Reports by Reuters suggest the Ivory Coast is considering reducing its guaranteed farm gate price paid to its cocoa farmers.
According to the reports, the Ivory Coast plans to reduce its farm gate price to align with Ghana’s 28.6% price cut.
Ghana and the Ivory Coast, the world’s two largest cocoa producers, are grappling with a deepening crisis in the sector.
The information gathered suggests that senior Ivorian officials are considering whether to follow Ghana’s recent decision to cut its producer price by 28.6% for the remainder of the 2025/2026 season.
A senior Ivorian official told Reuters, “We have put all options on the table, and discussions are progressing well. Courageous and realistic decisions will be taken soon. We must think about the survival of the cocoa sector in the Ivory Coast. We need to act; changes are underway,”
Executive Secretary of ICCIG, Alex Assanvo, asserted that both countries are adapting to the sudden market downturn by taking measures to prevent long-term damage to the sector.
Also, exporters and buyers expect the Ivory Coast to announce a price cut soon, noting that it is just a matter of time.
Alex Assanvo stated, “The organisation remains mobilised to coordinate policies in both countries”
“The country is resisting, but for how long? I don’t see Ivory Coast doing something different from Ghana,” the head of an Abidjan-based export company stated.
The report added that the inter-ministerial committee has reportedly met to assess the situation, with a decision expected to be announced soon.
The news comes following Ghana’s Finance Minister Dr Cassiel Ato Forson has announced a revised cocoa price of 64kg cocoa bag from GHS 3,625 to GHS 2,587 for the remainder of the 2025/2026 season.
According to Ato Forson, the decision comes after the Producer Price Review Committee (PPRC), under his chairmanship, convened earlier in the day to assess the challenges facing the Cocoa sector.
Farmgate prices of cocoa has also been cut from GHC58,000 to GHC41,392 per tonne.
Speaking during a press briefing on Thursday, February 12, Dr Forson disclosed, “The PPRC has recommended that the farmer be paid 90% of the achieved gross fob of USD 4,200 per tonne”.
He added that the committee set the new producer price at GH₵41,392 per tonne, equivalent to GH₵2,587 per bag, effective immediately.
“As a result of that, the PPRC thereby announces that effective today, Thursday, 12th February, 2026, the new producer price for the remainder of the 2025, 2026 crop season will now be GH 41, 392 per tonne and 2,587 per bag,” he noted.
“This measure is necessary to enable the expedited payment of farmers and to guarantee the sustainability of our cocoa industry,” he said.
Meanwhile, President John Dramani Mahama has revealed he is a cocoa farmer, and his government’s decision to cut cocoa prices affects him too.
According to John Mahama, he directly understands the economic pressures facing cocoa farmers following the recent volatility in global cocoa prices.
Speaking at the maiden Ghana Tree Crops Investment Summit and Exhibition on Tuesday, February 17, President Mahama stated, “Nana Kwebu Ewusi gave me 50 acres of land, and I planted cocoa on the 50 acres, so I am a cocoa farmer. So when the price is reduced by the government, it affects me too”.
“I want to be able to empathise with farmers so that when we take any policy decision, we know that it has an effect on farmers and we feel it ourselves. If there is no fertiliser or the price of fertiliser is expensive I feel it myself because I also buy fertiliser”.