Global cocoa shortage puts pressure on suppliers and manufacturers

Published 2024년 4월 10일

Tridge summary

Barry Callebaut, the world's leading cocoa and chocolate supplier, has announced price hikes and potential order restrictions due to a three-year crop deficit in West Africa, leading to a scramble for cocoa beans and turbulent trading for chocolate. This situation is causing suppliers like Henley Bridge to be selective about new business to protect their existing customers, with cocoa prices expected to remain high until late 2024. The global chocolate industry is under pressure, with manufacturers needing to pass increased costs onto consumers, despite efforts to find efficiencies. Consumer demand for confectionery remains high, but price hikes and recent sugar price increases are leading to consumer money-saving strategies and predictions of a decline in chocolate sales in 2024 unless prices stabilize and consumer incomes rebound. The article highlights the challenges faced by the chocolate industry due to volatile agricultural commodity prices and the global interconnectedness of supply chains.

Disclaimer:The above summary was generated by Tridge's proprietary AI model for informational purposes.

Original content

Barry Callebaut, the world’s largest cocoa and chocolate supplier, has informed its clients it is increasing prices for ingredients from 1 May and reserving the right to restrict order as the scramble to source beans becomes increasingly fraught due to three years of crop deficit in West Africa. Tracey Hughes, managing director of Henley Bridge, one of the UK’s prominent chocolate and ingredients suppliers, told ConfectioneryNews: “This is the most turbulent trading period in chocolate we have ever experienced, and it’s proving to be extremely challenging. “We’ve started to see some supply issues and delays with product coming into us, however, we currently at the beginning of April have good stock coverage. “We’ve also received notification from Callebaut about price increases with effect from May 1 and also other suppliers with price increase notifications. “Our main concern now is to protect our existing customer base. We’ve been inundated with new inquiries, but we have to be ...

Source: Foodnavigator