Cameroon Cocoa Price: Farm-Gate and International Market Prices (2026)

Three seasons ago, a Cameroonian cocoa farmer could sell a kilo of beans for as much as 6,000 FCFA.

Last season, the price fell as low as 700 FCFA.

Today, it’s back near 2,900 FCFA.

If you grow, buy, trade or simply follow cocoa, that kind of swing makes the “Cameroon cocoa price” a moving target. And there are really two prices to understand: the farm-gate price farmers actually receive, and the international price set on the London and New York futures markets.

In this guide, you’ll learn:

• The latest farm-gate cocoa price in Cameroon, and how it moved through the 2025/26 campaign
• Where the international cocoa price stands (as of early October 2026)
• How the world price filters down to farmers, and why it doesn’t do so one-for-one
• What caused the crash, the unsold stocks and the rebound
• 7 practical ways to protect your income

Let’s get into it.

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Summary: Cameroon Cocoa Price Right Now

• Farm-gate price (31 August 2026): 2,750 to 2,900 FCFA per kg (ONCC data).
• Minimum recorded on 5 August 2026: 2,500 FCFA/kg.
• Last season’s low: as little as 700 FCFA/kg.
• Record highs: about 6,000 FCFA/kg in 2023/24 and 5,400 FCFA/kg in 2024/25.
• International price (6 October 2026): New York December futures settled at $5,700 per tonne, and London December at £4,250 per tonne.
• The catch: prices swing hard in both markets. I found no farm-gate data newer than 31 August, so check the latest figures before you sell or buy.

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The Latest Farm-Gate Cocoa Price in Cameroon

Cameroon’s farm-gate price is tracked by ONCC (the national cocoa and coffee board) through its price information system, known as SIF. The system exists to give producers real-time information on average market prices, so they can negotiate from a stronger position.

Here’s the most recent reading I found.

On 31 August 2026, a kilogram of cocoa beans reached a maximum of 2,900 FCFA and a minimum of 2,750 FCFA, according to ONCC data. That’s at the start of the 2026/27 season, officially launched on 6 August 2026 in Yaoundé.

It’s also higher than where the previous season ended. The 31 August range is above the 2,700 to 2,750 FCFA recorded on 15 July 2026, the closing date of the previous campaign.

And it’s a big step up from the lows. The ONCC’s daily price observatory showed a minimum of 2,500 FCFA/kg on 5 August 2026, against a minimum of 700 FCFA/kg at the worst point of the season just ended.

A quick sense of what this means in cash

At the 31 August midpoint of about 2,825 FCFA/kg, a tonne of beans is worth roughly 2.8 million FCFA at the farm gate. (Calculation is mine.)

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How the 2025/26 Season Played Out: From Crash to Rebound

The 2025/26 campaign was one of the most volatile in years. Here’s the timeline, using ONCC and SIF data reported by the press:

Date	Farm-gate price (FCFA/kg)
January 2026	about 1,050 (around 900 in some zones)
19 March 2026	1,200 to 1,300
21 April 2026	1,400 (minimum buying price)
6 May 2026	1,550 to 1,650
19 June 2026	about 1,950 to 2,000
22 June 2026	passes 2,000 for the first time this season
7 July 2026	2,500 to 2,600
9 July 2026	2,750 to 2,850
14 July 2026	2,700 to 2,750
5 August 2026	2,500 (minimum)
31 August 2026	2,750 to 2,900

Where each data point comes from:

• January to April: As of 21 April, ONCC reported a minimum buying price of 1,400 FCFA/kg, up from 1,050 in January, after a start to the year with prices around 900 FCFA/kg in some zones. On 19 March, the kilogram traded between 1,200 and 1,300 FCFA.
• May: On 6 May 2026, the kilogram was negotiated between 1,550 and 1,650 FCFA, crossing the symbolic 1,500 threshold.
• June to July: On 19 June, cocoa was still around 1,950 to 2,000 FCFA before climbing to 2,850 on 10 July. It took until 22 June for the price to cross 2,000 FCFA for the first time since the season opened on 7 August 2025. In just 48 hours in July, the price jumped 250 FCFA/kg, from 2,500 to 2,600 on 7 July to 2,750 to 2,850 on 9 July.
• End of season: On 14 July, the kilogram traded between 2,700 and 2,750 FCFA, a day before the theoretical close of the campaign.

Notice the shape: a long, painful trough, then a sharp rebound in the final weeks.

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From 6,000 FCFA to 700 FCFA: How Far Prices Fell

To understand today’s price, you need the context.

