Brazil halts cocoa imports from Ivory Coast over phytosanitary risks, citing concerns about beans from neighbouring countries and unknown disease status

RIO DE JANEIRO: Brazil has suspended imports of dried and fermented cocoa beans from Ivory Coast, the world’s largest producer.

The agriculture ministry issued a decree this week citing the risk of pests or diseases from beans that may originate in neighbouring countries.

It stated the suspension will remain until Ivorian authorities guarantee shipments do not contain beans from neighbours “whose phytosanitary status is unknown and whose export to Brazil is of unauthorized origin.”

Brazil imported 42,000 tonnes of raw and roasted cocoa from Ivory Coast in 2025, according to national trade statistics.

The country itself produced almost 300,000 tonnes of cocoa in 2024, according to the latest official figures.

The Federation of Agriculture and Livestock in Bahia, a major cocoa-producing state, said the decision followed a technical mission to Ivory Coast earlier this month.

Ivory Coast’s cocoa sector is currently in crisis, facing major difficulties in selling its crop.

It has been hit by a slowdown in exports amid buyers’ liquidity problems and a slump in global prices.

According to the World Bank, one in five people in Ivory Coast indirectly relies on cocoa for a living.

 The Sun Malaysia