His timelines continue to increase, as today (18.03. 24), the price per tonne climbed to $8,394. This means that the price of cocoa has more than doubled since the beginning of the year, which is due to the continuing poor supply situation, according to the faznet. Plant diseases and extreme weather conditions, especially in the main crop area of West Africa, threaten with unprecedented supply shortages. Cocoa processing plants in West Africa are currently forced to stop production at times. The situation is also exacerbated by the new EU regulations, according to which suppliers must prove that no trees were cut for cocoa production, but this is not easily feasible. There is still no clarity regarding the upcoming harvest, said Fuad Mohammed Abubakar, head of Ghana’s British cocoa trading company. The supply situation will not improve in the coming months. However, increasing demand also feeds the supply gap. Although Switzerland and Germany still consume most of the chocolate per capita, Asia is also approaching here. Malaysia, Indonesia and the People’s Republic of China are increasingly importing chocolate. Anyone who is concerned that the prices of chocolate eggs and Easter rabbits may be soared, may be quiet, notes the same report. Current production uses even more cocoa, which was bought at significantly lower prices last year. However, it should be afraid of burning further increases in the prices of chocolate products, even if the price of cocoa is significantly reduced, as it is now about four times more expensive than the historical average. However, anyone who believes that high prices benefit farmers is wrong. In the two main producing countries in the world, Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire, the (semi-state) cartels set fixed prices for cocoa beans. “For the state and elite, high prices in the world market mean good income and this can also have a stabilising effect on the economy as a whole. However, producers initially receive nothing from the price increase,” says Misereor’s fair trade expert, Wilfried Wuden. Ghana’s Cocobod trading organization said it could not pay farmers more, because they themselves had sold cocoa at prices far below current prices. The sudden price spikes are almost impossible to map because of the long duration of the production period and the need to compensate for the timely sale of the harvest. The spot market always carries the risk of being hit by sudden price collapses. Very low prices for a long time However, Wuden says the prices have been very low for years. In Côte d’Ivoire, cocoa growers earned an average of 2,130 euros in 2020 – but the estimated living salary in the country was equivalent to 5,500 euros per year. This created enormous pressure for growth, says Wuden. Production increased extensively with the expansion of cultivated areas. This process gradually comes to an end, on the one hand, because the EU, which is the main buyer area, is taking measures against deforestation, and on the other because forest areas are declining and grassland is less suitable for cultivation. Extreme fluctuations are a special problem for Vooden. The great incentive to turn fully to the alleged profitable cultivation of cocoa poses a great risk. In the long term, a price is required close to the production and living costs of producers. The chocolate bunnies of a fair trade therefore also contribute to the future of cocoa production. Meanwhile, Sylvia Monetti (Silvia Monetti), an expert on food prices and food poverty at the North Rhine-Westphalia consumer advice centre, calls for the creation of a food price monitoring centre. Prices for chocolate rabbits range between 9.93 and 37.90 euros per kilo and for chocolate eggs between 7.25 and 29,90 euros per kilo. Such large price ranges are surprising, as all manufacturers are affected by the highest prices of cocoa.
New ejection of cocoa prices – The causes and prospects for Easter chocolates
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