Govt increases cocoa producer prices – GH¢33,120 per tonne, GH¢2,070 per bag
The government has increased the price paid to cocoa farmers at the farm gate to GH¢33,120 per tonne.
This marks a 58.26 per cent increase over the GH¢20,928 per tonne paid to the farmers at the farm gate, also known as the producer price. The Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) announced this in a statement issued in Accra last Friday and signed by its Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Joseph Boahene Aidoo.
COCOBOD said the new price, which translates into GH¢2,070 per bag of 64 kg gross weight, was up from GH¢1,308. The prices took effect from last Friday and would be used for the rest of the 2023/24 crop year.
This is the second time the price for the 2023/2024 cocoa season is being adjusted. The first was announced by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo on September 9, last year, which moved the price per tonne from GH¢12,800 to GH¢20,928 and that of a bag of 64kg from GH¢800 to GH¢1,308.
Buyers’ margin
The government also approved a review of the buyers’ margin to GH¢2,980 per tonne for the rest of the 2023/24 cocoa season. COCOBOD said the increase, which also took effect last Friday, was expected to cushion the LBCs against the rise in finance cost due to an increase in the producer price of cocoa.
It said the price was reviewed in consultation with stakeholders, including farmers, produce-buying companies, hauliers and the sector ministry. “The increase in the producer price of cocoa has become necessary to enhance the income of cocoa farmers in line with the vision of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) government and in response to the rising prices of cocoa on the international market,” the statement said.
It added that the welfare of cocoa farmers was dear to the heart of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.
Background
Cocoa prices have been on the rise in the international commodity market, hitting a record high of $10,000 per tonne last month. This marks a significant increase of over 150 per cent since January last year.
Many contracts on the forwards market are already going for $10,030 per tonne, translating into about GH¢133,812 per tonne on face value. Despite the surge in cocoa prices, there seems to be supply concerns as both Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire, who account for 60 per cent of the world’s cocoa production, are faced with production challenges.
In Ghana, for instance, after hitting a record production high of over one million tonnes in the 2020/21 crop season, cocoa production has been on a decline.
Production declined to 750,000 tonnes in the 2021/2022 season, with production expected to be below 500,000 tonnes in the 2023/2024 season
