Côte d’Ivoire Cocoa Farmers Demand Better Prices as Smuggling Surges

• Farmers decry poverty and rising costs despite a historic price increase.
• Smuggling intensifies as growers seek better prices in neighbouring countries.

Abidjan,Côte d’Ivoire – Cocoa farmers in Côte d’Ivoire are urging the government to address inequities in the cocoa trade, particularly the fixed prices at which they sell their beans to exporters. While Côte d’Ivoire remains the world’s largest cocoa producer, many growers claim they are being left behind as profits disproportionately benefit exporters.