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Chocolate bars could drastically change size in the near future, expert warns
Some of your favorite chocolate bars could be cut down in size if supply issues with cocoa continue to persist in areas of West Africa.
Thanks to a range of problems including climate change and war, food supplies across the world are being pushed to their limits. Wheat, almonds, coffee, seafood, and corn are but a few of the foods reported to be rising in price because of climate change.
The chocolate change
Matt Spooner, who works with cocoa producers on securing their supply chains, warned of impending disaster coming after the existing stock of cocoa runs out. Thankfully, he doesnt believe Easter will be directly affected, as they are likely already made and ready for consumer purchase.
He explained in a recent interview: I think that we will see an increase in the price of chocolate toward the latter end of the year by Thanksgiving and Christmas, when the manufacturers are going to have to start to pass on some of those additional costs.
To combat the growing problem, Spooner believes that manufacturers could mess around with ingredients and sizes to offset the massive increase in prices.
Maybe by reducing the actual size of the bars of chocolate, what the consumer sees is mitigated a bit, so youre not seeing that the price of cocoa for the producer is up fifty-percent, he added.
Unfortunately, the size of chocolate bars has fluctuated over time, with the term now being called shrinkflation. Just last year, The Guardian reported that both Mars and Galaxy were forced to reduce the size of their products to combat growing demand and surging prices.
We have been actively trying to find ways to absorb the rising costs of raw materials and operations, as we know the increase in the cost of living has impacted both consumers and businesses across the UK, a spokesperson told the newspaper. Unfortunately, the growing pressures mean that more needs to be done. Reducing the size of our products is not a decision we have taken lightly but it is necessary.
Cocoa prices continue to soar
Just last week, CNBC reported that cocoa prices surged once again following drier temperatures in West Africa where three-quarters of the worlds cocoa beans are grown. The conditions were particularly bad in Ghana and the Ivory Coast, the two largest producers.
The changing weather patterns means that the potential yields of cocoa are now permanently impaired, Humza Hussain, a commodities analyst at TD Asset Management, told the news outlet.
Michele Buck, CEO of Hersey, further communicated the dire situation as she explained the companys flat earnings in 2024. The beloved chocolatier had reported a 12% fourth-quarter decrease in net income at $349 million.
As we look at those record cocoa prices, certainly its a dynamic market and those are a challenge but we have lived through market volatility and fluctuation in input costs before, she said. We have a good hedging strategy and we have really good price visibility on those inputs into 2024.
