Frequently asked questions

CPM (Cacao Preservation Module) is a family of processing and preservation products developed by Sollus Global. Rather than applying a fixed time-and-temperature recipe, CPM measures how a crop is actually responding during processing and adapts within an authorised, operator-selected profile — giving processors more control and repeatability over drying, conditioning and storage.

CPM is developed by Sollus Praesidium Limited (trading as Sollus Global), a New Zealand-registered company, working with New Zealand engineering partners. It is being developed as a New Zealand Government R&D-supported initiative, with direct engagement underway with New Zealand innovation and trade agencies.

No. Cacao is CPM's initial engineering reference application, but the underlying measurement and control platform is not crop-exclusive. Additional crops — including coffee, grains (wheat, rice, maize), spices, tea, cashew and other tree nuts, and Agarwood — are being selected and validated through the CPM research programme as it expands.

No. CPM is designed as a measurement and control tool that works alongside existing experience, not a replacement for it. Growers and processors already understand their crop; CPM adds continuous, objective measurement on top of that judgement.

Every CPM unit continuously measures conditions such as air humidity, crop and air temperature, airflow, and batch mass, and adjusts the process in real time within a defined, authorised operating range — rather than running a fixed programme regardless of how the batch is actually behaving.

No. Drying is achieved using controlled, low-humidity air at a moderate temperature, without intentional process heating. Excess heat can cause a crop to reabsorb moisture as it cools, so CPM is designed to avoid that.

No. Fermentation and drying are separable. The CPM Dryer can run as a fully standalone drying unit; fermentation capability can be added where an application justifies it, feeding directly into CPM drying as one configuration (the CPM Processor).

Four products, sharing one control philosophy:

CPM Warehouse — atmosphere-controlled storage that keeps correctly dried crop stable until export
CPM Field Hub — last-mile conditioning for palletised lots without assuming uniform condition
CPM Dryer — precision batch drying, with fermentation capability addable later
CPM Processor — an integrated configuration combining controlled fermentation with CPM drying, measurement and batch recording

Yes. Finished lots may be hermetically sealed in-line to support preservation during storage and transport.

Each production unit is designed to create a tagged digital process record per batch — covering origin, incoming condition, water-removal profile, temperature history, and recorded final process condition. This record structure is architecturally aligned with GS1/EPCIS-style traceability, supporting increasingly demanding EU market traceability requirements.

Not yet — it's an active R&D programme, and we believe in being direct about that. A working geometry prototype has been built and demonstrated, and the operating concept, sensing and control philosophy, and crop-profile/batch-record framework are defined. The full process prototype, environmental-control integration, crop-specific testing, independent performance data, field trials, and a confirmed production manufacturer and bill of materials are still to be completed.

Performance will be established through prototype development and field validation — this has not yet happened. We deliberately avoid claiming results we haven't yet demonstrated.

The patent is filed in New Zealand, with international patent protection in progress across Asia, West Africa and Latin America. Further details of the underlying mechanism remain undisclosed ahead of full patent grant.

Sollus Global is a trading name of Sollus Praesidium Limited (NZBN 9429051069001), a New Zealand-registered brokerage and technology development company. Partnership and commercial structures are developed on a case-by-case basis with each partner.

CPM remains a pre-commercial R&D programme. Independent performance data, field trials, and a confirmed manufacturing partner are still to come, and international patent filings are still progressing. We'd rather set that expectation clearly than overstate where things stand.

Sollus intends the first field deployment and validation partnership to be in Africa, working directly with African nations rather than pursuing a single-country arrangement.

No. CPM is a modular platform, not a fixed installation or a predetermined deployment plan. Individual units can be configured around a partner's existing infrastructure and workflows, and configuration is defined jointly based on where value is identified — not prescribed in advance.

CPM is intended as a research and measurement platform, not a rulebook. Because it measures and records every batch, it is intended to let partner researchers and technicians compare variables systematically. Local teams direct what is tested; the platform provides the measurement, not the conclusions.

Local fabrication, training, and engineering participation are intended to form part of each CPM partnership wherever practical — including assessing components for local manufacture, hands-on operator and technician training, and involving local engineers in adapting the platform to site conditions.

Sollus is seeking research, fabrication, and field-validation partners to help determine which applications should be developed first. Get in touch and we'll follow up.