The World Cocoa Conference – the leading event for the global cocoa and chocolate sector that brings together all the stakeholders of the cocoa value chain across the world – held its 2024 gathering in Brussels on Monday, April 22, 2024.
The event was inaugurated by Her Majesty Queen Mathilde of Belgium who spoke emphatically about the cocoa producers she met during her visit to Côte d’Ivoire last month, and their appeal for the social, economic and environmental viability of the chocolate value chain, as well as equity for producers.
Her Majesty told a packed Gold Hall at the Square Meeting Place, that the focus on equitable distribution within the chocolate and cocoa value chain met with UN sustainable development goals.
Reflecting on her own experiences, the Queen asserted that ‘Prices and sustainability are two sides of the same battle.” in reference to the present market conditions, that have seen cocoa being traded in global Futures markets at around $10,000 a tonne, compared to the current rate of pay at around $2,470 a tonne (upped from less than $2,000 for co-operatives in the region in the past year), which still left workers earning significantly less than on commodities markets.
As a country that produces 40% of the world’s cocoa, the Minister of Trade of Côte d’Ivoire Souleymane Diarrassouba also gave a rousing opening speech in which he welcomed the intervention by Queen Mathilde.
Queen Mathilde added: “Belgium has always shown great interest in all questions related to the chocolate sector. It was therefore natural that you decided to meet in Brussels to discuss the sustainability of the cocoa sector and the fate of millions of small producers”.