Easter chocolate prices surge amid cocoa supply crunch

Climate change, cocoa shortages and higher production costs are making chocolate more expensive this Easter. Costs have quadrupled in recent years.

Transcript

00:00It's almost a work of art. A chocolate creation for Easter.

00:06But this year, consumers are going to have to dig deeper for their chocolate hit.

00:10The cost has soared because cocoa prices have exploded.

00:18The price of cocoa beans has risen fourfold in recent years.

00:22In February 2023, it was $2,500 per tonne.

00:26This year, it surged to more than $10,000.

00:30The price fluctuates sharply and has a delayed impact on the price of chocolate.

00:37It looks like the days of cheap cocoa are over.

00:41West Africa, where three-quarters of the global supply of beans originates,

00:45is feeling the impact of climate change.

00:48Extreme weather and pests are reducing the harvest.

00:52In Ghana, the harvest collapsed by almost half in 2024.

00:55The worst in two decades.

00:58And the recovery is less than hoped this year.

01:02Ivory Coast has also reported significant declines.

01:06U.S. investment bank J.P. Morgan believes the chocolate market

01:09is facing a period of inflation unlike anything seen in recent memory.

01:14At the same time, aid organizations like Oxfam are critical

01:17of how the people who harvest the beans are still earning too little,

01:21while consumers pay more, even at Easter.

01:24Indeed, we've had significant increases in cocoa prices over the last six months.

01:31And of course, it's impacted the price, which has been passed on in the store.

01:36In any case, we've done the best we could.

01:38But still, as you can see today, this weekend,

01:41people are here and they still want to treat themselves.

01:43Still, there's plenty going on at this Swiss chocolate festival.

01:49But the rising costs for chocolate mean people are buying less.

01:53Higher costs mean German chocolate manufacturers

01:55are producing 228 million chocolate Easter bunnies for this year's festival.

02:01That's 5% less than the previous year.

02:04Here.