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The Guardian/Tess Reidy, 4/4/15. "Enjoy today's Easter eggs: they could soon become a luxury. Chocolate prices set to soar as demand grows and cocoa farmers switch crops."
 

Happy Easter tribe

"Easter 2015 may be remembered as the end of the cheap chocolate era: cocoa prices are expected to double by 2020 as the world’s cocoa supplies run low.

According to David Guest, professor of plant pathology at the University of Sydney, the cost surge is inevitable. The squeeze is partly a result of farmers moving into higher-return crops such as coffee and maize, which are less susceptible to pests and diseases, but it is also linked to problems around the labour-intensive cultivation of cocoa trees. “It takes about three years after you plant a tree to start harvesting,” said Guest. “You need to look after these trees properly, which requires labour. And labour shortages are a real problem in the cocoa-growing areas because of a drift of young people to the cities and people suffering from poor health.” Another factor, says Guest, is that around 70% of cocoa beans come from west Africa, which has seen major political and social upheaval over the past couple of decades." 

Might as well eat chocolate, our Easter
egg hunt may be a rain-out this year.

.... Lee McCoy, managing director of online retailer Chocolatiers, which focuses on selling specialty chocolate from around the world, said: “Although this is a big issue for large corporations, it will have little impact on retailers like us. Most people who buy cocoa for the niche market are already paying over the odds, so this will not affect our end of the scale. .... He added: “It’s not just down to the industry to be aware of chocolate prices. Consumers should be looking to see where and how it has been grown.Fairtrade is a start, but directly traded is better. From our experience, going directly to growers, rather than using a middleman, means that growers get around four or five times the price.”  Read more.

Note graphics:  Mr. and Mrs. Bunny from  Hudson Valley Magazine, Lucas Candies in Haverstraw, NY.  Bunny tribe from  Entertaining thoughts.  Save the bunny from Freely Educate.com. Happy Easter from Free Images.com.

Posted by Kathy Meeh