Ivory Coast cocoa buyout completed, authorities say

Ivory Coast’s cocoa buyout operation has been completed, the country’s Coffee-Cocoa Council said in a statement on Thursday.

The regulatory body said the government spent a total of 280 billion CFA francs to purchase 100,000 tonnes of cocoa beans from farmers facing a slowdown in exports.

Ivory Coast is the world's largest cocoa producer, growing some 2 million tonnes of beans a year. The crop accounts for almost 14 percent of the country's GDP and supports five million people.

The sector saw a drop in global prices last year after reaching record highs in late 2024. As unsold beans piled up in warehouses, the state intervened to clear the backlog and support producers.

But they have challenged government figures, suggesting that the actual quantity of beans far exceeded 100,000 tonnes.

In March, the guaranteed producer price was cut by nearly 60 percent, falling from 2,800 francs per kilo to 1,200.