Can innovation overcome cocoa’s supply deficit?

By Julia Wray | Published: 12-Nov-2026
Ingredients

Poor harvests and disease have affected major cocoa-growing regions, pushing prices to record highs, but new approaches can help ensure supply, quality and consistency

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Can innovation overcome cocoa’s supply deficit?

Cocoa is in crisis; in 2024, poor harvests and disease affected major cocoa-growing regions, pushing prices to record highs.

Prices have risen by more than 70% since February 2026, and future markets price cocoa above US$6,000 per metric ton well into 2027, according to PricePedia. 

While the last crisis hit cocoa butter hardest, the pressure is now shifting to cocoa powder – the ingredient behind most cocoa-flavoured cookies, cakes, cereals and drinks.

With the 2026/27 season negatively impacted by a strong El Niño, harvests are being threatened in both Ghana and Ivory Coast, the source of around 60% of the world’s cocoa. 

However, suppliers are addressing this deficit with innovations that focus on reduction, quality and consistency. 

In this article, Food Formulator discovers three solutions amid the cocoa crunch. 

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