In full world cocoa crisis, in the Canary Islands they have had an idea: cultivate them themselves

Last week, Ghana expelled all foreign companies that operated in the gold market. The situation had become unsustainable. Not only are they “disastrous economic, health and environmental consequences“Of artisanal mining (which has skyrocketed in recent years), nor the battered accounts of the Ghanaian state; but the boom of gold exploitation was eroding other national industries.

The clearest example is that of cocoa.

What about cocoa? Only in the last year, Ghana (the second country that produces the most cocoa) lost 20% of its total production. And that happened in a global context in which bad harvests, pests and climate change fired cocoa prices at historical levels: the ton surpassed The $ 10,000 in the New York Stock Exchange.

The problem is that for Ghanaian farmers, gold was more profitable in the short term. The arrival of Chinese operators changed the rules of the game a few years ago and the consequences began to be seen now: cocoa was not the ‘golden chicken’ for the African country industry; but it was much more sustainable than the Galamsey: stir tons and tons of land Almost handmade, illegal, dangerous and little regulated form To sell the gold they find.

It is also an “infectious disease” and Ivory Coast (the world’s main cocoa producer) already begins to suffer The same problem.

Where some see a problem, others see an opportunity. And for “another” I mean Canarian farmers. Because, like They said in the province“It has subtropical climatic conditions that make it a different region to the rest of the continent.” And that has consequences, above all, for agriculture.

Therefore, it is not surprising that the Canarian Institute for Agricultural Research (ICIA) I have been two years “Analyzing the possibilities of culture growth (cocoa) in farm -pea farms.” Nor is it that its results are positive.

The new jewel of Canarian agriculture? I wouldn’t say so much. As in the case of Café Granada, the Canarian cocoa It does not consider right now as a large crop. It would be about looking for a “boutique” product, something that allows “diversifying” Canarian agriculture and fleeing from the “bananodependence”.

But it is not so easy. Because it is not only about convincing enough producers to achieve considerable productive stability; but of being able to develop the entire industrial chain: things like the fermentation of the grain and its drying.

And many problems arise: because raising that industry is almost impossible (profitability is very low) and selling cocoa without further ado leaves you in a very bad strategic place. You have to think very well how to take the steps so that this does not become academic hobby.

Since the end of 2023, cocoa has gone from quoting at $ 2,581 per ton at 10,371. It is something extremely sweet and, therefore, little by little that we are wrong a deadly trap for the Canarian field.

Image | Majestic Lukas | Kyle Hinkson

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