Afripoli

Dry weather threatens Côte d’Ivoire’s main cocoa crop

6 October 2026

Cocoa farmers in Côte d’Ivoire, the world’s largest producer, fear the main harvest will end early after another dry week, Reuters reported on 5 October. No rain fell in Soubré in the west, 22 millimetres below the five-year average, and Daloa received 3.4 millimetres, 25.7 below average; the south and east were also dry. Industry sources expect the main crop to fall to about 1.25 million tonnes from 1.5 million last season, blaming drought linked to El Niño and less use of fertiliser. A smaller crop would support world cocoa prices, but farmers paid a fixed 1,200 CFA francs a kilo, down from 2,800, would gain little from it.

Economy & Finance · Tags: Côte d'Ivoire

Sources

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