Del grano al conocimiento: Un análisis bibliométrico de la investigación sobre Theobroma cacao L. vinculada a Ecuador
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.70881/mcj/v3/n3/83Palabras clave:
Cacao, Cadmio, CCN-51, Moniliasis, AgroforesteríaResumen
El cacao (Theobroma cacao L.) constituye un pilar económico, ecológico y cultural en Ecuador, reconocido internacionalmente por su cacao fino de aroma y la emblemática variedad Nacional. En este estudio, se realizó un análisis bibliométrico de 319 documentos científicos indexados en Scopus (1995–2025) mediante el uso del protocolo PRISMA. Los resultados revelan un crecimiento exponencial de la producción científica desde 2015, concentrando el 86,6 % de las publicaciones en la última década. La investigación se articula en torno a cinco ejes temáticos: (1) variedades destacando el clon CCN-51 y el cacao fino de aroma, (2) aspectos ambientales incluyendo cambio climático, agroforestería y contaminación por cadmio, (3) procesos tecnológicos con énfasis en fermentación y bioeconomía, (4) dimensión social abordando sostenibilidad, sistemas chakras y gobernanza y (5) sanidad vegetal centrada en el biocontrol de Moniliophthora roreri. Las instituciones con mayor producción son la ESPOL, la UTEQ y la UTM, mientras que las colaboraciones internacionales más activas se dan con España, Estados Unidos, Francia y Colombia. Entre los artículos más influyentes se destacan aquellos sobre acumulación de cadmio en granos, domesticación del cacao en la Amazonía ecuatoriana hace 5.300 años, caracterización genética del CCN-51 y el papel de la microbiota en la fermentación. El análisis de coocurrencia de palabras clave identificó cuatro clústeres emergentes: paisajes agroforestales y resiliencia ecosistémica, microbiología y fermentación, dinámica edáfica y contaminación por cadmio, y agroecología con enfoque socioeconómico. En general, la investigación cacaotera en Ecuador ha transitado hacia enfoques interdisciplinarios que integran biotecnología, conservación del germoplasma, sostenibilidad ambiental y justicia social, consolidando al país como referente global en innovación y transición hacia sistemas productivos resilientes y circularmente sostenibles
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