COPAL COCOA Info
A Weekly Newsletter of the Alliance of Cocoa Producing Countries
3rd – 7th June 2013
Cocoa Producers' Alliance
In-House Cocoa Newsletter
Issue No. 547
UP-COMING EVENTS
IN THIS ISSUE

ICCO INSIDE
DAILY COCOA
THISPRICES
ISSE:

LONDON (LIFFE) FUTURES MARKET
UPDATE

NEW YORK (ICE) FUTURES MARKET
UPDATE

FROM THE NEWS MEDIA
Do your health a favour, drink Cocoa everyday
‘It’s nature’s miracle food’
In the News (from Newspapers worldwide)
Health and Nutrition
 'Healthier' chocolates gives US cocoa demand a
shot in the arm
Production and Quality
 Cocoa farmers target N100b yield
 Indonesia struggles to boost coffee, cocoa output
 World Cocoa Foundation announces $3 Million in
Globe-spanning support for Cocoa Sustainability
 Cocoa genome to help speed production
 Nigeria targets cocoa output doubling as new
entity spurs growth
The Market
 EU tightens laws on African cocoa exports
 First export of Solomon Islands cocoa shipped out
of Honiara
 First export of Solomon Islands cocoa shipped out
of Honiara
 Cocoa moves higher amid disappointing
production reports
Business & Economy
 World Cocoa Foundation, Nigerian Government
forge New Partnership
 EU regulators okay Barry Callebaut to buy Petra
Foods cocoa unit
Labour Issues

Environmental Issue

Research & Development
 Scientists have sequenced the genome of cocoa
to make better tasting chocolate
Promotion & Consumption

Others
 FG to create Cocoa Corporation of Nigeria
Processing and Manufacturing

ICCO Daily Cocoa Prices
ICCO Daily Price
(SDR/tonne)
ICCO Daily Price
($US/tonne)
London futures
(£/tonne)
New York futures
($US/tonne)
3rd June
1521.97
2283.49
1509.33
2253.33
4th June
1536.32
2311.06
1529.67
2282.33
5th June
1558.09
2344.23
1546.33
2310.67
6th June
1593.06
2402.77
1562.33
2367.67
7th June
1574.97
2393.86
1559.33
2364.67
1557.00
2347.00
1541.00
2316.00
Average
ALLIANCE OF COCOA PRODUCING COUNTRIES, NATIONAL ASSEMBLY COMPLEX,
TAFAWA BALEWA SQUARE, P.O. BOX 1718, LAGOS, NIGERIA. TEL: +234-70-9814-1735; +234-70-9814-1736;
FAX: +234-1-290-4262 Email: econs@copal-cpa.org Website: www.copal-cpa.org
2
International Financial Futures and Options Exchange (LIFFE)
London Futures Market – Summary of Trading Activities
(£ per tone)
Monday
Month
Jul 2013
Sep 2013
Dec 2013
Mar 2014
May 2014
Jul 2014
Sep 2014
Dec 2014
3rd June
Opening Trans
1487
1494
1496
1491
1495
1503
1510
1524
Mar 2015
May 2015
Average/Totals
Tuesday
Month
Jul 2013
Sep 2013
Dec 2013
Mar 2014
May 2014
Jul 2014
Sep 2014
Dec 2014
4th June
Opening Trans
1507
1510
1507
1509
1509
1511
1536
1540
Mar 2015
May 2015
Average/Totals
Wednesday
Month
Jul 2013
Sep 2013
Dec 2013
Mar 2014
May 2014
Jul 2014
Sep 2014
Dec 2014
Mar 2015
May 2015
Average/Totals
5th June
Opening Trans
1528
1529
1531
1529
1530
1533
1535
2013
Settle
1507
1510
1511
1509
1510
1515
1520
1524
1529
1534
1517
Change
16
14
14
14
13
13
13
14
14
14
High
1512S
1516S
1517S
1514S
1514S
1513S
1510S
1524S
Low
1487
1491
1492S
1490
1491S
1498S
1510S
1524S
Volume
5,565
4,030
2,490
1,828
598
72
5
1
0
0
14,589
Change
21
20
20
20
20
21
21
21
21
21
High
1532
1533S
1533
1530S
1529S
1534
1536S
1540S
Low
1500
1503S
1504
1503S
1504
1508S
1536S
1540S
Volume
5,908
4,155
1,433
834
269
121
1
1
0
0
12,722
Change
24
16
10
8
9
9
9
9
4
4
High
1555
1550
1548
1544
1544S
1548S
1551S
Low
1523S
1521S
1524S
1522S
1523S
1530S
1535S
Volume
13,503
11,530
4,407
2,612
1,422
210
5
0
0
0
33,689
2013
Settle
1528
1530
1531
1529
1530
1536
1541
1545
1550
1555
1538
2013
Settle
1552
1546
1541
1537
1539
1545
1550
1554
1554
1559
1548
ALLIANCE OF COCOA PRODUCING COUNTRIES, NATIONAL ASSEMBLY COMPLEX,
TAFAWA BALEWA SQUARE, P.O. BOX 1718, LAGOS, NIGERIA. TEL: +234-70-9814-1735; +234-70-9814-1736;
FAX: +234-1-290-4262 Email: econs@copal-cpa.org Website: www.copal-cpa.org
3
Thursday
Month
Jul 2013
Sep 2013
Dec 2013
Mar 2014
May 2014
Jul 2014
Sep 2014
6th June
Opening Trans
1548
1543
1534
1533
1539
1545
1549
Dec 2014
Mar 2015
May 2015
Average/Totals
Friday
7th June
Month
Settle
1568
1563
1556
1553
1555
1561
1566
1570
