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☆ As cocoa prices soar this Easter, chocolatiers consider alternatives
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-28 | by ( John Towfighi | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

CNN —Cocoa prices are surging so high, the Easter Bunny might want to hoard its chocolate. Poor climate and crop diseases in West Africa – home to 70% of global cocoa production – have tightened supply and caused prices to skyrocket. As prices rise, some chocolatiers are exploring cost-cutting alternatives, like diversifying their products to depend less on cocoa. Yet mining often destroys farms and the possibility of a livelihood in cocoa production, Issaka said. “Given the persistently high cocoa prices, it may be necessary for us to make responsible adjustments to pricing in the future,” the spokesperson wrote in an email.

Persons: Hershey’s, Shaquille O’Neal, Michele Buck, Billy Roberts, Roberts, ” Roberts, Issaka, Will Kletter, Kletter, “, Peng Xu, Christopher Taylor, Li, Taylor, ”, “ We’re, “ It’s, ” Taylor Organizations: CNN, Cadbury, NCA, “ Brands, Industries, International Cocoa Organization, Rabobank, US, ”, Euromonitor Locations: West Africa, North Region, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Silicon, Washington ,, Manhattan

☆ Cocoa prices are soaring to record levels. What it means for consumers and why 'the worst is still yet to come'
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-26 | by ( Spencer Kimball | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

A farmers holds cocoa beans while he is drying them at a village in Sinfra, Ivory Coast, on April 29, 2023. Consumers could start to see the effect of surging cocoa prices as the world faces the worst supply deficit in decades, with farmers in West Africa struggling against bad weather, disease and failing trees. The world is facing the largest cocoa supply deficit in more than 60 years and consumers could start to see the effect at the end of this year or early 2025, Joules said. The International Cocoa Organization has forecast a supply deficit of 374,000 tons for the 2023-24 season, a 405% increase from a deficit of 74,000 tons in the previous season. Cocoa prices will likely remain elevated for some time because there are no easy fixes to the systemic issues facing the market, he said.

Persons: Michele Buck, Paul Organizations: Hershey, CNBC, National Confectioners Association, Rabobank, International Cocoa Organization Locations: Sinfra, Ivory Coast, West Africa, Cocoa

☆ The cocoa market is so hot that the commodity has crushed bitcoin's 150% gain in the last year
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-18 | by ( Phil Rosen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Cocoa prices are hovering near historic highs around $8,000 per metric ton. The chocolate commodity has outperformed bitcoin in the last year, gaining more than 200%. A bad harvest and lack of investment have sent cocoa prices higher over recent months. Related storiesRoughly three-fourths of the world's cocoa, per Bloomberg, comes from four countries in West Africa: Ivory Coast, Ghana, Cameroon, and Nigeria. Last month, chocolate giants Hershey and Cadbury both warned of potential price hikes for consumers in light of the cocoa supply shortage.

Persons: —, that's Organizations: Service, Bloomberg, Processors, Reuters, International Cocoa Organization, Hershey, Cadbury Locations: West Africa, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Cameroon, Nigeria

☆ With a low cocoa supply, this Valentine’s Day chocolate prices are up
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-12 | by ( John Towfighi | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Rising cocoa prices aren’t the only concern for customers this Valentine's Day. Last Thursday, Hershey Co. said it would cut 5% of its workforce after historic cocoa prices and inflation-weary consumers dampened fourth quarter earnings. “And it looks like it’s not necessarily going to subside anytime soon.”The Supreme Valentine’s Day SweetRoughly 92% of Americans say they plan to share chocolate and candy for Valentine’s Day this year, according to the National Confectioners Association. In 2023, Valentine’s Day chocolate and candy sales exceeded $4 billion, the NCA says. Issaka said that while high demand and low supply raise prices, cocoa farmers are getting squeezed.

Persons: ”, Michele Buck, Billy Roberts, ” Roberts, Lindsey Nicholson, Marnie Ives, Ives, ” Ives, “ It’s, Karl Schneider, Roberts’s, Issifu, Issaka, ” Issaka, “ I’m, Cote, Will Kletter, Sabi Ibarra Guerrero, Uwe Gneiting, Gneiting, Joke Aerts, Aerts, ” Aerts, Sia Kambou, Price, Tony’s, “, they’ve, CNN’s Eva Rothenberg Organizations: CNN, Hershey Co, National Confectioners Association, NCA, Cocoa, Oxfam America, Getty, Fairtrade, Cote d’Ivoire, “ Locations: West Africa, North America, Manhattan, Queens , New York, Neck, NY, Bloomfield , NJ, Ghana, North Region, Cote d’Ivoire, Silicon, Africa, Accra, Cote, Hermankono, AFP

☆ Cocoa farmers face mounting challenges as El Nino rages on
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-10 | by ( Quek Jie Ann | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Frequent extreme weather events caused by El Nino and climate change hurts cocoa production. According to the the latest El Nino-Southern Oscillation Outlook, El Nino is expected to last through January to March 2024, with a 71% chance it will intensify from November to January. An intensified and frequent El Nino effect could significantly reduce the amount of arable land for cocoa cultivation. watch nowAccording to a report by the Economist Intelligence Unit, a high intensity El Nino may result in severe economic disruption across Africa. The financial cost of El Nino and climate change remains unquantified for Cote d'Ivoire and Ghana.

