Ghana set to miss 2024/2025 cocoa production target as global supply tightens, prices surge 

GHANA – Ghana is set to miss its cocoa production target for the 2024/2025 crop season, with output expected to reach only about 600,000 metric tonnes, according to the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD).  

The original goal was 610,000 metric tonnes, but with just a few months left in the season, production stands at 590,000 metric tonnes.  

COCOBOD Chief Executive Dr. Ransford Abbey stated that significant improvement is unlikely before the season concludes, citing the ongoing light crop season and limited prospects for a turnaround. 

Despite the shortfall, Abbey remains optimistic about the 2025/2026 crop season, highlighting ongoing interventions aimed at boosting yields and motivating cocoa farmers.  

He noted that innovative measures and government programs are being implemented to improve future production levels.  

COCOBOD is also grappling with debts totaling GHS33 billion, but Abbey expressed confidence in returning the organization to profitability by 2028 through cost-cutting and financial restructuring. 

The cocoa sector is a cornerstone of Ghana’s economy, employing about 800,000 farm families and generating US$2 billion in annual foreign exchange. However, the current production shortfall reflects broader regional and global challenges.  

Côte d’Ivoire, the world’s leading cocoa producer, has faced two consecutive years of declining output due to adverse weather and aging plantations, with forecasts indicating continued difficulties for the 2025/2026 season.  

The country’s main cocoa-producing zones are expected to experience below-average rainfall, likely disrupting the upcoming harvest and further tightening global supply. 

These supply constraints have contributed to record-high farmgate prices in Cameroon, where producers have seen prices surge past 6,000 CFA francs per kilogram in the 2023/2024 season.  

Prices remain elevated in the ongoing 2024/2025 season, as Côte d’Ivoire’s output shows no improvement.  

The global cocoa market experienced an 11% drop in production in 2023/2024, resulting in a deficit of 374,000 metric tonnes—a sharp increase from the previous year’s shortfall. 

With Ghana’s cocoa sector under pressure and global supply tightening, international buyers are expected to compete more aggressively for available beans, sustaining high prices in producing countries.  

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