14-02-2025
Korea's chocolate prices soar as cocoa shortages shake global supply
Chocolate lovers in South Korea are feeling the sting this Valentine's Day as soaring global cocoa prices drive up the cost of their favorite treats.
Over the past year, the price of cocoa -- the essential ingredient in chocolate -- has skyrocketed 92 percent, reaching $11,310 per ton on Feb. 12. This marks a staggering increase from $2,400-$2,500 per ton in early 2022, and with ongoing supply shortages, prices are unlikely to drop anytime soon.
In response, South Korean retailers have hiked chocolate prices across the board. Starting this year, a three-piece Ferrero Rocher set, a popular Valentine's Day gift, now costs 3,000 won ($2.07), up from 2,700 won, while an eight-piece heart-shaped box has risen to 11,000 won, up from 10,000 won.
Pepero, Korea's iconic chocolate-coated pretzel stick, will see its price increase from 1,700 won to 2,000 won starting Feb. 17. Even premium brands are making adjustments -- Godiva has cut the size of its Chocolate Layer Cake by over 30 percent (from 540g to 370g) while maintaining its 43,000 won price. Meanwhile, high-end hotels are introducing luxury chocolates, with some priced at nearly 9,000 won per piece.
The crisis stems from West Africa, where more than two-thirds of the world's cocoa supply is produced. Cocoa trees require stable temperatures between 30 and 32 degrees Celsius and annual rainfall of 1,500-2,000 millimeters, but climate change is making weather patterns increasingly erratic.
Last summer, Ivory Coast, the world's largest cocoa producer, experienced 40 percent more rainfall than usual, causing floods, landslides and the spread of bud blight, a disease that devastated crops. Then, in December, an unexpected drought hit the region, further damaging cocoa yields.
As a result, the International Cocoa Organization forecasts that global cocoa production for the 2023-2024 season will drop by 13 percent compared to the previous year. The situation is expected to worsen, as scientists warn that rising temperatures will make cocoa farming even more difficult.
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has highlighted the growing risks of droughts and floods in cocoa-growing regions, while a Wageningen University & Research study predicts that by 2060, up to 50 percent of cocoa plantations in Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana, Nigeria and Cameroon could disappear.
