Brazil’s cocoa production bounces back after Covid problems

The country is in the top seven cocoa producers and is the world's fifth-largest chocolate consumer.

According to data from cocoa processors association AIPC, based on data from member companies including Cargill, Olam and Barry Callebaut, Reuters reported that total grinding in 2021 reached 224,168 tonnes, 4.4% more than 2020, when demand was hit by lockdowns to control the spread of the coronavirus.

With 2021 figures also 2% higher than the volume processed in 2019, before the pandemic, it shows that the country’s cocoa industry appears to have overcome the worst.

Anna Paula Losi, AIPC's executive director, told Reuters the industry expects a growth of 4% to 5% in cocoa processing as the economy improves and that "as the economy improves, chocolate consumption tends to increase​."

According to Nasdaq, Cargill, Olam and Barry Callebaut are the main processors in the country with capacity to grind 275,000 tonnes per year.

Latest research from Statista has revealed production of cocoa beans in Brazil has oscillated in recent years, reaching up to 230 thousand metric tonnes in 2015 to approximately 200 thousand tonnes of cocoa beans in the 2021-22 season.

More than 580 thousand hectares planted with cocoa were harvested in Brazil in 2019, with a production value of more than 2.5 billion Brazilian reals ($0.5bn) The cocoa, chocolate, and candies sector in Brazil generated a net revenue of almost 17 billion Brazilian reals that same year, Statista reported.