Blog Category

Food Prices

Soaring cocoa prices: Diverse impacts and implications for key West African producers

• by MARTIN PAUL JR. TABE-OJONG, ONASIS THARCISSE ADETUMI GUEDEGBE, AND JOSEPH GLAUBER

Cocoa bean prices have been rising since the last quarter of 2023, hitting a record high of $10.97 per kilogram on April 19 (Figure 1). The price spike is due to a significant drop in bean production by major global suppliers—four key producing nations in West and Central Africa account for more than 60% of the world's supply of cocoa beans: Cote d’Ivoire (with 38% of the global production in 2022), Ghana (19%), Nigeria (5%), and Cameroon (5%).1

FAO Food Price Index Rose Slightly in March

• by Sara Gustafson

After seven months of declines, the FAO Food Price Index rose slightly in March due to increased vegetable oil, dairy, and meat prices. The Index remained 7.7 percent below its March 2023 levels.