1570
1575
1564
Average/Totals
Average for the week
1562
Sep 2013
Dec 2013
Mar 2014
May 2014
Jul 2014
Sep 2014
Dec 2014
Mar 2015
May 2015
Change
16
17
15
16
16
16
16
16
16
16
High
1572
1567S
1559S
1555
1558S
1552S
1549S
Low
1545
1540
1534S
1533S
1535S
1543S
1549S
Volume
7,096
5,833
2,052
2,533
1,027
19
1
0
0
0
18,561
Change
-5
-3
-1
-1
-1
-2
-2
-2
-2
-2
High
1570
1567S
1558S
1554S
1555
1561S
1562S
Low
1546
1542S
1535S
1539S
1540S
1549S
1562S
Volume
4,084
5,981
3,310
2,334
1,492
165
1
0
0
0
17,367
2013
Settle
1563
1560
1555
1552
1554
1559
1564
1568
1568
1573
1561
Jul 2013
Opening Trans
1569
1563
1558
1554
1553
1560
1562
2013
ALLIANCE OF COCOA PRODUCING COUNTRIES, NATIONAL ASSEMBLY COMPLEX,
TAFAWA BALEWA SQUARE, P.O. BOX 1718, LAGOS, NIGERIA. TEL: +234-70-9814-1735; +234-70-9814-1736;
FAX: +234-1-290-4262 Email: econs@copal-cpa.org Website: www.copal-cpa.org
3158
3158
4
New York Board of Trade
(New York Futures Market – Summary of Trading Activities)
(US$ per tone)
Monday
Month
Jul 2013
Sep 2013
Dec 2013
Mar 2014
May 2014
Jul 2014
Sep 2014
Dec 2014
Mar 2015
May 2015
3rd June
Opening Trans
2191
2205
2214
2215
2231
2266
2280
0
0
0
Average/Totals
Tuesday
Month
Jul 2013
Sep 2013
Dec 2013
Mar 2014
May 2014
Jul 2014
Sep 2014
Dec 2014
Mar 2015
May 2015
4th June
Opening Trans
2246
2249
2250
2249
2280
2300
2306
0
0
0
Average/Totals
Wednesday
Month
Jul 2013
Sep 2013
Dec 2013
Mar 2014
May 2014
Jul 2014
Sep 2014
Dec 2014
Mar 2015
May 2015
Average/Totals
5th June
Opening Trans
2283
2280
2290
2299
2303
2300
2329
2337
0
0
2013
Settle
2246
2249
2255
2258
2265
2268
2273
2280
2287
2289
2267
Change
55
49
46
43
45
44
45
45
44
High
2256
2259
2263
2264
2270
2276
2280
0
0
0
Low
2191
2200
2214
2214
2225
2266
2280
0
0
0
Volume
27,220
14,459
5,832
1,850
432
24
5
0
0
0
49,822
Change
37
35
34
36
36
36
36
36
36
36
High
2286
2287
2290
2295
2300
2304
2306
0
0
0
Low
2234
2236
2245
2249
2280
2300
2306
0
0
0
Volume
27,691
17,536
5,295
1,718
355
129
25
19
3
0
52,771
Change
25
27
27
27
25
26
26
26
26
36
High
2312
2313
2317
2321
2325
2329
2334
2337
0
0
Low
2280
2278
2283
2290
2296
2300
2329
2337
0
0
Volume
28,083
22,631
4,697
1,894
414
28
10
13
2
0
57,772
2013
Settle
2283
2284
2289
2294
2301
2304
2309
2316
2323
2325
2303
2013
Settle
2308
2311
2316
2321
2326
2330
2335
2342
2349
2361
2330
ALLIANCE OF COCOA PRODUCING COUNTRIES, NATIONAL ASSEMBLY COMPLEX,
TAFAWA BALEWA SQUARE, P.O. BOX 1718, LAGOS, NIGERIA. TEL: +234-70-9814-1735; +234-70-9814-1736;
FAX: +234-1-290-4262 Email: econs@copal-cpa.org Website: www.copal-cpa.org
5
Thursday
Month
Jul 2013
Sep 2013
Dec 2013
Mar 2014
May 2014
Jul 2014
Sep 2014
Dec 2014
Mar 2015
May 2015
6th June
Opening Trans
2303
2307
2305
2311
2338
2341
2345
2349
0
0
Average/Totals
Friday
7th June
Month
Settle
2363
2365
2368
2371
2376
2379
2382
2386
2393
2404
2379
Average/Totals
Average for the week
2380
Sep 2013
Dec 2013
Mar 2014
May 2014
Jul 2014
Sep 2014
Dec 2014
Mar 2015
May 2015
Change
55
54
52
50
50
49
47
44
44
43
High
2373
2374
2374
2378
2380
2380
2386
2354
0
0
Low
2298
2300
2305
2311
2338
2341
2342
2349
0
0
Volume
40,384
31,355
7,645
2,403
611
56
151
50
4
0
82,659
Change
1
3
2
1
1
1
1
2
2
2
High
2371
2374
2375
2378
2384
2381
2391
0
0
0
Low
2326
2331
2341
2344
2350
2380
2383
0
0
0
Volume
28,177
26,930
5,912
1,805
935
78
55
26
1
0
63,919
2013
Settle
2364
2368
2370
2372
2377
2380
2383
2388
2395
2406
2380
Jul 2013
Opening Trans
2363
2365
2364
2367
2379
2381
2383
0
0
0
2013
11622
11622
ALLIANCE OF COCOA PRODUCING COUNTRIES, NATIONAL ASSEMBLY COMPLEX,
TAFAWA BALEWA SQUARE, P.O. BOX 1718, LAGOS, NIGERIA. TEL: +234-70-9814-1735; +234-70-9814-1736;
FAX: +234-1-290-4262 Email: econs@copal-cpa.org Website: www.copal-cpa.org
6
News
NEWS
Health and Nutrition
'Healthier' chocolates gives US cocoa demand a shot in the arm
Reuters
By Marcy Nicholson
Jun 3, 2013
(Reuters) - In an increasingly diet-conscious nation where the amount of
chocolate candy sold has tumbled in recent years, a niche segment of the
U.S. market is taking off: so-called "healthier" chocolate.
