Organic cacao nuts, like almonds and walnuts, have been around for a long time.
But for years, they’ve been treated as an exotic commodity.
The cacao nut, a tropical fruit, is not usually eaten in the United States, so it was often imported from Europe.
In 2017, the National Cacao Commission recommended that cacao be labeled as a nut, which would allow it to be used as a food additive, a category that includes baking, baking products, and cosmetics.
This was in response to an outcry by consumers who thought cacao should be classified as a whole food.
So the Commission changed its recommendation to a whole-food category, and the federal government is expected to make the change sometime in 2019.
That means the cacao industry, which had hoped to benefit from this change, could get a major boost from the USDA’s new designation.
What you need to know about cacao: