Good morning to fellow farmers, Ghana cocoa board, NPP Government under the Leadership of Nana Addo Dankwa Akuffo Addo, Friends from the Media and Ghanaians.

On behalf of all cocoa farmers in the country, we bring to this press statement.

We Cocoa farmers in Ghana are appealing to the Government through the media to consider this year cocoa price. The Living conditions in the country have become unbearable. Price of goods has gone up astronomically, transport fares are high, and cost of labor incurred in the maintenance of our cocoa farm has triple. Cocoa inputs such insecticide, pesticides, liquid fertilizers etc. has doubled. Although Cocoa Board support farmers with inputs such as those mentioned above, but it is not enough. Farmers have to do more maintain their farms.

We are calling on Gov. /COCOBOD to consider the following factors before coming out with the price of cocoa this year. We know that the cocoa price will be announced on the cocoa day. However COCOBOD should at the following factors before.

1. The high Cost of living in the country today. (E.g. Evening the sachet water has been increased to .50pesewas)
2. The high inflation in the country
3. Higher cost of maintaining cocoa farm.
4. The dangerous threats of illegal mining activities of gold to the cocoa farms.
5. Cedi to Dollar Depreciation. The fall of the Cedi against all the major foreign currencies)
6. Smuggling of our cocoa to Cote d'Ivoire. (The Exchange rate of the cedi to CFA in the neighboring Francophone countries is very high.)
7. Poor living conditions of Cocoa farmers.

The factors mentioned above should guide COCOBOD in determining the price of cocoa this year.

Recently Government of Ghana paid COLA (COST OF LIVING ALLOWANCE) of 15% to all government workers. Cocoa farmers were not part of this COLA, because we are not government workers. However we are all living in Ghana, We go to the same market just like Teachers, Nurses and the rest of government workers, but COLA was paid to only Government workers.

However the Cocoa government is going to sell abroad to get foreign exchange to support the economy belongs to we the cocoa farmers. Increasing cocoa price is not a favour from government to the farmers, but is our right. Something that is our legitimate right. We produce the cocoa and government buys it at a percentagefrom us and go sell it and gets profit from it.

Again farmers buy cocoa inputs to maintain their farms and the cost of these inputs have gone up high.

Before the global financial crisis, weeding an acre of cocoa farm was between GHS 100 and Ghs150, now cost of weeding an acre of cocoa farm is GHS300.Taking a labourer to assist you for a days work which we called it"By Day" from 8am in the morning to 12pm in the afternoon is Ghs50.00

Many of our farmers are now selling their cocoa farms to galamsey gold miners. Why?  because after farming for over 20 years, farmers have nothing to boast off.  Some of the cocoa farmers died poorly. Others, after selling their farms to these gold miners, have been able to put up houses. Last Sunday, 25^th of  September, a news item in the TV3 evening news bulletin, a town called Kunsu in the Ashanti Region, the cocoa farmers over there are now selling their cocoa farms to illegal miners. In other places like Dunkwa, Wassa Akropong, Asankragua and many more areas, cocoa farmers are now destroying their cocoa plantation by selling their farms to galamsey people for money. Others are converting their cocoa plantations to Rubber and Oil Palm plantation. Ghana Government and COCOBOD should do something drastic to salvage the cocoa industry.

 

COCOBOD especially should get worried and do something about it. If there's no cocoa, therewouldn't be any COCOBOD, and there wouldn't be that annual $1.5billion to $2 billion syndicated loan that comes every year to support the country. 

Again Government wants to attract the youth into farming, especially cocoa. How can you attract the youth into cocoa farming, knowing very well that, even those in that industry are selling their farms to galamsey people. How do you convince anybody to go into cocoa farming with this low insensitive.

Due to the global financial crisis and the foreign inflation, the Ghana cedis has depreciated drasticallyagainst all major currencies. The dollar to cedi is now Ghs 11.00. Cocoa is sold in dollars not cedis andnow the Cedi to Dollar is as high as 11 Cedi, how much is Govt. going to pay to the farmers. 

