Cameroon Cocoa Prices Climb Above CFA2,000 as Season Nears End              

Cameroonian cocoa prices have finally crossed the CFA2,000-per-kilogram mark, just weeks before the official end of the 2025-2026 marketing season.

According to data published by the National Cocoa and Coffee Board (ONCC), a kilogram of cocoa beans sold for between CFA2,000 and CFA2,050 on June 22, 2026. The increase follows months of weaker prices that fell well short of expectations at the start of the season.

The milestone comes late in the campaign, which is scheduled to end on July 15. While the increase offers some relief to farmers, it does not change the broader picture of a season marked by lower-than-expected returns. Current prices remain well below the highs recorded during the previous two campaigns. During the 2024-2025 season, cocoa prices reached as much as CFA5,400 per kilogram. A year earlier, during the 2023-2024 campaign, prices climbed to around CFA6,000 per kilogram in some producing areas.

Those exceptional gains fueled strong expectations for the current season. At the start of the 2025-2026 campaign, Cameroonian authorities projected farmgate prices between CFA3,200 and CFA5,400 per kilogram. The market ultimately moved in a different direction.

Global Market Conditions Weighed on Prices

The gap between initial forecasts and actual prices largely reflects changes in the global cocoa market. After supply shortages pushed cocoa prices to record levels in recent years, the latest market estimates point to a return to a global surplus. At the same time, slower industrial demand in some major consuming countries has reduced upward pressure on prices.

For Cameroonian producers, the recent move above CFA2,000 per kilogram marks an improvement, but not a return to the income levels seen during the previous two seasons. Current prices remain about 62% below the CFA5,400 peak reached in 2024-2025 and roughly two-thirds below the CFA6,000 levels recorded during the 2023-2024 campaign.

The contrast highlights just how unusual the last two seasons were, when tight global supplies drove prices sharply higher. It also underscores the exposure of Cameroon’s cocoa sector to swings in international markets, even when competition among buyers and the quality of local cocoa help support prices in producing regions.

With only a few weeks left in the season, the recent price increase could encourage additional sales from farmers. But it is unlikely to alter the overall outcome of a campaign that delivered prices well below both government expectations and the record levels seen in recent years.

BRM