Cocoa yields to rebound: 800,000 tonnes expected this year

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
WhatsApp
Telegram
Email

Ghana’s cocoa production volumes are expected to rise to about 800,000 tonnes by the end of the year in what is expected to reverse the trend of heavy losses suffered in the last couple of years.

The world’s second-largest producer of the cash crop has been grappling with lower yields as a result of a number of factors such as El Nino, a severe global climate phenomenon that emerges from variations in winds and sea surface temperatures over the tropics; illegal mining (galamsey) and smuggling, leading to a drastic reduction in production output.

Conservative figures put yields at an average of 500,000 in the last couple of years which is far lower than expected to generate the required for the state and to boost producer prices for farmers.

As a result, Ghana has been suffering severe revenue losses because  of the lower yields at a time when the international capital markets have been shut to the government for over-borrowing, and taking the country’s debts to unsustainable levels.

Q1 revenue plummets

For instance, the export value of cocoa products in the first quarter (Q1) of this year alone witnessed a significant decrease to $592.2 million, representing a whopping decline of 32.8% compared to the same period in 2023.

It also indicates a $233.6 million loss in export revenue compared to the average for the past three years.

The figure is also relative to the average of $825.8 million for the first quarters of the last year years (2021, 2022 and 2023). 

The worrying development is in spite of the fact that exports of cocoa products usually peak in the first quarter of the year. 

Source:Graphic.com.gh

Share this post :

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
WhatsApp
Telegram
Email