Last year there wasn't any increment. Two years ago, 2020, Govt. Through COCOBOD paid 70% of of FOB (Free on Board) $3000 to farmers. We are expecting government to increase the percentage to 80% this year. Or in the worst case, government should maintain the old percentage of 70% to farmers this year. Increment of cocoa price should not be a "Weapon" used by government in Election year to win votes. Farmers deserve better.

Cocoa smuggling is unavoidable if government fail to pay a fair price to the farmers and the price difference between Ghana and Cote d'Ivoire become wide, then government should have itself to be blamed.

. The Border town cocoa smuggling business is stilling existence.

Below is a joint agreement signed by Ghana, Cote with its Multinational companies that buys cocoa from the two countries?

Cocoa buyers back Ghana, Côte d'Ivoire cocoa premium schemes.

Major cocoa buyers have agreed to pay a premium and back a price floor on cocoa sold by Ghana and Côte d'Ivoireas part of an agreement reached last Friday to combat poverty among farmers. Cocoa industry players will back a fixed "living income differential" (LID) of $400 a ton on all cocoa contracts sold byCôte d'Ivoire or Ghana, two top global cocoa producers.

Buyers will also pay a country premium that will enable cocoa regulators in both countries to reach a target floor price of $2,600 per tonne which should allow farmers to earn a minimum of 70 per cent of the target floor price.

Signatories include Hershey (HSY.N), Mars, Blommer Chocolate, Nestle (NESN.S), Sucden, Mondelez (MDLZ.O), Touton, Barry Callebaut (BARN.S), Cargill, Ferrero, Olam and Ecom Trading.

Both countries have struggled to achieve that price target, prompting the Cote d'Ivoire-Ghana Cocoa Initiative (CIGCI) to work with the industry on a price mechanism.

"Companies in the cocoa value chain have met with the governments of Cote d'Ivoire and Ghana to renew support for the LID as a starting point towards the pathway to achieving living incomes for farmers," the CIGCI and both countries' cocoa regulators said in a joint statement.

Touton Chief Executive Patrick De Boussac said the company was trying to improve pay for farmers.

"What we have signed for today is a better remuneration for planters," De Boussac said.

Yves BrahimaKone, chief executive of the Ivory Coast Cocoa and Coffee Council, said companies had been dragging their feet on LID commitments, hindering efforts to make the industry more sustainable.

"The aim of the pact is to allow all actors in the cocoa value chain to play their role and respect their engagements," he said.

Source. Ghanaian Times

From the above agreement signed by cocoa producers, Ghana and Cote d'Ivoire with their Multinational cocoa buyers, have agreed on 9 July, 2022, will purchase a tone (16bags) of cocoa beans, at $2,600. And pay a Living Income Differential (LID) of $400 per tone (16bags), also known as Premium to the farmers. So the total price of cocoa multinational buyers will pay per ton (16 bags) for cocoa this year will be $2,600 +$400= $3000. 

$3000.00 X GHS 11.00 =33,000.00

A tons of cocoa is 16bags

Therefore, 33,000 ÷ 16 = 2,062.50

So a bag of cocoa will be GHS 2,062.20. 

And Govt. Is expected to pay 70% or 80%.

If Govt. Pay says 70%, it will be 

2062.50 X 0.7 = 1,443.75

And if Govt. Pay 80%, it will be

2,062.50 X 0.8 =1,650.00

Per the agreement signed by Ghana and Cote d'Ivoire with its international cocoa buyers, a bag of cocoa price is ranges between GHS 1,443.75 to GHS 1,650 depending on the percentage the Govt / COCOBOD decide to pay to the farmers.

We the Cocoa farmers Cooperatives, Ghana, are calling on Government to consider the factors we have mentioned in our press release and act accordingly.

Government should not look at the economy hardship it's going through and cheat the farmers. Government should sympathize with the farmers and pay them their due price. Thank you.

Signed: 

Chairman

Nana Oduro Darkwah

0247203042

Secretary

Hon. Maxwell Agyekum

0240703258