this bean part. Ochratoxin A (OTA) is a toxic fungal metabolite classified by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) as a possible human carcinogen. Hence, the removal of the shell/ husk will significantly reduce OTA levels in cacao products. World Health Organization (WHO) specifies that the shell and germ must be less than 5% m/m of the cocoa mass (cocoa liquor). The machine's hulling condition was optimized using Response Surface Methodology following the Box Behnken Design. Three factors were used in the study viz. air velocity at large nib blower, air velocity at small nib blower and clearance of breaking rollers. The PHilMech developed roasted cacao bean huller is a 3-1 machine. It can perform the hulling process, separate large nibs and small nibs, and sort cacao beans before roasting. It consists of 4 major components: breaking rollers, sieves, blowers and a prime mover. The optimum air velocity on large nib blower, small nib blower and clearance at breaking roller are 4.36-10.37 m/s, 2.83-7.20 m/s and 2-4 mm, respectively. The highest purity of large nib and small nib obtained were 97.13% and 95.99%. While the highest recovery index of the developed cacao huller is 0.845.