• Traders resume cocoa purchases after removal of key price premiums

• CCC eliminates origin differential and $400 per ton living income differential

• Move may revive forward sales ahead of the April mid-crop season

Cocoa trading activity is picking up in Côte d’Ivoire after regulators removed two pricing components that had made the country’s beans more expensive on the international market.

According to Bloomberg on Feb. 25, traders have resumed purchases, encouraged by the lower effective cost of Ivorian cocoa.

Until recently, the final acquisition price reflected not only the global market price but also an origin differential — a premium linked to quality — and a $400 (€344) per ton living income differential introduced in the 2020/2021 season to improve farmers’ incomes. Bloomberg reported that both components have now been scrapped by the Coffee and Cocoa Council, known as the CCC.

The decision ends a weeks-long standoff between the regulator and buyers, who had argued that Ivorian beans were too costly. The episode echoes the 2020/2021 season, when weak global demand led the regulator to negotiate discounts that effectively erased the gains from the living income differential.

The latest move is expected to support forward sales for the mid-crop season, which begins in April. Analysts say traders could receive additional relief if authorities lower the farm-gate price for that campaign.

The producer price is currently set at CFA2,800 per kilogram, about $5,000 per ton, for the main crop running from October to March. That level remains above world prices, which have fluctuated between $3,000 and $4,000 per ton since February.

Espoir Olodo