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The Chocolate Room is known for our exceptional chocolate treats: chocolate layer cake, chocolate pudding, mousse, brownies, bonbons, and exquisite hand-crafted small batch ice creams. We’ve always been inspired by the process of making chocolate, and for the first time in our 20 years of business, cocoa pricing is reaching a historic high. Spring 2024 brought us news from our suppliers, that we would be seeing a large increase in cocoa prices in the near future. And as warned, the cost of cocoa increased 136% between July 2022 and February 2024. What’s the reason for the rise? We’re understanding a number of factors are contributing to this new reality. The rise in cocoa prices is largely due to a global cocoa shortage; the largest cocoa deficit in decades. Climate change has caused heavy rains, and devastating floods, followed by long dry seasons along the coast of West Africa, specifically Ghana, and the Ivory Coast, which together produce approximately 60% of the world’s cocoa. These extreme changes in the weather have damaged, limited, and prevented cocoa growth. Diseases have also increased. Ghana’s cocoa trees have been plagued by the Swollen Shoot Disease which is transmitted by various species of mealy bugs when they feed on the cacao tree. The disease will end the life of the trees, and unfortunately spread to other nearby trees. Farmers often don’t have the means to remove the trees, so entire farms may be damaged, and as of today, there is no cure. On top of the challenge of this virus, long droughts cause dryer lands, and therefore, less land becomes suitable for growth. Another cause of the cocoa shortage is the fact that cocoa farms have generally been underinvested. The crop is most often cultivated by small family farms which struggle to make ends meet, and reinvest in the land. Overtime, this means less crop production. The farmers produce this high value crop, but generally receive very little in return. As a result the replanting rates become low. As older trees age, the product output lowers, but demand increases. And of course, there are other causes to be explored like the EU Deforestation Regulation laws that will be going into effect January, 2025 that prevents farmers from selling any cocoa that has originated from deforested lands, or growing on new lands that involve any deforestation. The law could be a beneficial approach but in practice will create challenges. Cocoa farmers will be under new pressures to trace and document the origins of their crops. These new regulations will be a challenge for farmers already working in impoverished conditions without resources or support to meet the new requirements. It’s very possible that with this new regulation, less farmers will be able to sell their cocoa, and ultimately Europe will be bringing in a lot less cocoa from West Africa. We’re seeing the increases daily with our suppliers. Anticipating the rise of chocolate, we have been purchasing as much as we can given finances and storage space. The cost of 3 Kg of one producer’s milk chocolate jumped 181% overnight. We have always used the highest quality Belgian and French chocolates available. We don’t feel we can change the kind of chocolate we use, as we know well that any substitutions can dramatically alter the quality of our products. Our customers have become accustomed to our high standards for the flavor and quality of our products. We’re keenly aware of the effect that inflation has had on so many of us. We have always tried to be fair and competitive in pricing our offerings. We’ll continue to adjust thoughtfully. As we address this new challenge, we’re doing our best to provide our customers with the best quality product at a price that will feel manageable. And of course, feeling very grateful for each and every delicious bite of chocolate we are fortunate enough to enjoy!
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