The price of cocoa beans has hit a new record high, with the cost of chocolate having already soared in the run-up to Easter
Chocolate lovers are in for a tough time as cocoa prices have hit a new high due to poor harvests caused by unusual weather.
The price of cocoa beans has doubled in 2024, reaching over £7,900 per tonne on world commodity markets. This means that some favourite Easter eggs from brands like Maltesers, Lindt and Cadbury are now at least 50% more expensive than last year, or they’ve become smaller, says consumer group Which?
In fact, the price of chocolate has gone up by 12.6% in a year, which is more than double the rise in supermarket food and drink prices. The Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit (ECIU) explains that this increase in cocoa prices is due to climate change and El Nino like conditions.
Ivory Coast and Ghana, the world’s biggest cocoa exporters, have been affected by extreme weather recently. A study from World Weather Attribution revealed that climate change made a heatwave in West Africa in February 10 times more likely.
Torrential rain in December 2023 in Ivory Coast and Ghana, more than double the usual amount, led to cocoa plants rotting with disease. Drought then struck in February due to El Nino conditions, hitting cocoa production as the crop is vulnerable to a lack of water.
The European Cocoa Association (ECIU) said: “This volatile weather has fed through to international commodity prices.” Chocolate prices have surged 245% year on year, according to The Institute of Export and International Trade’s director general Marco Forgione.
He said: “As many people across the UK, and the rest of the world, look forward to tucking into their Easter chocolate this year, few of us are likely to stop and think about the intricate supply chain required to get the ingredients to us.
“Over the past few months, we’ve seen the weaponisation of fragile global supply chains which has caused significant disruption due to events such as the ongoing situation in the Red Sea, wider global geopolitical uncertainty and a variety of updates to border policies.”
“Combined with the impact of climate change which has significantly dampened this year’s cocoa harvest the price of chocolate is soaring. These ripples across global supply chains are being felt by consumers with the price of one of the nation’s most popular chocolate bars, Freddo, reaching the height of 36p this year up by 150%.
“The cost-of-living crisis continues to hit consumers in the pocket. General food inflation this year is running at over 7% but chocolate is over 30 times higher.”
