Cocoa Price Cut Deepens Crisis in Ivory Coast as Unsold Stocks Pile up
Cocoa farmers and cooperatives in Ivory Coast are grappling with mounting financial strain following a sharp cut in the state-guaranteed purchase price, amid deteriorating bean quality and rising tensions across producing regions.
The crisis has become visible in towns such as Aboisso in the country’s southeast, where cocoa beans are being repeatedly dried under the sun in an attempt to limit damage after months of storage under damp conditions.
Ivory Coast, the world’s largest cocoa producer, sets the price paid to growers through the state. In October 2024, just ahead of the presidential election, the farmgate price was raised to a record 2,800 CFA francs (about $5) per kilogram.
However, following a peak in global cocoa prices in late 2024, international prices began to decline by mid-2025, driven largely by improved production after years of supply shortages. This left the Ivorian fixed purchase price significantly above market levels, slowing exports and leading to a buildup of unsold stocks in cooperative warehouses.
In early March 2026, the government moved to address the imbalance by slashing the purchase price to 1,200 CFA francs per kilogram—less than half the previous rate.
The adjustment has since triggered a liquidity squeeze across the value chain, with many farmers yet to be paid for cocoa already delivered under the previous pricing regime.
Dongo Yao Kra, President of the Socoopagos cooperative, which works with about 2,300 farmers in the Sud-Comoe region, noted that prolonged storage is eroding the value of the beans.
“We have to, from time to time, expose them to the sun to limit the damage. Otherwise, the mould gets into the product, and we won’t know where to sell it,” he said.
According to him, part of the stock was procured before the price cut and must still be paid for at the earlier rate of 2,800 CFA francs per kilogram, placing the cooperative under significant financial pressure.
“It’s a real headache,” he remarked, estimating the cooperative’s exposure at some 230 million CFA francs.
The pricing shift has also heightened tensions among farmers, many of whom say they are yet to receive payment for delivered produce.
At a recent meeting of about 50 cocoa growers in Songan, concerns were raised over the timing of the price adjustment, with farmers arguing that the change effectively altered agreed terms mid-season.
“It’s as if they stopped a football match halfway through to change the rules,” said Antoine Ouattara Sie Kouabou, a farmer who is still awaiting payment for 830 kilograms of cocoa.
The situation is further complicated by the fact that labourers engaged by farmers also remain unpaid, raising concerns about disruptions to ongoing and future production cycles.
Although the Coffee Cocoa Council had earlier indicated plans to absorb unsold stocks, cooperatives say implementation has been limited. Socoopagos, for instance, reported that only 45 tonnes out of its 380 tonnes in storage had been purchased under the intervention.
Industry stakeholders estimate that between 57,000 and 60,000 tonnes of cocoa remain unclaimed out of an initial backlog of around 100,000 tonnes held in cooperative warehouses nationwide.
Growers and sector representatives are now calling for stronger state intervention to stabilise the market and restore confidence.
“It’s up to the state to take matters into its own hands or the exporters,” said Yao Yao, a cocoa farmer and trade unionist.
Obed Blonde Doua, Vice President of the Coffee-Cocoa Interprofessional Organisation, has urged authorities to ensure that farmers receive the previously agreed price for remaining stocks.
“Let’s make sure that producers can earn the 2,800 CFA francs on the remaining stock so that the social climate can be peaceful,” he said.
The cocoa sector accounts for about 14 percent of Ivory Coast’s GDP and supports roughly five million people, underscoring the broader economic and social risks posed by the ongoing crisis.