Persons: Cristina Aldehuela, El, El Nino, Nino, Jonathan Haines, it's, Kerry Daroci, Daroci, That's, Steffany Bermudez, Bermudez Organizations: Afp, Getty, El, El Nino, Southern Oscillation, Gro Intelligence, CNBC, Cocoa, Rainforest Alliance, International Cocoa Organization ., West Africa's Cote d'Ivoire, National Oceanic, Atmospheric Administration, Economist Intelligence Unit, Cote d'Ivoire, West, Rainforest, International Cocoa Organization, Environmental Protection Agency, International Institute for Sustainable Development Locations: Asikasu, Ghana, El Nino, West, West Africa, Kerry, Brazil, Ecuador, International Cocoa Organization . Asia, Pacific, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, West Africa's Cote, Ivory, Ivory Coast, Africa, London, New York

Production of the chocolate-making ingredient is expanding outside of the main growing area in West Africa as farmers in places such Brazil, Ecuador and Colombia see potential profit in the crop. The rally in prices to the highest level in nearly 50 years is boosting that trend, which could alleviate the current supply tightness in the global cocoa market. The country was once the second only to Ivory Coast in cocoa production, but a devastating fungus in the 1980's known as Witches' Broom sharply reduced production. "I believe that the new profile of cocoa production will be large-scale," said Moises Schmidt, one of the owners. "If you plant cocoa trees there (Amazon region), it is considered reforestation," said Douglas.

Persons: Schmidt Agricola, Moises Almeida Schmidt, Handout, Moises Schmidt, Jeroen Douglas, Douglas, Jose Garcia, IFAD's, Alvaro Lario, Marcelo Teixeira, Maytaal Angel, Simon Webb, Anna Driver Organizations: REUTERS, International Cocoa Organization, Reuters Graphics, Ivory, UN's, Fund for Agricultural Development, Thomson Locations: Bahia, Brazil, West Africa, Ecuador, Colombia, Africa, South America, Ivory, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Asia, United States, Europe, Guayaquil, Para, Netherlands, Medicilandia, New York, London

The benchmark September contract for cocoa in London gained more than 2% on Wednesday to 2,590 pounds per metric ton. Prices are rising in reaction to a tight market for cocoa beans, which are mainly produced in Ivory Coast and Ghana. Arrivals of cocoa at Ivory Coast ports for export are down nearly 5% this season. The International Cocoa Organization (ICCO) widened this month its forecast for a global deficit on cocoa supply from 60,000 metric tons previously to 142,000 metric tons. Arabica coffee settled down 5 cents, or 3%, at $1.6195 per lb, while robusta coffee fell $99, or 3.6%, at $2,616 a metric ton.

Persons: Leonardo Rosseti, Rosseti, Maytaal, Mark Potter, David Gregorio Our Organizations: YORK, Intercontinental Exchange, International Cocoa Organization, StoneX, Refinitiv Commodities Research, Thomson Locations: London, West Africa, Ivory Coast, Ghana, West, New York

☆ Cocoa prices are soaring. Here’s what that means for your chocolate
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-21 | by ( Danielle Wiener-Bronner | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

New York CNN —If you have a sweet tooth, take note: Cocoa prices have been soaring — and that could drive chocolate prices higher. Because of that, there is an “outsize impact of the region’s weather patterns on world cocoa prices and supplies,” according to Gro Intelligence’s post. Tony's Chocolonely welcomes higher cocoa prices. Petra Figueroa/SOPA Images/LightRocket/Getty Images“We are very happy that cocoa prices are rising,” said Pascal Baltussen, chief of impact and operations at Tony’s. “Cocoa prices have been way too low for West African cocoa farmers to earn a living income.”Cocoa futures are used to determine the prices paid to farmers for cocoa in Ivory Coast and Ghana.

Persons: El, Paul, Christophe Gateau, Niño, ”, Intelligence’s, Tony's Chocolonely, Petra Figueroa, Pascal Baltussen, Alex Assanvo, Côte, “ Price, Tony’s, Baltussen, Steven Voskuil, Hershey, “, we’ll, —, Laura Paddison, Rachel Ramirez Organizations: New, New York CNN, Rabobank, International Cocoa, Getty, Cocoa Organization, Gro Intelligence, Hershey Locations: New York, Europe, Asia, Agboville, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Cameroon, Nigeria, Amsterdam, Tony’s, NIQ

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