Cocoa beans are becoming an increasingly scarce commodity. Their prices have risen to historic highs. And that’s bad news for chocolate lovers around the world.
Benchmark cocoa futures are trading at almost $5,900 a tonne on the New York exchange. This is approximately twice as much as last year.
Prices have jumped as a poor harvest dries up cocoa supplies.
In Ghana, the world’s second largest cocoa producer, production is expected to reach half a million tonnes at best. This will be 150,000 tons less than the previous year.
There are also concerns about the harvest in the world’s leading cocoa producer, Côte d’Ivoire.
Surveys show that the total global deficit will be 375,000 tons.
Companies that produce chocolate have difficulty finding suppliers. It is also becoming increasingly difficult for consumers to buy quality chocolate products. Thus, at the end of January, chocolate prices in the United States increased by 11%.
Large companies are already reporting a decline in sales. At the same time, a shortage of cocoa beans is expected to continue next year.
