Publications by authors named "Julio Hurtado"
Nat Ecol Evol
December 2018
Article Synopsis
- Cacao (Theobroma cacao L.) is an economically significant crop, with its domestication history and early uses still not fully understood.
- Studies show that while Mesoamerica is traditionally seen as the birthplace of cacao, genetic evidence indicates that the upper Amazon in northwest South America has the highest diversity of cacao, suggesting it may be the origin.
- Recent archaeological findings from a site in southeast Ecuador reveal the earliest known use of cacao, dating back about 5,300 years, indicating this region as the first known centre of cacao domestication in the Americas.