After a peak of up to 6,000 FCFA/kg in the 2023/24 season and a maximum of 5,400 FCFA/kg the next campaign, the government expected prices between 3,200 and 5,400 FCFA/kg for 2025/26. The Minister of Commerce announced that projection at the campaign launch on 7 August 2025.

Reality didn’t cooperate. By 19 March 2026, the price had fallen to 1,200 FCFA/kg, about three times lower than four months earlier. One of the reasons the market missed the forecast: analysts attribute the gap between official projections and actual prices to the international situation.

The result was painful for growers. A farmer quoted in the press said they were no longer making a profit on cocoa, and that buyers had sometimes paid more than they could resell for in Douala because wet beans lose weight as they dry. That last point matters, and I’ll come back to it in the tips.

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The International Cocoa Price: Where It Stands Now

The global benchmark is the futures market. ICE Futures U.S. describes its cocoa contract as the world benchmark for the global cocoa market, quoted in dollars per metric tonne. London trades a separate contract in pounds.

The latest numbers (early October 2026)

On 6 October, the official settlement for New York December cocoa fell $167 (−2.85%) to $5,700 per tonne, while London December closed £114 lower (−2.61%) at £4,250 per tonne.

To convert to a per-kilo price, divide by 1,000. Because a metric tonne is 1,000 kilos, the per-kilo price is simply the per-tonne price divided by 1,000. So $5,700 per tonne is $5.70 per kilo.

And it’s volatile. On 1 October, New York December cocoa dropped to $5,051, 5.38% below the previous day’s close. Five days later it was back at $5,700.

Where that sits in the bigger picture

• The peak: London futures hit a high of $11,530 per tonne on 13 June 2024.
• The long-run norm: Since the 1980s, prices had stayed relatively steady around $2,500 per tonne.
• The 2026 low: ICE New York futures bottomed near $2,846 per tonne in April 2026. In late March, futures traded around $3,100 to $3,250, the lowest since mid-2023, on expectations of a record West African harvest and rising stockpiles.
• The rebound: By 1 September, New York was near $6,569 per tonne after a sharp tightening of the 2026/27 supply outlook.

So in about five months, futures roughly doubled from the April low, then gave back a chunk in late September and early October. (Comparison of figures from different sources and contract months; treat it as a rough picture.)

Where Cameroon fits in

Cameroonian beans can be delivered against the New York contract. ICE places Cameroon in “Group B” of deliverable growths, alongside origins such as Ecuador’s Arriba and Colombia.

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How the World Price Reaches the Farmer

This is where most people get confused. The farm-gate price follows the international price, but not one-for-one.

One 2026 guide says farm-gate prices track international prices with a discount of 30 to 40%, reflecting collection and transport costs and intermediaries’ margins. Treat that as a rule of thumb, not a law.

Here’s a rough illustration, using my own estimates:

• The implied exchange rate in spring 2026 was about 560 FCFA per US dollar. For example, ONCC prices of 1,550 and 1,650 FCFA were reported as 2.78 and 2.96 USD.
• At that rate, $6,569 per tonne (the 1 September futures level) works out to roughly 3,680 FCFA/kg.
• The 31 August farm-gate price of about 2,825 FCFA/kg is around 77% of that figure.

So the gap on that date was about 20 to 25%, narrower than the rule of thumb suggests. (Calculation is mine, and it mixes sources and contract months, so use it for orientation only.)

Three things shape the pass-through:

1. Timing. Futures move daily. Farm-gate prices move in steps and with a lag.
2. Currency. The CFA franc is pegged to the euro, so the FCFA price of a dollar-quoted commodity also moves when the euro and dollar move.
3. Local competition among buyers. In the Centre region, a farmer described larger buyers from Obala bidding prices up against local middlemen, who had been offering under 1,000 FCFA/kg only a short time earlier. More buyers means better prices.

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Why Prices Collapsed (and Why Stocks Piled Up)

The 2025/26 downturn had several ingredients.

Falling world prices. Futures retreated materially from the extremes of 2024 to 2025, with quarterly averages falling by roughly half from the peak. The 2025/26 season took place in an international environment less favourable to a new price surge.

A glut of unsold beans. The season ended with 40,446 tonnes of unsold beans, against 13,946 tonnes the year before, according to ONCC.

Export earnings fell sharply. The value of cocoa bean exports dropped 63% over the 2025/26 season, to 400.9 billion FCFA.

