Why is chocolate getting more expensive? Poor harvests pushing up prices, so shop early

Years of poor harvests have led to ‘unprecedented cocoa cost inflation’, and 2024’s sugar crop was hit too. Better buy soon for Easter, Eid

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Chocolate prices look set to rise after years of poor harvests of key ingredient cocoa, which pushed up its price. Photo: Shutterstock

Published: 6:15pm, 2 Mar 2025

Even though the indulgence of festivities like Easter and Eid al-Fitr is weeks away, shoppers are best advised to start buying their chocolate as soon as possible, lest the increasingly expensive treats see further price hikes.

Poor harvests in recent years in Ghana and the Ivory Coast have reduced the supply of cocoa, which will, in turn, make it more expensive for chocolate producers and consumers once the costs are passed on.

Mondelez International, the parent company of British confectionery brand Cadbury, recently warned of reduced profits for 2025 in the wake of “unprecedented cocoa cost inflation”.

Switzerland’s Lindt issued a similarly downbeat assessment in which it pointed to “record-high cocoa costs, substantial price increases, and weakened consumer sentiment”.

Ghana is the second largest exporter of cocoa beans in the world, after Ivory Coast. Poor harvests in recent years in Ghana and the Ivory Coast have reduced the supply of cocoa. Photo: Getty Images

Similar to the run-up to Easter, demand for chocolate often soars in February ahead of Valentine’s Day, with financial services company Wells Fargo saying early last month that chocolate in the US was 20 per cent more expensive than it was ahead of February 14 last year.