IVORY COAST – Le Synap CI and l’anaproci, two cocoa bean producer organizations in Ivory Coast, are leading coffee producers in urging authorities to increase purchase prices.
These two prominent organizations representing cocoa farmers raised their voices after the Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development, and Food of Ivory Coast recently set purchase prices for cocoa beans at 1.5 thousand West African francs ($2.5) per kilogram.
These organizations were arguing that these prices do not provide farmers with an adequate safety margin in case of crop loss – Coffey Kang, the head of l’anaproci, insists that prices should be raised to 2.5 thousand West African francs ($4) per kilogram.
This call for higher prices has gained political support as well. Simon Dojo, representing the Democratic Party of Côte d’Ivoire, emphasized that “over 80% of our cocoa bean producers live below the poverty line,” despite the country supplying 40% of the world’s cocoa beans.
Following the example of Ivory Coast, Ghana, the world’s second-largest exporter of cocoa beans, is also considering price adjustments.
For instance, Ghanaian President Nana Akufo-Addo recently ordered an increase in purchase prices by 58.2% from 20928 cedi ($1560) per ton to 33120 ($2460) per ton by the end of the 2023-2024 season.
This comes as cocoa bean futures on the world market reached record highs amid the spread of plant diseases and adverse weather conditions.
In the 2023-2024 season, global cocoa bean supplies are expected to decrease by approximately 8%.
Over the past 12 months, cocoa bean prices have surged by 166% and 189% in the futures markets in New York and London, respectively.
The GlobalData portal forecasts that the global harvest in the 2023-2024 season will amount to 4.5 million tons, reflecting a decline of 340 thousand tons compared to the previous season.
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