Soubré: two weeks before the cocoa season, farmers await the new farmgate price

#Agriculture, #Economy

Coopératives de cacao de Soubré, Soubré

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Illustration: cocoa pods on the tree and their harvest in Côte d'Ivoire (video excerpt), Numerik-3325, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons.

Illustration: cocoa pods harvested in Soubré, Milequem Diarassouba, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons.

Illustration: cocoa beans drying in Soubré, Milequem Diarassouba, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons.

Illustration: opening cocoa pods on an Ivorian plantation, CIRAD, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons.

PDFForest- and Climate-Smart Cocoa in Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana · World Bank, 2017, CC BY 3.0 IGO.PDF · 904 KB · 8 pagesDownload

In Soubré, at the heart of the country's leading cocoa-producing area, farmers are preparing for the opening of the main crop season on 1 October and awaiting the announcement of the new farmgate price. The previous season opened at 2,800 CFA francs per kilogram, a record level welcomed by growers.

In the cooperatives visited this week, the first pods of the main harvest are already being picked and drying areas are filling up. Leaders hope for at least the same price, while pointing to uneven yields between plots, with some old plantations still suffering from swollen shoot disease.

Farmers also point to the difficulty of getting the official price everywhere: on the most remote tracks, buyers sometimes offer less than the set rate, taking advantage of small growers' lack of transport. The Coffee-Cocoa Council promises stepped-up checks from the start of the season.

What the creator verified this week: harvesting and drying activity in two Soubré cooperatives. What remains to be confirmed: the farmgate price that will be announced for the 2026-2027 season.

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