Fermented cocoa beans are dried by villagers on a table in Ghana. Photo: Christina Peters via Getty Images
Ghana’s cocoa industry, hit by unfavourable weather conditions and increased smuggling, is likely to miss its output target of 650,000 metric tonnes this season, data from regulator Cocobod showed.
The world’s second-largest cocoa producer has seen output fall in the two previous seasons due to reasons including diseases and illegal gold mining, which destroys cocoa plantations and reduces yields.