Ivory Coast, the world’s biggest cocoa producer, reportedly stopped export sales as it closed out the season 10 % down on last year, equating to a drop of 250,000 t. Last year’s harvest was always going to be hard to beat, however, as it marked a record high for the country of 2.3 m t.

The country is now focused on the sales contracts for the 2022/23 harvest, which is currently being sold at a discount of around USD 200/t. This is a move previously criticized by some observers as being a way to circumvent the required Living Income Differential premium of USD 400/t, aimed to help alleviate farmer poverty.