COMMODITY / COUTURE
Eight cocoa farmers in Ghana, in their own words.
Of every £1 spent on chocolate, about 6p reaches the farmer who grew the cocoa.
These are the people behind that 6p. They farm in Adumadum, Eastern Region, Ghana. We spent a day with them at harvest, at the breaking of the pods, at the fermenting heaps and the drying mats.
ADUMADUM · EASTERN REGION · GHANA
The pod, in brass.
BRASS PODS
ONE EDITION
At the centre of the room is a cocoa pod cast in brass by Mr Emmanuel Fosu, a lost-wax master in Kumasi, using a craft Asante makers have practised for centuries. The model was a real pod from a family farm in Akyem Tafo, Eastern Region. It was cast in an edition of fifteen.
Each pod carries the crocodile mark Funtunfunefu Denkyemfunefu, cast into the metal, and rests in a stamped hardwood cradle. It is the couture in Commodity / Couture: the one part of this work you can take home.
Declare interestThe farmers
Read their words in English.
Tap to hear them in Twi.
Charity Danso, Adumadum, Eastern Region, Ghana
“Cocoa farming is physically demanding, and hiring additional labour is essential to achieving a good harvest. The income from our produce supports many livelihoods, and the hard work that goes into cultivating cocoa should never be taken for granted.”
Photo: Alfred Quartey
Hear it in Twi
George Larbi Awuku, Adumadum, Eastern Region, Ghana
“I inherited this farm from my father. Maintaining it takes a lot of hard work, but I make sure to tend to it regularly. What I enjoy most is seeing the cocoa pods fully grown and ready for harvest. It’s a rewarding sight that makes all the hard work worthwhile.”
Photo: Alfred Quartey
Hear it in Twi
George Okyere, Adumadum, Eastern Region, Ghana
“I am a sharecropper, which means that 50 percent of the proceeds from the cocoa I harvest go to the landowner. What is most difficult about this work is the routine maintenance. I am passionate about this work because I am committed to producing the best quality beans.”
Photo: Alfred Quartey
Hear it in Twi
James K. Atta, Adumadum, Eastern Region, Ghana
“I believe eating chocolate is not particularly our culture. We’re merely producers. This is difficult work, but it contributes to my family’s subsistence. Earning a fairer share of the profits would certainly make a difference.”
Photo: Alfred Quartey
Hear it in Twi
Agnes Tetteh
Hear it in Twi
Abigail Okyere
Hear it in Twi
Samuel Akyea
Hear it in Twi
Kwadwo Atiso
Hear it in Twi
Listen to the soundscape
About the
installation
BRASS PODS
ONE EDITION
Commodity / Couture is an installation by Selassie Atadika and the Midunu Institute, first shown at 1-54 Contemporary African Art Fair, Somerset House, London, in October 2026.
At its centre is a cocoa pod cast in brass by Mr Emmanuel Fosu, a lost-wax master in Kumasi, using a craft Asante makers have practiced for centuries. Around it, the farmers who grow the real thing. Ghana sends its cocoa out as a raw commodity. The work asks what it would take for more of its value to stay where it is grown.
Visitors leave letters to the farmers in a book that travels back to them after the fair.
The brass pod is cast in an edition of fifteen. To register interest, use the form below.