The Cocoa Price Surge: Insights from Islands Chocolate

Описание: Full Journal Article here:
More Industry Updates here:
Islands Chocolate Instagram:
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Video accurate at time of filming: 11/04/2024
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A word from Islands founder and CEO, Wilf Marriot, addressing the turbulence in the cocoa industry.

In recent weeks, I’ve been asked repeatedly when cocoa prices will get back to ‘normal’ and the truth that no-one wants to hear is probably never. Why? Well the prices that our industry has come to know and expect were built on a constructed reality, and a reality that has been fast unravelling.

Since the start of 2024, cocoa prices have increased by 300%.There’s been a perfect storm of three failed harvests in a row, and long term structural and financial problems in the system eventually coming to head. Cocoa futures are pricing at $6,500-$7000 and the days of $3,000 per tonne are over for the foreseeable future.

We’ve described how this impacts both Islands and also our clients in more detail here, but the top line is that whilst not fully insulated, we're very fortunate to have our own cocoa supply from St. Vincent and with this a rare ability to control production, supply and to an extent price.

These are painful times for almost everyone involved, but also a very real reminder that you pay what you get and systemic change is, in truth, what the cocoa industry needs.