Studies declaring health benefits found in cocoa, combined with new
chocolate products touting lower fat and calories, have helped
manufacturers to capitalize on a growing consumer appetite for these
alternative sweets in the United States, the world's biggest chocolate consumer.
Nestle USA says the lower-calorie chocolate line that it launched in 2011 was one of its snack division's bestever debuts. A year later, Hershey Co brought out Simple Pleasures, a brand with almost a third less fat than
average milk chocolates. The world leading maker of industrial chocolate for retail brand companies, Barry
Callebaut, says products with health benefits now make up 5 percent of its sales.
Rising demand for these products is increasingly apparent in a recent improvement in the North American cocoa
market, where demand slowed throughout much of 2012. A surprising turnaround was seen in the first quarter
when "grindings", the term for processing cocoa beans which is shorthand for commercial demand, rose nearly
6 percent in North America, the biggest annual jump in nearly two years.
In Europe and Asia, first quarter grindings tumbled.
Also included in the supposedly better-for-you chocolate segment are bars that are gluten- or sugar-free, or that
have additives like probiotics to help promote healthy digestion and other possible benefits.
Francisco Redruello, Euromonitor International senior industry analyst for foods in London said these
"healthier" products are already having an influence on grindings. "There's really a concern about obesity in the
U.S. and this is having an impact on demand for chocolate confectionery," he said. "So 2012 has seen new
concepts, new lines, trying to launch healthier chocolate with low fat."
The tonnage of reduced fat chocolates sold in the United States jumped 5 percent in 2012, outperforming the
overall chocolate confectionary market, according to Euromonitor, an international consumer market research
firm.
Euromonitor expects U.S. chocolate confectionery retail volume sales will improve and be flat in 2013, and said
volume fell roughly 15 percent over the past five years after many companies reduced treat sizes.
Lower calorie and low fat launches
The United States is the No. 1 chocolate-consuming country, though several European countries consume more
per person.
About 13 percent of the world's annual cocoa production, just over 500,000 tonnes, is used for U.S. chocolate
candy, according to U.S. Economic Census data analyzed by the National Confectioners Association (NCA).
That accounts for two-thirds of total U.S. cocoa consumption. "Today, it is increasingly about consumers
ALLIANCE OF COCOA PRODUCING COUNTRIES, NATIONAL ASSEMBLY COMPLEX,
TAFAWA BALEWA SQUARE, P.O. BOX 1718, LAGOS, NIGERIA. TEL: +234-70-9814-1735; +234-70-9814-1736;
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7
weighing not only the costs of goods, but the multitude of benefits they offer as well," said Todd Hale, a senior
vice president, consumer and shopper insights for Nielsen, which provides global consumer information and
insights.
Nestle USA, a subsidiary of Nestle SA, expanded on its low-fat Skinny Cow frozen snack line with Skinny Cow
Candy in 2011. In March, it added Divine Filled Chocolates to their line: 130-calorie pouches of three chocolate
candies.
Tricia Bowles, communications manager for Nestle Confections & Snacks, Nestle USA, said this was one of the
most successful new product launches in her 20 years with the division. "We do not view these products as
being healthy but fantastic alternatives to what you might eat when we all know we love chocolate," Bowles
said.
Hershey states that its Simple Pleasures line contains 30 percent less fat than the average leading milk
chocolates.
Swiss-based Barry Callebaut, which manufactures chocolate for large food companies like Hershey Co,
Mondelez, Unilever, as well as bakeries and others, has also noticed the shift, said spokesman Raphael
Wermuth.
Wermuth said the company sees rising demand for chocolates with "health benefits", such as chocolates with
high flavonol content, which scientists have found to positively impact brain performance. Other chocolates that
fall into this category include those with less fat or that are sweetened with refined sugar alternatives such as
stevia.
Meanwhile, a recent study by global market research provider Mintel showed U.S. consumer preferences shifted
away from milk chocolate toward dark chocolate, which is considered to have more health benefits.
Milk chocolate is still favored overall, and while Simple Pleasures and Skinny Cow have a small following
among the diet conscious, they will remain a tiny niche. "In general, people don't eat chocolate to feel well, they
eat it to feel good," said Marcia Mogelonsky, director of Innovation and Insight at Mintel. "The last thing on
most chocolate eaters' minds is health."
Production & Quality
Cocoa farmers target N100b yield
The Guardian Nigeria
By Muyiwa Adeyemi
01 June 2013
EFFORTS by cocoa farmers to increase their production and hit N100 billion target this year, during the week,
received a boost.
About 3500 farmers were in Ekiti State empowered to increase their production by over 100 per cent this
season.
Managing Director of Arjamaro Nigeria Ltd, Mr. Oladimeji Filani, whose company has been training the
farmers on modern techniques on cocoa farming disclosed that Nigeria produced 200,000 metric tonnes of
cocoa last year, which translated to N70 billion, as against past annual record of over 600,000 . He was,
however, optimistic that the country will hit 300,000 tonnes this year with several efforts being made by various
stakeholders in public and private sectors.
