Ghana to raise cocoa farmgate price

Ghana's cocoa regulator plans to increase the state-guaranteed price paid to its cocoa farmers for the 2024/25 crop season by nearly 45%, Reuters reported Monday (Sep. 02) 

If confirmed, it would be the second increase in a row. 

Earlier this year, Ghana followed fellow major cocoa producer Côte d’Ivoire in raising the farmgate price of the commodity by 58% to reach 33,120 Ghana cedis (about 2,499 U.S. dollars) per ton. 

The move is believed to help boost farmers' incomes and deter bean smuggling out of the country. 

This comes as the Ghana Civil Society platform called on country's cocoa regulator to raise the minimum farm-gate price for the 2024/2025 to reach 3662 US dollars per ton. 

Every year in September, the government announces new far-gate prices for cocoa bag and ton for the new cocoa season, which is between September of the current year and August of the following year. 

The price of cocoa soared rose sharply this year because of demand and troubles with the crop in West Africa due to plant disease and changes in weather.