Marawi brand incorporates Maranao flavors into its artisanal

When Sittie Aisah Balt started her artisanal chocolate brand Kakaw Meranaw in Marawi City, Lanao del Sur, it was to find a way to use the beans from her father's backyard cacao farm.

- YVETTE TAN

Now, this small but growing brand is known for highlighting Maranao flavors as well as supporting local farmers and working students.

"Kakaw Meranaw is produced by Maranao individuals and is from Lanao del Sur," she said in Taglish.

"We [instruct] farmers from a cooperative on how to plant, harvest, and post-harvest [process cacao], and we are also helping students in Marawi City through the production of the chocolates. It's a two-way process where we are helping the farmers through the farming side and we are also helping students through the chocolate making side."

The former high school science teacher shared that before cacao, her father planted crops like abaca and bell pepper but kept getting discouraged by market forces. His foray into cacao began in 2019 when he saw cacao being sold by the roadside while visiting a nearby barangay.

Balt's research began online. She found out how to make tablea and used the lull created by the pandemic to perfect it. She later acquired a provincial seed grant for P100,000 which she used to learn about artisanal chocolate production and to create Kakaw Meranaw, the pioneering chocolatebar producer in Lanao del Sur.

Kakaw Meranaw started in 2022, producing around 240 bars a month. It has since expanded its production capacity to a maximum of 2,500 bars a month.