Filani, whose company is into buying and processing of cocoa regretted that Nigerian cocoa is no longer selling
at premium, as a result of the sharp practices by the farmers that stock it with impunities such as stone and
chaffs. He said, “this has not only reduced the price of Nigerian cocoa at international market, but scared foreign
companies from patronising it. As at today, Japan will not touch Nigerian cocoa because of dishonesty among
ALLIANCE OF COCOA PRODUCING COUNTRIES, NATIONAL ASSEMBLY COMPLEX,
TAFAWA BALEWA SQUARE, P.O. BOX 1718, LAGOS, NIGERIA. TEL: +234-70-9814-1735; +234-70-9814-1736;
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8
some of our farmers that put stones and other impunities in the bag, so some foreign countries prefer to
patronise Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire because their products are cleaner and better packaged.”
He enjoined government, both at the State and Federal levels, to do more to encourage cocoa production in
Nigeria and stop relying on income from oil. He stated that there is a big market for cocoa and the country has
better land texture for it than Ghana and other African countries that are making fortunes from it. “The lands we
have in Ondo and Ekiti States alone are more than what Ghana has, yet Ghana has become the largest producer
of the farm produce in the world, pushing Nigeria to fourth position. Nigeria in the First Republic was not only
the largest cocoa producer in the world, but made a lot of fortune that made the old Western Region financially
viable than other regions.
At the event that was held in Ijan Ekiti, the cocoa farmers were encouraged to form a cooperative society, and
were given farming apparatus like chemicals including insecticides, fungicides, sprayers, raincoats, eye goggles,
nose mask and hand gloves.
Indonesia struggles to boost coffee, cocoa output
Agrimoney.com
03 June, 2013
Indonesia, the foremost force in palm oil, is struggling to raise its game in soft commodities, with disease
blighting expansion in cocoa, and poor weather leaving it at risk of losing to Colombia third rank in coffee
output.
The South East Asian country will see coffee production fall 5.5% to 9.17m bags in 2013-14, the US
Department of Agriculture bureau in Kuala Lumpur said.
The decline is "principally due to poor weather" - drought during June and September, which caused "poor
conditions for flowering and budding" and abortion of flowers, followed by excessive rains as bean were
developing in December and January. "Heavy rains pounded young coffee cherries and a significant portion of
the cherries were lost as a result," the bureau said.
Northern Sumatra, which accounts for some 15% of Indonesian coffee output, has been spared the poor weather
and, indeed, separately on Monday government data showed the region exporting 22,589 tonnes of robusta
coffee last month, up 141% from May 2012.
The increase extended to 11 months an unbroken run of year-on-year increases in Sumatran shipments of
robusta coffee, far more widely grown than arabica beans in Indonesia.
'Complicated bureaucratic problems'
Indonesia's coffee output decline is being exacerbated by poor agronomic practices, poor quality planting
materials and an "abundance of older, less productive trees", which render the sector "more prone to severe
weather patterns", the bureau said.
And while Indonesia's government has begun efforts to improve the sector's performance, a programme of
support for replanting trees and expanding area "has been plagued by complicated bureaucratic problems
between local and central government".
The plans have also been undermined by "poor co-ordination among Indonesian coffee stakeholders, and a topdown approach that is ineffective in channelling support and resources to coffee farmers".
Softs vs palm
Indonesia's decline in coffee leaves it at risk of to returning to Colombia the third place in world coffee
production it took in 2008-09, as the South American country's output suffered from coffee rust and a replanting
programme with trees resistant to the fungus.
ALLIANCE OF COCOA PRODUCING COUNTRIES, NATIONAL ASSEMBLY COMPLEX,
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9
Colombian production in 2013-14 is set to rise to a six-year high of 9.0m bags as these replanted trees reach
maturity, the USDA's Bogota office believes.
Indonesia's fortunes are also stalling in cocoa, the other major soft commodity of which it is a top producer,
ranking third with production expected to stay at 450,000 tonnes in 2012-13, according to the International
Cocoa Organization.
"Indonesia is still struggling to increase cocoa production, as its ageing trees, most of them planted in the 1980s,
are vulnerable to disease that is hard to stamp out because of the logistics involved in raising awareness within
the country's vast network of smallholders," the ICCO said last week.
The country's mixed record in soft commodities contrasts with its performance in palm oil, in which Indonesia,
the top producer and exporter, is expected to produce 31.0m tonnes of palm oil in 2013-14, up 50% in five
years, according to USDA estimates.
World Cocoa Foundation announces $3 Million in Globe-spanning support for Cocoa Sustainability
PR Newswire UK (press release)
June 4, 2013
WASHINGTON -- The World Cocoa Foundation (WCF) announced today $3 million in new support for cocoa
improvement projects in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. The efforts will use a range of methods, including
internet resources, mobile phone technology and microfinance to focus on providing cocoa farmers with needed
information to increase the quality and quantity of their cocoa yields. The announcement came as WCF's Board
met in Washington, D.C., on the eve of the organization's 23rd Partnership Meeting, which is bringing together
the world's leading public and private sector experts on cocoa.
"Our commitment to cocoa sustainability is rooted at the source -- with farmers, farms, and cocoa communities,"
said Bill Guyton, WCF President. "These new efforts across the globe by WCF to ensure cocoa sustainability
will directly benefit cocoa farmers by the tens of thousands. They also continue our tradition of public-private
partnerships that combine the best in government support with serious financial commitments from the private
sector."
