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

Abidjan, 18 August 2023 – The International Cocoa Organization releases the Cocoa Market Report for July 2023. The current report highlights the following insights:

• Grindings published by the main regional cocoa associations for the second quarter of 2023 indicated an overall plunge in cocoa processing activities in the traditional consuming regions, namely, Europe, North America, and Southeast Asia.
• The increase in cocoa processing in Côte d’Ivoire absorbed a large part of the reduction (59,794 tonnes) in grindings of the three main regional cocoa associations.
• Despite the currently low level of arrivals in Côte d’Ivoire, historical information outlined that the weekly arrivals in the country are regularly subject to revisions, and should this occur for the 2022/23 arrivals figures, production in Côte d’Ivoire for 2022/23 might end up being higher year-on-year.
• In July, prices of the front-month contract averaged US$3,425 per tonne and ranged between US$3,221 and US$3,628 per tonne in London while in New York, they averaged US$3,391 per tonne and oscillated between US$3,230 and US$3,559 per tonne.
• Compared to the average prices recorded a year ago (US$2,061 per tonne in London and US$2,315 per tonne in New York), the average prices seen in July 2023 represented significant increases of 66% and 46% respectively.

You can download the complete report by clicking here.

 

Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, 31 July 2023. The Executive Director of the International Cocoa Organization (ICCO) is pleased  to announce that the ICCO Members will select the country hosting the 3rd edition of the International Symposium on Cocoa Research (ISCR), scheduled for the second semester of 2025, during the 108th regular session of the International Cocoa Council in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, in October 2023.

The International Symposium on Cocoa Research (ISCR), organised by the ICCO, is a 4-day event during which cocoa scientists from different academic disciplines exchange their latest findings and agree on priorities for collective actions. A Scientific Committee, to be established by the ICCO, will be in charge of the programme and the selection of abstracts to be presented at the Symposium under the guidance of the ICCO Secretariat. The 1st edition of the ISCR was held in Lima, Peru in November 2017; and the 2nd edition was held in Montpellier, France in December 2022.

To ensure equal representation as ISCR hosts between exporting and importing ICCO Members and within each group of Members, the Secretariat is inviting exporting ICCO Members from Africa or Asia to send to the Secretariat their official bids to host this event by 01 September 2023, close of business.

For further information or enquiries about bidding for the 3rd International Symposium on Cocoa Research, please contact Mr José Jiménez Puerta, Economist, International Cocoa Organization; tel: +225 27 22 51 49 60; email: jose.jimenez-puerta@icco.org