Ivory Coast Plays Blame Game for Cocoa Crisis in Top Producer
- Country cut price for farmers by 36% after futures tumbled
- Regulator blames demand and speculators for crisis, not itself
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Ivory Coast’s cocoa regulator pointed to speculators and prospects for a glut as the reason for a slump in futures that forced the nation to cut the price it pays farmers. There was something it didn’t blame: Itself.
Le Conseil du Cafe-Cacao also said a volatile pound and defaults by local exporters contributed to a plunge in international futures. But there’s frustration that the CCC’s slow response to the crisis gave speculators more reason to short prices, on expectations that beans would have to be resold at a time the market was forecast to return to surplus.