In Africa, WCF announced five initiatives. The first is a new mobile phone based system to provide cocoa
farmers with practical information on good agricultural practices that, when applied, can improve quality and
quantity of cocoa yields. The program, funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development, will launch in
Cote d'Ivoire, the world's leading producer of cocoa, following a pilot project in Ghana. Also in Cote d'Ivoire,
WCF announced the start of a new school construction project in partnership with member company Fazer to
provide improved educational opportunities for children in cocoa-growing communities.
In Nigeria, WCF announced a new partnership with the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural
Development to provide assistance to 70,000 cocoa farming households in at least 10 Nigerian states. The
program will focus on business skills trainings and support for diversification of rural economies to increase
cocoa farm household incomes. It could ultimately generate benefits for more than 480,000 Nigerians. Also in
Nigeria, WCF is launching an internet-based technology to provide farmers with resources on good agricultural
practices, nutrition, and other information valuable to farmers and the agricultural sector.
In Liberia, a WCF project funded by Chevron is focused on increased access to improved planting material and
agricultural inputs, with the goal of increasing production and fostering economic development in rural areas of
the country reaching 1,000 farmers and their households.
For the first time in its history, WCF is receiving support for its activities in West Africa from a Japanese
member company, Meiji Co., Ltd., which is injecting new private sector funding into an ongoing effort by WCF
to increase farmer incomes in Cameroon, Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana, and Nigeria.
In Asia, WCF will partner with ACDI/VOCA to support a project in Indonesia to develop the country's cocoa
sector by helping farmers improve their productivity through innovations in mobile banking, microfinance
loans, and ICT applications. WCF members Armajaro, Continaf, The Hershey Company, Mars, Mondelez and
Olam are supporting the project.
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10
In Latin America, WCF announced that it would hold its 24th Partnership Meeting in Santo Domingo,
Dominican Republic, on October 15-16, 2013. The meeting, which is being held for the first time in the
Caribbean and supported by WCF member contributions and the Dominican Republic Export and Investment
Center, will again assemble a wide range of leading cocoa sustainability experts from around the world to
discuss efforts to improve cocoa livelihoods and ensure a more sustainable approach to cocoa production.
About WCF
The World Cocoa Foundation (WCF) is an international membership foundation of more than 100 companies
that promotes a sustainable cocoa economy by providing cocoa farmers with the tools they need to grow more
and better cocoa, market it successfully, and make greater profits. WCF's membership includes cocoa and
chocolate manufacturers, processors, supply chain managers, and other companies worldwide, representing
more than 80% of the global cocoa market. For more information, visit www.worldcocoa.org.
Cocoa genome to help speed production
Confectionery Production
7 June 2013
cocoa
A paper published in Genome Biology has revealed the freshly sequenced
genome of the most commonly cultivated cacao plant in the world.
Researchers have utilised high quality DNA sequences to demonstrate the
usefulness and quality of the sequence to identify genetic markers that can lead
to higher yielding cocoa plants that still produce better tasting cocoa.
There are many varieties of the cacao tree (Theobroma cacao L), but the green podded Costa Rican Matina or
Amelonado variety is the most popular because of its high yield and pleasant flavour. In Ecuador, a red podded
high yielding variety, CCN 51, is blended with a green podded, better tasting but lower yielding variety. But the
adulteration reduces the overall quality of the chocolate, so cacao growers are keen to improve the quality of
cacao beans exported from Ecuador.
Researchers from Mars sequenced the genome of the Matina cacao variety, then used genetic analyses and
comparisons with other varieties, to highlight a gene involved in pod colour variation. Zooming further in on the
gene sequence, they then identified a single DNA letter change that affected levels of the gene’s expression, and
so the colour of the pod.
Cacao plant breeders trying to produce a delicious high-yield strain through cross breeding have met with
limited success. So the genetic marker could, in theory, be used to screen young seedlings, and highlight
desirable plants long before they reach maturity. This would avoid the expense and labour of growing up
potential duds, ultimately improving the quality of cacao plants and the chocolate made from them.
Although the genome sequence of the Criollo cacao variety was reported two years ago, it’s genetically quite
distinct and so a poor representative of the cacao types cultivated worldwide.
Since the publication of the genome sequence, researchers have been working to identify genetic markers that
can produce more productive cocoa plants for farmers while still providing consumers with high quality and
superior taste. The genome sequence research is a part of an overall effort to use traditional breeding techniques
to develop planting materials that farmers can use to be more productive.
Nigeria targets cocoa output doubling as new entity spurs growth
Bloomberg
By Alan Bjerga @ abjerga@bloomberg.net
Jun 6, 2013
Nigeria, the fourth-largest cocoa producer in the world, is creating a new company to help revive the domestic
industry and diversify its economy beyond oil, according to Akinwunmi Ayo Adesina, the minister of
agriculture and natural resources.
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The Cocoa Corporation of Nigeria, which will be led by the industry, will help double production of the
chocolate-making ingredient to 500,000 metric tons in two years, Adesina said today during an interview in
Washington. Investments in processing will allow 25 percent of the cocoa to be consumed domestically, while
new warehouses will provide storage necessary to time sales at better market prices, he said.
“We are putting Nigeria back into the world cocoa market,” said Adesina, who has a doctorate in economics
from Purdue University in Lafayette, Indiana. After becoming the second-largest exporter in the 1960s, Nigeria
lost market share to Ivory Coast, Ghana and Indonesia as the country concentrated its resources on oil
production, he said.
Cocoa futures traded in New York are up 5.8 percent this year at $2,366 a metric ton on signs that demand for
chocolate is rising. In the first quarter, North America’s grindings, a measure of demand by end-users,
unexpectedly rose 5.8 percent from a year earlier, according to the National Confectioners Association in
Washington.
