Côte d’Ivoire slashes Cocoa price by 57% as global market plunges
Côte d’Ivoire has announced a sharp reduction in the farmgate price of cocoa for the 2025/2026 interim season, responding to a dramatic collapse in global prices. The new rate stands at 1,200 FCFA per kilogram, down 57% from the 2,800 FCFA paid during the main October-to-February campaign.
Agriculture Minister Bruno Koné acknowledged the difficulty of the decision, which takes effect as the interim season began in March a full month early.
The revision follows a brutal market correction: after peaking at $12,906 per ton in New York last December, cocoa prices have plummeted to around $3,000, their lowest level in two years.
Compounding the crisis, 100,000 tons of beans from the main harvest remain unsold due to reduced purchasing by international traders facing losses.
To prevent social unrest, the government has launched a 280 billion FCFA buyback program, acquiring 23,000 tons so far at the previous guaranteed price.
The strategy serves twin objectives: maintaining a price more attractive than neighboring Ghana’s (approximately $3,847 per ton) to curb cross-border smuggling, while easing cost structures for importers following the removal of certain producer premiums.
Weekly cocoa arrivals at Abidjan and San Pedro ports have reached approximately 28,000 tons—an encouraging sign, though still below last year’s levels. Whether these measures will sustain planter incomes and protect the competitiveness of the world’s leading cocoa producer remains uncertain amid global market volatility.
