Cocoa prices have doubled in Vietnam and tripled globally compared to the same period last year, forcing some confectionery and chocolate manufacturers to raise prices.
According to data from the International Cocoa Organization (ICCO) and the World Bank (WB), three years ago, cocoa prices were around $2,300-2,500 per ton. In the first four months of this year, the raw material increased to $11,000 per ton, four times higher than the same period in previous years. This increase is mainly due to severe crop failures in many producing countries, which account for the majority of global cocoa output, such as Ivory Coast and Ghana.
By September 19, cocoa prices had dropped to $8,000 a ton, but were still nearly three times more expensive than the same time last year.
In Vietnam, the purchase price of this raw material from farmers has doubled compared to last year. Growers in Ben Tre and Dak Lak said that each kilogram of dry cocoa fluctuates between 150,000 and 160,000 VND, sometimes even up to 210,000 VND.
Mr. Nguyen Van Dung, a farmer with more than 20 years of experience growing cocoa in Dak Lak, shared that the price of this commodity has never been as high as it is now. Thanks to that, growers like him earn more profit than in previous years. However, Mr. Dung's family's planting area has shrunk by nearly half compared to before, due to switching to crops such as durian, jackfruit... with higher value and profit.
According to a report from the Department of Crop Production (Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development), in 2022, Vietnam will have about 3,400 hectares of cocoa cultivation, with an output of nearly 5,300 tons. However, this year's supply is about 1,500-2,000 tons, down more than half compared to before as many farmers switched to growing other crops.
Limited supply and soaring raw material prices have caused difficulties for many confectionery and chocolate manufacturers. They are forced to consider increasing selling prices at the end of the year.
Share with VnExpress , a representative of Puratos Grand-Place Vietnam - the cocoa purchasing company with the largest market share, said that it has doubled the price paid to farmers, but domestic supply is not enough to meet the demand. This company has to import more raw materials from African countries and other regions, and the import price has also skyrocketed. Therefore, they have had to adjust their products to be 20-30% more expensive since the beginning of the year.
Similarly, Ms. Nguyen Ngoc Diep, CEO of Alluvia Chocolate – a chocolate and cocoa powder producer, shared that in the first 9 months of the year, the company had difficulty purchasing raw materials. They were forced to increase selling prices by 10-15% compared to the same period last year to balance costs.
A representative of Saigon Co.op said that price increases are inevitable when chocolate raw materials are escalating. This situation also affects international companies such as Hershey, Mars, Ferrero and Mondelez. They try to maintain prices thanks to reserves, but these companies warn that from 2025, cocoa prices may increase sharply, forcing them to adjust their product prices.
Confectionery manufacturers, such as Orion – the leading brand in the Vietnamese market with the product ChocoPie – are also heavily affected by the high cost of raw materials. Orion representative shared that the company is trying to maintain stability for consumers. However, the increasing cost pressure makes it very difficult to maintain current prices.
This means that consumers may have to buy more expensive chocolate products at the end of the year and during the Lunar New Year. According to a representative of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Industry and Trade, for items on the price stabilization list, businesses can propose to the management agency to adjust prices when input costs increase by 3-5%. However, confectionery is not on this list, so businesses have the right to decide on selling prices based on the actual situation.
Source
Comment (0)