Falling global cocoa prices leave Ivorian stocks unsold, farmers unpaid

Falling global cocoa prices are disrupting trade in Ivory Coast, leaving warehouses full of unsold beans and many farmers struggling to receive payment for their produce.

In the western town of Duekoue, cooperative manager Sekou Dagnogo says bags of cocoa are piling up as exporters decline to purchase at the government-guaranteed farmgate price of 2,800 CFA francs per kilogram for the 2025/26 season.

Exporters argue that a recent drop in global cocoa prices — which fell to their lowest level in more than two years amid weakening demand — has made beans from the world’s top producer too expensive to buy.

Dagnogo explained that the slowdown has halted payments to farmers and strained cooperative finances.

“Things haven’t been going well for quite some time now, so everything is at a standstill for the moment and we currently owe farmers a lot of money,” he told Reuters.

He expressed hope that the country’s regulator, the Coffee and Cocoa Council, will intervene by purchasing the unsold stock. The regulator launched a programme in January to buy 100,000 metric tons of cocoa and recently accelerated the effort over concerns about deteriorating bean quality in storage.

Meanwhile, farmers say they are increasingly forced to accept lower, unofficial prices due to financial pressure.

Frederic Kouassi Kouassi said some buyers are offering between 1,500 and 1,800 CFA francs per kilogram — far below the regulated price.

“They offer us a choice that doesn’t suit us, and due to a lack of resources, we are forced to accept these prices,” he said while harvesting cocoa pods at his farm.

He added that he has begun storing unsold beans at home but worries about stockpiling too much ahead of the mid-crop season from April to September.

The situation highlights the vulnerability of farmers and cooperatives to global price swings, even in countries that dominate world cocoa production.