In Côte d'Ivoire, concentration in the cocoa sector has had the effect of putting local exporters in producing countries at a disadvantage. They have to face fierce competition from transnational companies also operating in this segment

In Côte d'Ivoire, the dominance of transnational companies in the external marketing of cocoa continues to exasperate national operators. In a letter of 22 January, the Ivorian Traders Group (GNI) called on the Café-Cacao Council (CCC) to carry out reforms to improve the representation of local actors on the export market

Indeed, the association points out, the current sales system is harmful for national operators insofar as it favors international companies that have better access to financial resources and can make major purchases.

Currently, 6 companies, namely Cargill, Touton, Olam, Barry Callebaut, Sucden, and Ecom, hold all cocoa export contracts and dominate bean purchases in the country.

According to the GNI, these companies are also the “exclusive representatives and suppliers” of beans to chocolate manufacturers, which represents a loss of opportunities for local players.

For the group, measures could be adopted by the CCC such as requiring chocolatiers like Mars, Hershey or Ferrero to buy from local actors and an immediate obligation for the 6 transnational companies to buy 20 to 30% of their cocoa from shredders.

More generally, this marginalization of local exporters is the result of the extensive integration of international actors into the global cocoa chain into producing countries to achieve economies of scale in transport.

The situation is even more delicate when some chocolatiers now operate directly or through their subsidiaries on the export market in order to reduce their costs.

Faced with this reality, many analysts point out that better access to finance will also be key to allowing exporters to strengthen their capacities compared to foreign companies that have a lower cost of capital.

This could offer them the opportunity to better bear the risks for the cargoes until they are loaded at the port of dispatch and to better manage the logistics of their supplies on the ground.

As a reminder, the GNI was founded in 2015 and brings together 15 national companies whose purchasing and exporting capacities total 300,000 tons of cocoa per year.