Ghana, Cote d’Ivoire secure US$2,600 minimum price for tonne of cocoa

Stakeholders in the cocoa value chain have agreed to a proposal by Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire to set a minimum price of US$2,600 per tonne for the cash crop after a historic meeting in Accra, the two countries have announced.

The two-day meeting held in Accra, which was called at the instance of the two countries, was attended by processors, traders, chocolate manufacturers among other organizations that play various roles in the cocoa industry.

Following the announcement of the decision, a technical committee is later expected to be constituted in Abidjan, Cote D’Ivoire on July 3, 2019, to plan a road map for the implementation of the floor price regime.
When the minimum price becomes effective, the two countries will no longer sell cocoa beans on the world market below the US$2,600 floor price, thereby guaranteeing farmers a much higher price than currently prevails.

Currently, a tonne of cocoa, according to the International Cocoa Organisation, is being sold in excess of US$2,390 on the world market. The goal of the two-day meeting is to discuss the possibility of agreeing to a minimum price which is enough to keep the cocoa farmer in business.

A joint press conference by the two countries, Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire, after the meeting, confirmed the breakthrough.

The two countries further announced that their forward sale of cocoa beans in the 2020/2021 crop season will be put on hold awaiting the implementation of the new price regime.

The meeting was necessitated by the fact that the two countries only get US$6 billion annually in the US$100 billion-dollar chocolate industry despite producing more than 60 percent of the world’s cocoa needs.

The two countries last year unveiled plans to coordinate cocoa production and marketing as part of efforts to exert more control in the market after price volatilities in recent years.

Source: citibusinessnews.com