Ghana is considering a 6% increase in the price paid to cocoa farmers for the 2026/27 season. While the move would give farmers a higher return, it could also widen the price gap with neighbouring Côte d’Ivoire and make cocoa smuggling into Ghana more attractive.
Bloomberg reports that Ghana is looking to raise the farmgate price to GH¢2,737 per 64-kilogramme bag, from the current GH¢2,587. The proposal still needs approval from the Finance Minister, according to people familiar with the matter.
The increase is part of Ghana’s effort to ensure farmers receive at least 70% of the free-on-board export value of their cocoa, giving growers a stronger share of what their beans fetch on the international market.
But there is another side to the move.
Côte d’Ivoire has kept its producer price unchanged, meaning Ghana’s proposed price would be about 75% higher. That could create a strong incentive for cocoa from Côte d’Ivoire to cross into Ghana, where the higher price could offer better returns.
Smuggling is already a familiar problem in the region. Ghana had targeted 650,000 tonnes of cocoa production for the 2025/26 season, but deliveries exceeded 750,000 tonnes, with smuggled beans from neighbouring countries partly contributing to the higher volumes.
The proposed price increase also comes as the global cocoa market braces for tighter supplies. Cocoa futures have risen about 50% since the end of May, with concerns over crop disease and El Niño-related weather conditions adding to worries about the West African harvest.
In Côte d’Ivoire, output could fall by about 20% to 1.75 million tonnes in the 2026/27 season, according to a late-August survey of traders and pod counters.
Ghana is also expecting its harvest to drop by 13% to 650,000 tonnes, Bloomberg reported last month.
At the same time, Ghana is trying to change how its cocoa sector is financed and priced, moving away from the traditional fixed pricing system towards one that is more closely linked to international market conditions.
The government is targeting GH¢16.3 billion through a cocoa-bill sale to finance purchases from farmers. A special purpose vehicle has also been established to issue the bills, which are expected to be listed on the Ghana Stock Exchange.
The proposal now awaits approval from the Finance Minister, with its impact on farmer incomes and cocoa flows across Ghana’s borders likely to become clearer as the new season gets underway.
