By Adnan Adams Mohammed
The President John Mahama’s government has announced a significant increase in the producer price of cocoa for the 2025/2026 season, effective August 7, 2025.
Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, Minister of Finance, revealed that the new price will be $5,040 per tonne, representing a 62.58% increase from the previous season’s price of $3,100 per tonne.
The new price translates to GH₵51,660 per tonne and GH₵3,228.75 per 64-kilogram bag of cocoa, based on an average exchange rate of GH₵10.25 to the US dollar.
Alignment with President Mahama’s Promise
The increase represents 70% of the gross Free-On-Board (FOB) value of $7,200 per tonne, aligning with President John Mahama’s commitment to pay cocoa farmers 70% of the FOB price.
Comparison to Previous Administration
The previous administration set the FOB value at $4,850 per tonne and the producer price at $3,100, representing 63.9% of FOB, despite better world market prices.
Impact on Farmers
While the increase is expected to benefit farmers, concerns have been raised about the potential impact of the strong cedi on the real earnings of farmers. With the cedi’s appreciation, the gains from the increased producer price may be reduced when converted to local currency.
The new producer price is expected to have a direct bearing on the income and welfare of hundreds of thousands of Ghanaian cocoa farmers who depend on the crop for their livelihood.
