Earlier this week, ConfectioneryNews also reported that Cameroon, the world's fourth largest cocoa producer, raised its farmgate cocoa price by 25% to around 1,500 ($2.45) CFA franc per kg for the 2023-2024 season.
The increase in production of premium cocoa in the West African country comes on the back of a new business model implemented by the National Cocoa and Coffee Board (ONCC). "This cocoa is from integrated production centres, which provide sustainable solutions for managing post-harvest operations and improving cocoa quality in the value chain. The centres have infrastructure and training on the same site, for better control and traceability of activities," it told local media.
Cameroon Business also reported that the largest volume of premium beans over the 2022-23 season was delivered by the eight 'Golden Cocoa' cooperatives, which are supervised in the southwest and central production basins of the country by Dutch partners and the German cooperation agency GIZ. “The cooperatives alone marketed 372 tonnes of premium cocoa, way more than the 48.6 tons of the previous campaign,” it said.
Another boost to the country’s stake as a major player in the industry is the six post-harvest cocoa processing centres of excellence set up in several of the country’s production basins producing 217 tonnes of premium beans.
This doubles the 108 tonnes produced during the previous campaign. But, as Cameroon Business reported, the volume generated by the private producer Scoop CA followed the opposite trend, declining to 92 tonnes over the period reviewed from 141 tonnes the previous year.
The ICCO (International Cocoa Organisation) announced in June, that Cameroon, along with Ghana, has been officially recognised as one of the select producer countries exporting fine cocoa.
In other news, Cameroon Business also reported that banking executive Josiane Salomé Tchoungui has been appointed the new Managing Director of Atlantic Cocoa, the first cocoa processing company to be established at the Kribi industrial port zone. Tchoungui replaces Ivorian Pierre Ouattara and she is the first Cameroonian to lead the 64,000 tonnes cocoa processing unit.
