A cocoa farmer and founder of Dapaah Chocolates based in London, United Kingdom, Raphael Dapaah, has shared his thoughts on the new cocoa floor price spearheaded by West African neighbours, Ghana and Ivory Coast.
The Dapaah Chocolates founder speaking in an interview with CNBC Africa backed calls for decent incomes for cocoa growers.
Ghana and Ivory Coast last month introduced the new cocoa sales mechanism the Living Income Differential (LID), which will attract an additional US$400 per tonne of cocoa bought from the duo.
The world’s largest producers hope to pay the amount directly to millions of cocoa farmers to alleviate unbridled poverty.
The decision comes after these countries suspended the sale of the 2020/2021 crops for trade imbalance with the world cocoa industry. The new mechanism should allow a differential of $400 per tonne.
Farmer advocacy groups have widely applauded the move, although cocoa traders and chocolate manufacturers have been mainly silent after the initial announcement on June 12.
“Privately, some complain they were not consulted on the plan and worry it could push companies to buy their beans elsewhere or over-stimulate production, leading to a global price crash”, Reuters reported.
The news agency said officials from Ivory Coast and Ghana were meeting with industry executives in the Ivorian commercial capital, Abidjan, on Wednesday to discuss details of the strategy.
- Ghana May Postpone Delivery of 250,000 MT of Cocoa Due to Shortage - April 12, 2024
- Ghana Cocoa Farmgate Price To Go Up By 50% - April 4, 2024
- More African Processors Shutdown As Cocoa Shortage Deepens - March 17, 2024