The Nigerian government will regulate the new cocoa corporation, while local officials will contribute land and
the central bank will handle development finance, Adesina said. Supporters including the World Cocoa
Foundation, which works with private companies and government donors to train farmers in sustainable
growing practices, would also be involved at the ground level, he said.
Nigeria earned about $900 million from cocoa exports in 2012, and agriculture was responsible for about 44
percent of the country’s gross domestic product, Adesina said. The agriculture minister was in Washington to
speak at a meeting of the World Cocoa Foundation.
The Market
EU tightens laws on African cocoa exports
Ventures Africa
June 3, 2013
Cocoa production
VENTURES AFRICA – Cocoa producing countries in Africa stand to lose
billions of euros in exports as the European Union has tightened laws on the
importation of cocoa beans into the economic group. In April this year, Cameroon
had their exports totally rejected.
Cameroon is the world’s fifth largest cocoa grower. Aside Cameroon, the bulk of the world’s cocoa beans
originates from West Africa. Ivory Coast is the world’s leading exporter of the crop with a whopping 40 percent
market share. Together with Ghana, Nigeria and Cameroon, the West African region produces more than 50
percent of the world’s cocoa beans.
Cameroon was the first African country to have its cocoa harvest rejected by the European Union, when 2,000
tonnes of beans failed to be certified in April. This the EU said, was due to high levels of chemicals found in the
product which they considered to be harmful to human health.
A Regulatory Manager at the food distribution company Cargill, Mark Yonker told DW TV in Paris that the
sub-standard conservation methods used is the root cause. “The main problem is drying the cocoa artificially.
When smoke comes in touch with cocoa beans, then you risk higher levels of what we call polycyclic aroma to
hydrocarbons,” Yonker explained.
Cocoa farmers in Cameroon generally dry their cocoa beans on tarred roads or smoke the produce in traditional
ovens. European buyers had previously warned Cameroon’s cocoa farmers that such practices could have
negative effects on the health of consumers.
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Chocolate, which is derived from cocoa has become a multi-billion euro industry and the mainstay of countries
like Ivory Coast and Ghana.
Farmer Kane Peter said it has been difficult for growers to abide with the new EU cocoa export legislation. “The
farmers are in a hurry, they will not persevere enough to ferment [the cocoa beans]. They will just take every
thing and pack in the oven for two days in order to be able to go and sell it.”
Susan Ako, another farmer, added that poverty is to blame for their rush in wanting to get their cocoa harvest to
the market. By so doing, they fail to observe the regulations. “You know that cocoa comes from the farm during
the rainy season. So farmers don’t persevere to dry their cocoa, they need fast money so they dry it anywhere.”
Huge quantities of bagged raw beans lie in villages across the Cameroon country waiting to be qualitycontrolled before being exported. Cameroonian authorities are cracking down on sub-standard cocoa processing
practices too by confiscating poorly dried beans, especially those dried on tarred roads.
Food preservation remains a challenge for African farmers as the practice of drying cocoa beans in unhealthy
means is not limited to Cameroon alone. Lack of investment in the sector means the cocoa farming is largely in
the hands of uneducated peasant farmers, who have little support to modernize their operations.
Cameroon’s Minister of Trade, Luc Magloire Atangana, said the government was taking measures to tackle the
problem. “On all roads farmers use to dry cocoa beans, the government has decided to distribute tarpaulins free
of charge. And in the south-west where heavy rains make it difficult for cocoa to dry, the government has
distributed ovens for drying cocoa.”
EU Consumer Federation representative, Phil Sigley says Cameroon has no choice but to modernize its cocoa
sector. “If they [farmers] produce good cocoa and it gets blended or mixed with bad cocoa, then that farmer may
not be getting the best he deserves.”
Cocoa is Cameroon’s main export. A slump in commodity prices of the product in the mid 1980s is said to have
caused a decade long recession in the country.
First export of Solomon Islands cocoa shipped out of Honiara
Radio New Zealand International
03 June, 2013
The first export of Solomon Islands cocoa to New Zealand has been shipped out
of Honiara.
Solomon Commodities Exports shipped six tonnes of beans to its newly
established processing centre in the North Island city of Tauranga last week.
The SIBC reports the centre will initially manufacture and distribute cocoa block, liquor and nibs products to
chocolate manufacturers and catering industry consumers in New Zealand.
Solomon Commodities Exports managing director, Clive Carroll, says the Tauranga facility will now give
Solomon Islands cocoa specific origin identity.
Cocoa moves higher amid disappointing production reports
Futures Magazine
By Jack Scoville
June 7, 2013
COCOA
General Comments: Futures closed higher again, and pushed into resistance areas
on the charts. The close was positive and short term trends are up in New York
and in London. It looks like the buying was based on the charts as New York
futures could not move to new lows and in fact have held at an important area on
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the charts. The weather is good in West Africa, with more moderate temperatures and some rains. The mid crop
harvest is moving to completion, and less than expected production along with smaller beans is reported.
Malaysia and Indonesia crops appear to be in good condition and weather is called favorable.
Overnight News: Scattered showers are expected in West Africa. Temperatures will average near to above
normal. Malaysia and Indonesia should see episodes of isolated showers. Temperatures should average near
normal. Brazil will get mostly dry conditions and warm temperatures. ICE certified stocks are sharply higher
today at 5.165 million bags.
