George Matthew might not have succeeded in his endeavor to become a cocoa bean producer if it weren’t for the squirrels.
He started farming in the 1970s after inheriting a rubber plantation in Kerala, a state in southern India, which he ran in addition to his medical practice.
A rubber plantation was losing money due to declining rubber prices, thus it was not a good time to inherit one. Dr. Matthew made the decision to try growing cocoa trees ten years ago in the hopes that they would bring in enough money to sustain the rest of the farm.
He planted some saplings that he had purchased. It didn’t work out.
“It was not that successful – most of the saplings died,” according to him.
