Cocoa farmers in Ivory Coast are calling for more sunny weather to support the September-to-February main crop. The country, which is the world’s top cocoa producer, is currently in its rainy season, but below-average rainfall and a cooling spell last week have raised concerns.
Cocoa Production
Several farmers across the country said the soil moisture content was still high enough to support tree development for several weeks. However, they warned that without proper application of fertilizers and pesticides in plantations this month, fruits would die and reduce the expectation of a good crop.
Weekly temperatures across Ivory Coast ranged between 24.4 and 27.4 degrees Celsius. Farmers in the southern regions of Agboville and Divo and in the eastern region of Abengourou, where rains were below average, said plenty of fruits were still proliferating on the trees.
Original reporting: Appleton, WI News Feed (HLL/CB) — read the source article.
