Global chocolate prices are expected to surge in the lead-up to Easter due to a critical shortage of cacao beans. Small-scale chocolate makers, like Philippe, who sources ethically and crafts premium chocolate, are grappling with the 25% increase in cacao prices, forcing them to raise their prices. Larger producers, including Mondelez International, are also feeling the strain from record-high cacao costs, attributed to supply chain issues and diseases impacting cacao trees in West Africa. The shortage raises concerns about ethical sourcing and the prevalence of child labor in the cocoa industry.
Chocolate prices are expected to spike in the lead up to Easter , driven by a global shortage of raw ingredients. Among producers impacted by rising costs, a migrant from Belgium who beat cancer to build a chocolate business here.“I make chocolates. I buy beans from around the world. I roast them, grind them, and create chocolate from scratch.
However, global prices for cacao beans – the raw material of chocolate - skyrocketed in recent months, and small businesses like Philippe’s are feeling the crunch! “Global prices are very high. In early February, they are over $17,000 Australian dollars per ton. The record we saw was in December when prices hit just close to $20,000 Australian dollars a ton. And that was off the back of three consecutive deficits in supply. So particularly from West Africa, we saw that diseases such as black pod disease and cocoa swollen shoot virus were killing the trees over the few years as well as significantly decreasing yields.
Philippe may now be living his dream, but this new career began during a battle with a life-threatening illness. The 51-year-old vividly recalls getting a shock diagnosis, while working as a management consultant in Belgium. “I was unable to go back to a crazy life working in corporate, it didn't align with my values. That had become clear. And the one thing I wanted to share with the world was that moment of relaxation and feeling good through chocolate. And that's how I decided to make the best chocolates I could make and share it with people around me. It's been very hard for the last few years building everything up, but it is worth it.
However, as Easter approaches and millions of sweet treats roll off production lines, some chocolate makers are adapting to absorb rising costs, as Rabobank’s Pia Piggott explains.
Business CHOCOLATE PRICES GLOBAL SHORTAGE CACAO BEANS ETHICAL SOURCING CHILD LABOR EASTER
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