Parliament passes new cocoa law guaranteeing Ghanaian farmers 70% of export price

Ghana's Parliament has passed a new law that guarantees cocoa farmers at least 70% of the Free on Board (FOB) export price of cocoa, marking one of the most significant reforms to the country's cocoa sector in years.

The Ghana Cocoa Board Bill, 2026, approved on Thursday, establishes a new legal framework for the operations of the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD), which oversees one of the world's largest cocoa industries.

The legislation requires COCOBOD to ensure farmers receive no less than 70% of the export price of cocoa beans, a move the government says is intended to improve farmer incomes and make cocoa production more sustainable.

Presenting the Bill in Parliament, Deputy Finance Minister Thomas Nyarko Ampem said the law formally establishes COCOBOD as the statutory regulator responsible for overseeing activities across the cocoa value chain.

He said the legislation also provides a new financing model that would enable COCOBOD to raise funds locally to purchase cocoa beans directly from farmers.

"This bill is coming out with a new funding model, which will let COCOBOD source funding locally to purchase our cocoa beans from our hardworking farmers," he told Parliament.

The law also seeks to ensure that more cocoa beans are made available to domestic processing companies as part of efforts to increase value addition within Ghana.

What the new law means for Ghana's cocoa sector

The passage of the Bill is expected to reshape how Ghana's cocoa industry is regulated, financed and managed.

For farmers, the guaranteed minimum share of the export price provides greater certainty over earnings and gives legal backing to producer pricing.

The legislation also formalises the Producer Price Review Committee, providing a statutory framework for determining cocoa producer prices.

For COCOBOD, the new law introduces a domestic financing model aimed at reducing reliance on external borrowing to finance cocoa purchases during the crop season.

The legislation also strengthens the Board's regulatory powers by giving legal force to rules covering quality inspections, certification, cocoa takeovers, disinfestation procedures and service charges—areas that had previously been governed largely through administrative directives.

Another significant change formally places COCOBOD under the supervision of the Ministry of Finance, giving legal effect to the government's decision in March 2025 to transfer oversight from the Ministry of Food and Agriculture.

The government says the new framework is also intended to encourage greater investment in local cocoa processing by creating opportunities for public-private partnerships and reducing regulatory barriers facing small-scale chocolate manufacturers and cocoa by-products producers.

It also supports collaboration with international partners, including the European Union, the World Cocoa Foundation and the Côte d'Ivoire-Ghana Cocoa Initiative, as Ghana seeks to increase value addition rather than relying primarily on exports of raw cocoa beans.

The reforms come at a time when Ghana's cocoa industry is facing declining production, climate-related challenges, illegal mining, disease outbreaks and volatile global prices, all of which have placed increasing pressure on one of the country's most important export sectors.