Hermanas Mirabal Province
Named for Mirabal sisters (anti-Trujillo martyrs, 1960); key organic cacao province in world's #1 organic producer (70% global share); chocolate tourism emerging.
The province was renamed in 2007 to honor the Mirabal sisters—Patria, Minerva, and María Teresa—who fought and died opposing the Trujillo dictatorship. Their assassination on November 25, 1960 is now commemorated globally as the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. Fittingly, the family also grew cacao, and neighboring farmers maintain a connection to that legacy through organic farming programs that honor the sisters' respect for life.
The province (still commonly called Salcedo) produces plantain, cassava, coffee, and cacao—with coffee and cocoa cultivation established during late 19th century colonization that replaced earlier logging and cattle operations. The Dominican Republic produces 70% of the world's organic cacao, and Hermanas Mirabal is a key node in that production. Tenares municipality features immaculately maintained mid-size cacao farms with mixtures of old and new trees under shade canopy. Atlantic sea breezes give beans brighter tropical-fruit notes prized by specialty chocolatiers.
By 2026, Hermanas Mirabal will test whether heritage tourism and specialty agriculture can reinforce each other. A September 2024 cocoa trade event brought international buyers from Europe and the US to explore Dominican chocolate offerings. If the province connects its moral heritage (the Mirabal legacy) with its agricultural heritage (organic cacao), it could develop chocolate tourism routes that honor both. If production remains export-focused without local value capture, the sisters' province may export raw beans while their story remains untold.