Processing & Manufacturing
Business & Economy
World Cocoa Foundation, Nigerian Government forge New Partnership
PR Newswire (press release)
Source: World Cocoa Foundation
June 6, 2013
o
Nearly 500,000 People in Nigerian Cocoa Producing States Stand to Benefit
WASHINGTON, June 5, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- The World Cocoa Foundation (WCF) and Nigeria's Federal
Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development announce $1.2 million in new funding to provide assistance to
70,000 cocoa farming households in at least 10 Nigerian states by 2015. The program will focus on business
skills trainings and support for diversification of rural economies in order to increase cocoa farm household
incomes. The program is expected to generate benefits for more than 480,000 Nigerians and help double
household incomes within the next five to six years. Nigeria's Minister for Agriculture and Rural Development,
Dr. Akinwumi Ayodeji Adesina , made the announcement today at WCF's 23rd Annual Partnership Meeting in
Washington, D.C.
Commenting on the partnership, WCF President Bill Guyton said, "The World Cocoa Foundation and our
company members are grateful for the confidence placed in us by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, state
governments and non-government institutions and are excited about this opportunity to expand services to
thousands of small scale farmers in the cocoa-producing states of Nigeria."
The Nigerian partnership between the Federal Government of Nigeria and WCF builds upon the foundation of
the WCF Cocoa Livelihoods Program (CLP), funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and WCF
member companies with partners from the German Development Agency GIZ and SOCODEVI. This
partnership will ensure that the Nigerian program benefits from lessons already learned through CLP's
engagement in other West African cocoa-producing countries.
"Nigeria has a history of a prosperous, viable and vibrant cocoa industry in the past. The cocoa industry
provided us with foreign exchange and revenue, which built for us our enduring infrastructure, institutions and
edifices," Minister Adesina noted.
In carrying out the program activities, WCF will closely collaborate with Nigerian federal and state institutions,
with active involvement of the Nigerian Ministry of Agriculture's Cocoa Division, its Cocoa Transformation
Agenda Team, and other local institutions. The Cocoa Transformation Team will lead and provide guidance and
oversight on the overall program coordination, and will assist implementing partners with advice on specific
technical issues, identification of innovative technologies, and leveraging other complementary programs.
"The federal government is developing partnerships with countries and investors that are ready to invest in
Nigeria. We are adopting the value chain approach from input supply to support on-farm production to value
addition, local consumption and export of produce and products. Our goal is to eventually account for at least 25
per cent of the world market, with an output of 500,000 MT by 2015, as we aim at the 1.0 million MT mark,"
Minister Adesina continued.
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EU regulators okay Barry Callebaut to buy Petra Foods cocoa unit
Reuters
Jun 7, 2013
(Reuters) - EU regulators gave the green light on Friday for Swiss chocolate maker Barry Callebaut to buy the
cocoa business of Singaporean group Petra Foods.
The EU's executive Commission found that the market would still face sufficient competition after the two firms
merged. "In the markets for the production and sale of semi-finished cocoa products, the parties' activities focus
on different regions, since Petra Foods is mainly active in Asia," the Commission said in a statement.
The Swiss-based firm is the world's biggest maker of finished chocolate products for clients such as Nestle and
Hershey, and buys roughly 650,000 tonnes of cocoa annually around the globe.
The $950 million acquisition of Petra Food's cocoa business should raise that number to roughly 1 million
tonnes, and give Barry Callebaut access to high-growth emerging markets. [ID: nL5E8NC2T2]
Labour Issues
Environmental Issues
Research & Development
Scientists have sequenced the genome of cocoa to make better tasting chocolate
Motherboard (blog)
By Jason Koebler
June 3, 2013
Chocoholics, rejoice: Science is trying to make your Mars bar taste better. Well, technically, Mars is trying to
make your Mars bar taste better. Scientists at the company (and Indiana University, and a few other places) have
successfully sequenced the genome of one of the world's most commonly grown cocoa tree in an attempt to
make certain varieties of chocolate taste less acidic.
That's no small feat: A similar project undertaken in 2011 found that one variety of the cocoa tree has more than
28,000 protein-coding genes; humans have just 23,000. Now, the new sequencing of a more common (and
distinct from the variety sequenced in 2011) tree could lead to real changes in the industry.
There are many varieties of the cocoa tree, with one known as CCN 51 the most commonly grown in Latin
America, where it accounts for large parts of the Brazilian, Ecuadorian, Peruvian, and Colombian economies.
Worldwide, more than $100 billion is spent on chocolate each year, according to the World Cocoa Foundation.
Cocoa trees are grown in more than 50 countries and the crop is creates roughly 45 million jobs worldwide.
Before it makes it to the supermarkets, cocoa beans are harvested from pods, which eventually mature into one
of five colors: red, purple, orange, yellow, and green. A Costa Rican variety known as Matina is one of the
world's finest chocolates and is known for its mature green pods, which create high yields of good-tasting
chocolate. CCN 51, on the other hand, has high yields and is resistant to many diseases that plague cocoa trees,
but its red pods create chocolate with an acidic taste. That's a big problem for farmers who grow the variety,
especially because cocoa is one of the few crops in which small farms provide more than 90 percent of the
world's supply.
To combat that, farmers have tried cross breeding CCN 51 with green-podded Costa Rican trees, but the quality
of those beans is still inferior to that of Matina, and the cross breeding can result in what are known as "dud"
trees, which is not a good thing for small farmers. "Because of its high yield and disease resistance, the most
ubiquitous clone in large cacao plantations in Latin America is CCN 51," the researchers write. "Unfortunately,
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15
it has a rather undesirable flavor profile because of its high acidity and astringency, and also because it lacks
desirable floral aromas."
