In Côte d'Ivoire, the cocoa sector is on the verge of a new crisis. Suffocated by the competition from the large groups established in the territory and which capture all the contracts of chocolate makers such as Mars, Nestlé, Cémoi, or even Mondelez, the Ivorian traders are launching a distress call and attracting the attention of the regulator of the sector.

The group of Ivorian traders (GNI) made up of fifteen exporters and national grinders is demanding more contracts for certified cocoa (for “certified sustainable”). Agreements concentrated for the time being in the hands of seven multinational trading companies including Cargill, Olam, Sucden and Barry Callebault.

These contracts are entered into exclusively by chocolate makers. A kind of cartel formed by the majors and which has control over the sector.

In a press release made public on February 24, the GNI, which is alarmed by the exclusion of Ivorian traders, is not asking for a favor. "The GNI invites the chocolate industry to also award contracts for certified sustainable cocoa beans to Ivorian processors and exporters who have networks of certified cooperatives and for some of them the willingness to invest in sustainable certification programs. “, he writes.

Operators threatened with bankruptcy

In fact, certified cocoa beans benefit from a premium of 200 dollars per ton, a windfall that would exceed one billion dollars for multinationals. Part of this premium is shared between the majors and their intermediaries. Cocoa farmers receive only a tiny part. But, the unequal allocation of contracts from chocolate makers to multinationals on the certified creates a great disparity in the sector.

CO-OPERATIVES AND INTERMEDIARIES NOW DEMAND A PREMIUM FOR UNCERTIFIED COCOA

The Ivorian harvest of certified cocoa, thanks to the various certification and sustainability programs established in the sector, represents more than 1 million tonnes, or 45% of national production. This situation weakens national exporters, some of which are affected. Many operators are threatened with bankruptcy or disappearance. “Ivorian traders are not only excluded from certified cocoa contracts, they are also excluded from regular beans. Cooperatives and intermediaries now demand a premium for uncertified cocoa,” the director of an Ivorian trading company told Jeune Afrique.

An assertion confirmed by the GNI. “It is an established fact that it is impossible in Côte d'Ivoire to buy ordinary cocoa beans without also buying certified cocoa”.

This situation raises the specter of contract defaults with certain operators, which could plunge the sector into a serious crisis, as in 2017. The marketing campaign for the 2019-2020 harvest is unprecedented. Some exporters have contracts but do not have access to physical inventory, while some have inventory but no contracts.

A situation that could change if, according to our information, the Coffee and Cocoa Council recommended that exporters sell their surplus stocks to local operators, this being framed by international contracts. Questioned by Jeune Afrique, the regulator of the sector, seized of the file did not wish to comment.