cocoa

The U.S. agricultural trade deficit was a record $17 billion in fiscal year 2023 and is certain to break records again this year, according to preliminary federal data released on Monday. The cumulative deficit totaled $15.2 billion at the end of May, with four months remaining in fiscal year 2024.

In an effort to save money and better serve their brand image, some major companies are breaking from third-party certifiers, such as FairTrade and the Rainforest Alliance, and developing their own schemes for certifying which products meet standards of sustainability and ethics, reports Reuters. 

The world's leading grower of cocoa, Ivory Coast is confronting the mounting problem of deforestation by evicting tens of thousands of illegal cocoa farmers from its eight national parks, five nature reserves and 231 forest preserves, says Reuters. The eviction campaign is one of the nation's last chances to save its dwindling virgin forests, but could mean a large decline in production of its major cash crop, which is the source of chocolate.

The ebola outbreak in western Africa could disrupt the cocoa harvest in two of the world's largest growers of the crop that yields chocolate and affect prices, says Politico.