The Ghana Cocoa (COCBOD) has made it clear that the nation has been importing cocoa beans from its neighbors for more than 20 years.
Afrotropic Cocoa Processing Company Limited is authorized to import cocoa beans by a letter seen by citinewsroom.com, which is signed by Joseph Boahen Aidoo, the Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD).
1,000 cocoa beans will be imported from Nigeria and 2,500 from the Ivory Coast by Afrotropic Cocoa Processing Company.
Stakeholders were alarmed by COCOBOD’s action and voiced worries about the fact that the top exporter was suddenly switching to importation.
COCOBOD responded to this by saying in a statement that the practice is not brand-new.
The law allows all Ghanaian processing companies founded after November 2001 to import cocoa beans for on-site processing. Allowing factories to import from other nations, such as Cote d’Ivoire, Togo, Nigeria, and Ecuador, has been a long-standing industry practice, COCOBOD clarified.
COCOBOD emphasized that the practice is a component of cost management and that it assists the companies in fulfilling their “desired recipes for chocolate production and other uses.”
“Ghana’s cocoa is a premium cocoa, and companies often blend premium Ghana cocoa with less premium cocoa beans from other producing countries as part of cost management and operational strategy.”
