Africa-Press. Côte d’Ivoire, the world’s largest cocoa producer, anticipates a 10.5% increase in its cocoa production for the 2025-2026 season, reaching between 2 million tons and 2.1 million tons.
The head of the Ivorian Coffee and Cocoa Council, Evrard Brahima Kone, stated that this increase will be the first in three seasons, following a decline in production in recent years due to adverse weather conditions, aging farms, and the spread of the “swollen shoot” disease.
Kone explained that rising cocoa prices over the past two seasons have enabled farmers to purchase more fertilizers and improve farm management, contributing to increased production. He added that the volume of cocoa arriving at the ports has surpassed 1.7 million tons as of May 11.
Despite the expected improvement in production, market participants noted that there are large unsold quantities within the country, as exporters and farmers preferred to wait for an improvement in global prices before selling their crops. Meanwhile, the Coffee and Cocoa Council warned of negative indicators that could affect the 2026-2027 season, with a decline in the number of flowers and young pods due to recent droughts, raising concerns about the upcoming harvest.
Côte d’Ivoire is the world’s largest cocoa producer, supplying about two-thirds of the global cocoa used in chocolate production alongside other West African countries.
