The price of %Cocoa, the active ingredient in chocolate, is again marching higher amid renewed concerns about global supplies.
After peaking at more than $10,000 U.S. per tonne last year, cocoa’s price had fallen by half earlier in 2025.
However, the price is now at $8,700 U.S. a tonne as commodities traders evaluate the likely supply of cocoa coming out of Ivory Coast in Africa, the world’s main supply hub.
Government data shows that Ivory Coast farmers shipped 1.698 million tonnes of cocoa to ports this crop year, which runs from October 1 to June 29, up 6.8% from last year but down from a 35% year-over-year increase seen in December.
There are media reports that heavy rain in the Ivory Coast is keeping cocoa growers off their farms and is disrupting the current harvest.
The current situation is hurting the stocks of chocolate makers such as %HersheyCo. (NYSE: $HSY), %MondelezInternational (NASDAQ: $MDLZ), and %TootsieRollIndustries (NYSE: $TR).
In Ghana, the world’s second-largest cocoa producer, the Cocoa Board just cut its production forecast for this year to 600,000 tonnes from a previous estimate of 617,500 tonnes.
Also causing prices to spike are quality concerns regarding the Ivory Coast’s cocoa crop, which is being harvested from now through September.
Cocoa processors are complaining about the quality of the crop and have rejected truckloads of Ivory Coast cocoa beans.
Processors have reported that about 5% to 6% of the mid-crop cocoa in each truckload is of poor quality, further raising concerns.
Compounding matters are worries that trade tariffs will exacerbate already high cocoa prices, constraining demand from both producers and consumers.
The International Cocoa Organization (ICCO) recently revised its global cocoa deficit to 494,000 tonnes, the largest deficit in 60 years.
The stock of Hershey, a leading chocolate maker, is down 4% over the last 12 months and currently trading at $177.08 U.S. per share.
