Ghana Weighs Cutting Cocoa Farmers’ Pay After Futures Plunge

Ghana’s cocoa industry regulator and finance ministry are in talks to decide between lowering what farmers are paid for their beans or subsidizing them, with global prices slumping below domestic levels.

Until a decision is made, growers are stuck with about 150,000 tons of cocoa as the Ghana Cocoa Board has paused its purchases, according to people familiar with the matter. Cocobod, as the regulator is known, has purchased roughly 500,000 tons of beans, since the season began in August, out of its annual target of 650,000 tons, the people added, asking not to be named because the discussions are private.