Turns out that one single DNA base change on the plant's fourth chromosome accounts for the color of the pod,
researchers described in Genome Biology this week. Scientists working at places such as the Ecuadorian Cacao
Research Institute could then, using a process known as marker-assisted selection (basically a souped-up version
of what farmers have been doing for decades), could sequence a tree's DNA before deciding which ones to
breed.
"Identification of genes that regulate pod color therefore constitutes a crucial first step toward the development
of a platform for marker-assisted selection (MAS) aimed at the development of high-yielding alternatives to
CCN 51," they write. "The ability to screen young cacao seedlings with molecular markers and to select only
those carrying alleles that result in green pods would greatly reduce the population sizes required for the
laborious and expensive phenotypic evaluations of unlinked flavor and yield traits."
All that means is better-tasting chocolate might be heading your way. And you didn't even have to do anything
for it.
Cacao Pulp: It's not just a waste product of cocoa anymore
Nutritional Outlook
By Robby Gardner
June 5, 2013
Inside of every cacao fruit (Theobroma cacao) lies a cluster of cacao beans, the starting material for finished
cocoa and chocolate products. To get to these beans, however, requires the removal of a thin layer of white pulp.
If it isn’t left on the beans during fermentation, the pulp is simply thrown out.
Despite the intensive labor required to peel off this fleshy pulp, a few cocoa suppliers are, somewhat
simultaneously, finding valuable commercial uses for what many would otherwise call a waste product of cocoa.
Their discoveries could change the market for cacao (the fruit) and cocoa (the processed product) as we know it.
Beverages
A quick look at the historical use of cacao pulp reveals that cacao farmers, and their immediate communities,
have long enjoyed the pulp as juice. Inspired by this tradition and seeing it at his family’s own cacao farms in
Ecuador, Joseph Montgomery is heading up Agro Innova Co. (Weston, FL) with the 2013 launch of Suavva, the
first commercial-scale juice smoothie from cacao pulp.
Montgomery says that “like most fruits, the pulp is where the sweetness (fruit sugar) is found in cacao.” But
sweetness alone might not warrant a business focused solely on pulp. Luckily, cacao pulp can fall back on many
healthful nutrients.
A single serving of Suavva contains 270% of the daily reference intake (DRI) for vitamin E, 395% for vitamin
D, 81% for magnesium, and high amounts of B vitamins. Other pulp ingredients are presumably as nutritious,
but nutrient declarations are hard to come by at this early stage in the industry. If cacao juice really picks up, its
combination of exotic origin, taste, and nutrition has all the makings of the “next” coconut water.
Powders and Extracts
The upstart cacao pulp market is capable of highly scientific and functional ingredients, too. Iris Naturals
International (Forest Hills, NY) takes this approach by supplying Brazilian cacao pulp in powders and extracts.
Standardized cacao pulp ingredients are a strong candidate for formulas in which ingredients such as flavonoids
(especially epicatechin) and methylxanthines (theobromine and caffeine) are desired. Famous for their presence
in cacao beans, these compounds are naturally retained in the pulp, too, although to a lesser extent.
Iris Naturals says its soluble cacao pulp powder is suitable for yogurts, ice creams, beverages, and dry mixes.
The insoluble pulp extract is better suited for bars, baked goods, cereals, confectionery, and cosmetics.
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Fruit Fermentations
The old-school approach to cacao pulp is to simply use this material to ferment or “sweat” cacao beans. When
left on beans for several days, in sun or artificial heat, pulp imparts its sweet and slightly acidic flavor and
aroma to the beans. These beans aren’t often sold to U.S. markets—the national palette just isn’t accustomed to
them, according to one supplier—so European markets enjoy much of the purchasing power. A new style of
fermentation, however, could have everyone giving fermented cacao beans a second look.
Cocoa Family (Duarte, CA) is pleased to report that it is now fermenting its cacao beans with fruits and spices.
Sample tests have yielded “delicious” results.
“During fermentation, we aerate the beans (move them) once or twice a day,” says Vaagn Arakelyan, Cocoa
Family director of cocoa trade. “But now you have fruits chopped up and mixed in with the beans.” For now, the
company is exploring chili, coconut, banana, orange, and mango as starter flavors.
Arakelyan says a “hint” of flavor is retained after the beans are dried, and even after light roasting. Although his
company plans to market the fruit-infused beans heavily toward the raw cacao market, where the beans are eaten
in their natural state, one can imagine the possibilities with chocolate made from fruit-infused beans. The project
could offer a new level of control to chocolatiers, Arakelyan says, because “It’s one thing if you buy couverture
and you’re limited to how you can use it. Now, you get a raw or lightly roasted bean with a natural hint of
flavor, and you have more room for creativity.”
Cocoa Family says the idea of fruit-infused beans may carry over to similarly structured plant pods, such as
coffee beans, mesquite, and Sacha Inchi seeds. We’ll just have to wait and see.
Promotion & Consumption
Others
FG to create Cocoa Corporation of Nigeria
CHANNELS
By: Channels Television
June 07, 2013
A new company, the Cocoa Corporation of Nigeria is in the works to revive the
nation’s cocoa industry and diversify the economy beyond oil.
During a meeting of the World Cocoa Foundation in Washington, Nigeria’s
Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr. Akinwunmi Adesina
revealed that the new company, to be known as the Cocoa Corporation of
Nigeria will double production of the cocoa beans to 500,000 metric tons in two
years.
Part of the plan is to invest in processing to allow for 25 percent local consumption, while new warehouses will
provide necessary storage.
Nigeria earned about $900 million from cocoa exports in 2012, while agriculture was responsible for about 44
percent of the country’s gross domestic product.
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