ay many traders have resisted. Meanwhile cocoa prices are down about 20% this year after a 50% drop last year, making it harder for COCOBOD to secure advances while maintaining a regulator-set farmgate price of 58,000 cedis a ton (about $4,640) when international prices are around $4,700.
Why should I care?
The bigger picture: Supply chains seize up when financing disappears.
For decades, COCOBOD kept cocoa moving by raising annual syndicated loans and funding LBC purchases so farmers got paid quickly. That approach buckled when COCOBOD struggled to raise financing, but the replacement only works if traders provide big upfront cash. When prices fall and inventories build, the system needs more working capital to bridge harvest and export.
For you: Cheaper cocoa does not automatically mean a safer harvest.
If delays persist, farmers may struggle to service loans and fund maintenance like pruning and fertilizer, which can hurt the next crop’s quality and volume. That’s how a short-term cash squeeze can turn into longer-term supply risk, even if near-term global supply looks comfortable. Consumer prices can stay sticky while farm incomes swing fast, because financing terms and pricing rules sit between growers and global buyers.
