According to studies, last year’s weeks of crop-withering temperatures in the west African nations that supply the world’s chocolate were caused by climate change, which affected harvests and probably contributed to record prices, reports RTE.
The region’s farmers, who produce around 70% of the world’s cocoa, have recently had to contend with heat, illness, and irregular rainfall, all of which have led to a decline in output.
As a result, the price of cocoa, the primary component of chocolate made from the beans of the cacao tree, has skyrocketed, reports RTE.
“Climate change, due primarily to burning oil, coal, and methane gas, is causing hotter temperatures to become more frequent” in Ivory Coast, Ghana, Cameroon, and Nigeria, according to a recent report.
The two largest producers of cocoa, Ghana and Ivory Coast, showed a particularly noticeable trend, according to a study conducted by the independent research organisation Climate Central.
The researchers used computer models and observational data from 44 cacao-producing regions in west Africa to compare current temperatures with a counterfactual of a world free from the impacts of climate change, reports RTE.
They examined the possibility that these areas may experience temperatures more than 32 degrees Celsius above what is thought to be ideal for cocoa plants.
According to the analysis, Ivory Coast and Ghana saw an additional three weeks of temperatures above 32 degrees Celsius during the primary growing season, which runs from October to March, as a result of climate change during the past ten years, reports RTE.
They discovered that in two-thirds of the regions examined, climate change caused temperatures to rise beyond 32 degrees Celsius on at least 42 days during the warmest year on record.
“Excessive heat can contribute to a reduction in the quantity and quality of the harvest,” according to researchers, reports RTE.
They pointed out that a number of additional variables, such as mealybug infestations, rainfall patterns, smuggling, and illicit mining, might also be damaging cocoa plants and driving up costs.
Separate studies on the susceptibility of cacao and chocolate growers to weather extremes and changes brought on by global warming were released by Christian Aid, reports RTE.
West African circumstances have deteriorated from drought in 2024 to excessive rainfall and spoilt crops during the dry season in 2023, according to a UK charity.
“Growing cocoa is a vital livelihood for many of the poorest people around the world, and human-caused climate change is putting that under serious threat,” said Osai Ojigho, director of Christian Aid’s policy and public campaigns, reports RTE.
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