The price of a ton of cocoa briefly exceeded the symbolic $10,000 mark on Tuesday March 26 in New York. The most traded contract, for delivery in May, was trading mid-afternoon at $9,931 (€9,167). In London, cocoa also broke records, exceeding 8,682 pounds sterling (10,120 euros) per tonne.
The price surge began in earnest in 2023, driven by fears of supply shortages, moving to an even higher speed in 2024. Over the past year, they have tripled in New York, increasing 135% in 2024 alone .In London, it’s 144% over the same period. Before the recent string of records, the previous all-time high of $5,379 per ton dated back to 1977.
Towards an increase in the price of chocolate
Prices reflect the pessimism of the sector. Ivory Coast and Ghana, which produced almost 60% of the world's cocoa beans for the 2022/23 harvest, according to estimates by the International Cocoa Organization (ICCO), have suffered a succession of climatic events and their consequences: heavy rains, fungal diseases then droughts. The harvest, which runs from October to the end of March, looks very bad. François Griffon, market analyst at Nitidæ, explained to Le Monde at the beginning of February: “According to estimates, Ivorian cocoa production for the 2023-2024 campaign could amount to 1.8 million tonnes, compared to 2 .3 million tonnes the previous year. »
The next step on the supply chain is the chocolatiers. The rise in prices should, in the near future, still have an impact on consumer prices. “We expect prices of sweet treats to increase in response to this massive price increase,” summarized Kathleen Brooks, an analyst.
Swiss chocolatier Lindt
