On Easter weekend, it is traditional, both in Portugal and in several countries around the world, for people to consume hundreds of millions of Easter eggs and chocolate bunnies. In the United Kingdom, annual chocolate intake can reach 8kg, with the average being around 5kg in Europe and the United States.
As Expresso wrote in this Friday’s edition, raw materials markets were surprised by the spike in the price per ton of cocoa beans, which are the basis for the global chocolate industry.
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This week, a ton of cocoa on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) reached a new all-time high of $10,080. In the last 12 months, the price increased by 232% and, since the beginning of 2024, it has already increased by 133%. It is the raw material with the biggest price increase since the beginning of the year, far from the variations in other agricultural commodities (such as cotton, coffee and orange juice) or energy (reformulated gasoline and barrels of oil of the North American and European).
The main producer and exporter is Côte d’Ivoire, where the local regulator expects the interim harvest, which officially starts in April, to fall 33% compared to last year.
According to The Guardian, the poor harvest has left chocolate producers struggling to secure their supply, with many warning of further price increases and potential reductions in the size of bars and sweets. A Nestlé spokesperson told the British newspaper that prices for consumers may have to increase after cocoa prices soar.
In turn, a spokesperson for Lindt & Sprüngli said the rising cost of cocoa would require further price increases in 2024 and 2025, assuming the cost does not rise further.
