Ivorian Farmers Call for More Rain to Sustain Cocoa Production

Côte d'Ivoire, the world's top cocoa producer, is in its dry season, from mid-November to March, when rains are scarce or light.

Farmers said they remained confident about the harvest through January, as soil moisture was sufficient to support the crop.

But they said rising temperatures meant more rain per week would be needed from next month to encourage the growth of small pods on cocoa trees from February.

"The heat is becoming very intense. If rainfall is not abundant in December, the cocoa trees will be weakened and the harvest will be reduced from February," said Raphael Kouame, who runs a plantation near the Daloa region in the centre-west (a region that produces a quarter of Côte d'Ivoire's national output).

Data showed that rainfall in Daloa, which includes the Bouaflé area, was 0.7 millimetres (mm) last week, 6.1 mm below the five-year average.

In the central regions of Bongouanou and Yamoussoukro and in the southern region of Divo, where rainfall was below average last week, farmers said the outlook was good, but they were worried about the rising heat.

In the western region of Soubré, in the heart of the cocoa belt, farmers said they were happy to be preparing for the full-scale harvest.

"There are many ripe pods on the trees. We will have more harvests in December," said Salame Kone, who farms near Soubré.