Ecuador is close to becoming the world's second-largest cocoa producer this year

Ecuador Projects to Reach Second Place Globally in Cocoa Production by 2025, Surpassing Ghana. This is thanks to increased exports and falling production in West Africa. Merlyn Casanova, executive director of the National Association of Cocoa Exporters of Ecuador (Anecacao), highlighted the record growth of the sector. A Historic Boom for Ecuadorian CocoaEcuador is experiencing a cocoa boom. In the first quarter of 2025, cocoa exports reached US$ 956 million, a 194% increase from US$ 325 million in the same period in 2024, according to the Central Bank of Ecuador (BCE). This growth allowed cocoa to surpass bananas, a milestone not seen since the "Great Cocoa" era. In other words, for 60 years, Ecuadorian cocoa had not exported more than bananas. "In this first quarter, we surpassed bananas, especially due to the value of cocoa," affirmed Merlyn Casanova, executive director of the National Association of Cocoa Exporters of Ecuador (Anecacao), in an interview with HCJB radio. The ...