Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, 6 October 2023. The International Cocoa Organization (ICCO) held the 108^th session of its Council from October 2 to 6 in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, under the chairmanship of Mr. Abel Fernandez of the Dominican Republic, during the same week as the Organization’s 50th anniversary celebration.

Throughout this meeting, held at the Palm Club Hotel in Abidjan in a 100% face-to-face meeting format for the first time after 3 years of remote participation, the Members of ICCO engaged in a productive exchange of views and made important contributions to analyze the latest developments in the global cocoa economy. Some of the key topics discussed during the week included:

• Election of a new Chairman of the International Cocoa Council, Mr. Rafael Soriano, Ambassador of Spain to Côte d’Ivoire
• Update on the next World Cocoa Conference to be held at The Square, Brussels, 21-24 April 2024.
• Update on the latest developments of the world cocoa market.
• Update of the Annex C (Fine Flavour Cocoa) of the International Cocoa Agreement, 2010

The next 109th International Cocoa Council will be held in April 2024 in Brussels, Belgium, following the celebration of the 5^th edition of the World Cocoa Conference to be held from 21 to 24 April 2024.

For more info, please contact info@icco.org

On 3 October 2023, the International Cocoa Organization (ICCO) celebrated its 50^th anniversary at a ceremony held in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, to mark half a century of commitment to sustainable growth in the cocoa sector and a living income for cocoa farmers worldwide.

The event, attended by over 1,000 guests, was graced by the presence of the President of the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire, His Excellency M. Alassane OUATTARA, and His Excellency M. Nana AKUFFO-ADDO, President of the Republic of Ghana.

Patrick ACHI, Prime Minister, Head of Government of Côte d’Ivoire, the Presidents of Institutions, Dr. Souleymane DIARRASSOUBA, Minister of Trade, Industry and SME Promotion, other Members of the Ivorian Government and the Director General of the Côte d’Ivoire Coffee-Cocoa Council also played an active part in this event.

Representatives of the ICCO’s 52 Member countries, the Diplomatic Corps, international organisations, civil society and the local and international private sector came together to voice their support for the Organization’s work.

Professor Chalmin of Paris Dauphine University gave a lecture entitled “The ICCO, the sustainability of the world cocoa economy and a living income for producers”.

This 50^th anniversary celebration provided a chance not only to look back on the Organization’s achievements but also to reflect on the future challenges facing the cocoa sector.

Established in 1973 under the auspices of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, and operating through successive International Cocoa Agreements, the ICCO has played a major role in advocating the sustainability of the cocoa sector and a living income for producers.

Over the years, the Organization has become a reference centre and source of statistical information on the world cocoa economy, facilitating policy dialogue and international cooperation between its exporting and importing Members, as well as with private sector players.

Initially based in London, the International Cocoa Council – the Organization’s supreme decision-making body – voted in favour of relocating to Abidjan in 2017, at the invitation of the government of Côte d’Ivoire.

For further information, please contact:   info@icco.org

Abidjan, 31 August 2023 – The International Cocoa Organization today releases its revised forecasts for the 2022/23 cocoa year and revised estimates of world production, grindings and stocks of cocoa beans for the 2021/22 cocoa year. The data published in Issue No. 3 – Volume XLIX – cocoa year 2022/23 of the Quarterly Bulletin of Cocoa Statistics, reflect the most recent information available to the Secretariat as at the beginning of August 2023.

The commentary of the Bulletin highlights that the 2022/23 season is contending with faltering production, growth in demand and relatively high prices.

The turnaround in grinding activities in origin countries has supported the growth in global grindings. Nevertheless, this is not enough to offset the negative grindings in the traditional consuming regions. An observation pointed out in the Bulletin is that there are more exports of semi-finished products from top producing countries to Europe, Southeast Asia and North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) countries.

Cocoa prices, in turn, have garnered more support from the combination of the current cocoa supply and demand situation and are hovering at high levels. A review of price developments on international markets for cocoa beans during the April-June quarter of 2023 is also presented.

Summary of forecasts and revised estimates

 

Cocoa year (Oct-Sep)	2020/2021	2022/2023		Year-on-year change
	Revised estimates	Previous forecasts a/	Revised forecasts
	(thousand tonnes)				(Per cent)
World gross production	4 826	4 980	4 938	+ 112	+ 2.3%
World grindings	4 994	5 072	5 005	+ 11	+ 0.2%
Surplus/deficit b/	– 216	– 142	– 116
End-of-season stocks	1 843	1 632	1 727	– 116	– 6.3%
Stocks/Grindings ratio	36.9%	32.2%	34.5%

Notes:
a/ Estimates published in Quarterly Bulletin of Cocoa Statistics, Vol. XLIX – No. 2 – Cocoa year 2022/23
b/  Surplus/deficit: net world crop (gross crop adjusted for loss in weight) minus grindings. Totals may differ due to rounding

 

Statistical information on trade in cocoa beans, cocoa products and chocolate, by country and by region, published in this edition, covers crop year data from 2019/20 to 2021/22 and quarterly statistics for the period July-September 2021 to January-March 2023. Details of origin of imports and destination of exports for leading cocoa importing countries are also provided.

Caution should be exercised in the interpretation of the data in this issue of the Bulletin as they may be subject to revisions in subsequent Bulletins and reports from the Secretariat.

Copies of the Quarterly Bulletin of Cocoa Statistics, in Microsoft Excel and Adobe PDF formats, can be ordered from the new ICCO e-Shop: www.icco.org/shop or by email: statistics.section@icco.org