The slowdown at Europe’s cocoa factories is deepening, highlighting how historically high prices are curbing demand and hurting processors’ profits in the top chocolate consuming region.
The amount of beans ground into butter and powder that’s used in confectionery probably fell almost 5% in Europe in the second quarter from the same period in 2024, the average estimate of seven traders, brokers and processors surveyed by Bloomberg show. That would mark a fourth straight quarter of year-on-year declines and the lowest grindings for the period since early in the pandemic.
Cocoa futures have more than doubled in the past two years and touched a record in December on the back of poor harvests, hitting chocolate companies from Barry Callebaut to Nestle. Chocolatiers responded by raising prices for consumers, changing recipes to include more fillers like nuts, and using vegetable oils as a substitute for cocoa butter.
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.