The cocoa sector sees improvements for July

What has been the variation of the international price of cocoa?

The stock market price of cocoa a year ago was at levels of $ 3,000 per ton; nowadays it is between $ 1,900 and $ 2,000 per ton, there is a 35% drop. The Ivory Coast represents 1,600,000 tons per year, and that country announced it would have a surplus production that will border 2 million tons.

With this situation, what is expected this year at the local level?

We believe that the cocoa market will remain at low levels, at least in the first half of this year, starting to experience improvements from the second half of July. We do not see with much optimism the fact that it reaches its previous levels. If prices remain low, production will be at similar levels. What we do hope for is that our producers see an opportunity to face the crisis by planting more cocoa varieties.

How much did the sector lose in 2016?

Last year the industry lost about $ 100 million in two aspects. The first is due to the effects of the El Niño phenomenon and the second due to the fall in prices. The sector is severely beaten and to recover, it requires financial support and incentives from the Government.