Côte d'Ivoire: Cocoa Harvest Expected to Rise by 25% in 2024-2025

In Côte d'Ivoire, cocoa production is projected to reach nearly 2.2 million tons during the 2024/2025 season, which started on Tuesday, October 1st. This information comes from sources close to the regulator who requested anonymity, as reported by Bloomberg.

The anticipated stock represents a 10% increase from the previous forecast of 2 million tons made in June and a 25% increase from the 1.75 million tons harvested during the 2023/2024 season. This growth outlook is attributed to favorable weather conditions, particularly the heavy rains experienced in recent weeks, which are expected to benefit the crops.

While this is good news for the Ivorian cocoa sector, extreme weather conditions in the West and Central Africa region could pose a challenge to global supply in the coming months. Indeed, the heavy rainfall since July has led to flooding in other cocoa-producing countries in the region, particularly Nigeria and Cameroon, which are the 3rd and 4th largest suppliers of cocoa beans in Africa, following Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana. This episode could also lead to diseases in cocoa orchards, such as brown rot, affecting the quality of the beans.

It is worth noting that cocoa bean prices have already surged by over 75% since the beginning of the year, closing at over $7,300 per ton on the New York Stock Exchange on Saturday, October 19th.

For reference, in Côte d'Ivoire, the purchase price at the farm gate for cocoa has increased by 20% to 1,800 Fcfa for the main cocoa campaign of 2024/2025.