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According to James McCann maize was introduced to West Africa by Europeans in the 1500s soon after the discovery of the New World. My research shows cultivation of cocoa in West Africa didn’t start until around 1870. So there’s no reason this couldn’t get a 300 year head start.

One of the major causes of slave exports was the necessity of paying for European manufactured goods. West Africans had few means to pay for this as there was only so much gold and ivory. India had pepper and China had tea, but there were no agricultural luxury products in West Africa. Chocolate could fill this role.

Now I’m under no illusion this would stop the Atlantic slave trade, but having alternate exports would drive up the cost of slaves. What kind of impact do you think this would have on the triangle trade and regional development?
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