A policy response. On 5 June 2026, the export levy on cocoa was cut from 225 to 125 FCFA/kg, a reduction of nearly 45%. The same source also describes a premium to encourage Grade I production, funded by a 5 FCFA/kg levy on part of the export fee that goes to the cocoa and coffee sector development fund.

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What to Watch Over the Next Few Months

I can’t forecast prices, but here are the signals worth tracking:

• Unsold stocks. Last season’s carry-over stocks are expected to keep supporting the market early in 2026/27, until the first harvests are projected at the end of 2026.
• International futures. Swings in New York and London tend to show up in Cameroon with a delay.
• Farmers’ expectations. Many producers hoped for a significant revaluation of the minimum price for the new campaign, with a level around 3,000 FCFA/kg mentioned. The 31 August range came close to that.

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7 Ways to Protect Your Income From Cocoa Price Swings

1. Check ONCC’s price data before every sale.
The SIF exists so producers can negotiate with facts. Compare the posted range with the offer in front of you.

2. Sell dry, well-fermented beans.
Quality affects both price and weight. Wet beans lose weight as they dry, which is one reason buyers’ margins can disappear in a falling market.

3. Compare several buyers.
In the Centre region, price offers moved sharply when larger buyers competed against local middlemen. Don’t accept the first offer.

4. Consider certification and Grade I quality.
One guide says certified producers (for example UTZ and organic) can earn premiums of 100 to 800 FCFA/kg. The government also supports Grade I production. Verify current premiums with your cooperative before counting on them.

5. Don’t rely on forecasts.
Officials projected 3,200 to 5,400 FCFA/kg for 2025/26, but the market delivered 700 to 2,900. Plan for the low end.

6. Watch the international price, but don’t panic over daily moves.
Futures dropped 5% in a day in early October and recovered within days. Farm-gate prices respond to sustained moves, not single sessions.

7. Diversify where it makes sense.
In March 2026, robusta coffee at 2,112 FCFA/kg and arabica at 3,772 FCFA/kg were fetching more per kilo than cocoa at 1,200 FCFA, which led some buyers to shift toward coffee. That won’t suit every farm, but it shows why diversification matters.

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FAQ: Cameroon Cocoa Price

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Final Thoughts

The bottom line: Cameroon’s farm-gate cocoa price is currently around 2,750 to 2,900 FCFA/kg, well below the 2023 to 2025 peaks but far above last season’s lows, and it will keep tracking an unusually volatile world market.

If you take one action, make it this: before your next sale, check the ONCC price range for your area and get at least two buyer offers. That one habit protects you better than any forecast.

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Sources

• Investir au Cameroun, “Cacao : le prix du kilogramme de fèves tutoie la barre de 3000 FCFA au Cameroun, en début de campagne 2026-2027” (Aug 2026)
• Africtelegraph, “Cacao camerounais : le kilogramme frôle 3000 FCFA en début de campagne” and “Le prix producteur frôle 3 000 FCFA le kilo”
• Ecomatin, “Cacao : le Cameroun veut faire de la rémunération des producteurs le principal enjeu de sa campagne 2026-2027” (Aug 2026)
• Investir au Cameroun, “Cacao : les prix reculent à 2 700-2 750 FCFA le kilogramme en fin de campagne” (July 2026)
• Investir au Cameroun, “Cacao : le prix du kilogramme repasse au-dessus de 1 500 FCFA” (May 2026)
• Investir au Cameroun, “Cacao : le prix du kilogramme de fèves gagne 150 FCFA en un mois” (March 2026)
• Ecomatin, “Cacao : les prix remontent à 1 400 FCFA/kg au Cameroun” (April 2026)
• Mongabay, “Cameroun : ruée des acheteurs de cacao vers le café devenu plus rentable” (March 2026)
• Agence Ecofin, “Le prix du cacao atteint 2,96 USD/kg au Cameroun” (May 2026)
• Ecofinances, “Cacao : le Cameroun s’attend à des prix élevés pour les producteurs en 2025-2026” (Aug 2025)
• Allafrica / Investir au Cameroun, on the SIF price information system (Oct 2022)
• CocoaIntel, daily cocoa market reports (1 and 6 October 2026)
• ICE Futures U.S., Cocoa Futures contract specifications: ice.com/products/7/Cocoa-Futures
• Trading Economics, cocoa commodity page (March 2026)
• J2T, “Cocoa Price Prediction 2026 to 2030”
• Wikipedia, “Cocoa crisis (2020s)”
• Cocoa Runners, “Cocoa prices 2026 update”
• Jogoo, “Culture du cacao au Cameroun 2026 : guide complet”