Category: cocoa

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Ghana Secures $1.2bn for 2009-10 Cocoa Crop

COCOBOD LogoGhana’s Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) announced that it has secured a consortium loan of $1.2 billion to purchase cocoa in time for the 2009-10 cocoa year which starts October 1. That’s $200 million more than the amount borrowed for the current cocoa year (see my post last year). Ghana is one of the few countries that has maintained some government control over the cocoa sector despite the calls for privatization that dominated the 1980s and 1990s. The COCOBOD remains Ghana’s sole cocoa exporter.

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ICCO and Markets Agree: Cocoa Might be in Short Supply

The International Cocoa Organization (ICCO) cut its forecasted surplus for the next cocoa year from 100,000 to 25,000-50,000 tons. In an interview along the sidelines of the ICCO meeting in London, the ICCO’s chief, Jan Vingerhoets, pointed out that the economic recession may be ending sooner than expected, leading to higher demand. In addition, cocoa production for the next cocoa year starting on October 1 may well be lower than anticipated. The effects of El Niño on  Indonesia and Ecuador may lower production in these countries and the Côte d’Ivoire continues to struggle with pests and diseases.

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Mars UK Shrinks Galaxy Bar

Galaxy Bar
Galaxy Bar

Rising cocoa prices have taken another toll. Following the example set by Milton Hershey in the last century, Mars has decided to shrink the Galaxy Bar from 150g to 125g. I can’t imagine those bars containing enough cocoa to warrant that decision.

As the Hershey experience has shown, you can fool consumers only so long. Expecially since Mars had just increased the price of the bar last year.