Cocoa futures in both London and New York set record highs on Monday, due in part of a supply shortage of the plant.
Dealers said poor crops in Ghana and the Ivory Coast due to high temperatures and low rainfall could lead to a supply shortage.
Farmers in the Ivory Coast also said the heat and lack of rain could damage the quality of the plants.
In London, July cocoa stock prices were up 2.65% at £8,869 a metric tonne at 1456GMT, after hitting a record high of £8,954 earlier in the session.
In New York, the price rose 1.2% to $10,603 per metric tonne after setting a record peak of $10,738.
‘Now We Need Rain’
The Ivory Coast – the world’s top cocoa producer – is now in its rainy season, which officially runs from April to November.
Though the central-west region of Daloa experienced above-average rains last week, most farmers across other cocoa regions said the prolonged lack of adequate rainfall combined with high temperatures could damage the development of small pods.
Famers said small pods were dying in trees, but the situation was not yet alarming.
They said if rains are abundant and consistent from this week until June, growing conditions would improve.
Sebastien Koffi, who farms near the western region of Soubre, said, “Now we need rain; the small pods are in danger.”
Soubre saw 20mm of rain last week, 1.5mm below the five-year average.
Famers in other regions such as Agboville and Divo said they expected the mid-crop to be more abundant by mid-May, but that the weather could affect the size of the beans.
In the centre-western region of Daloa – where rains are above average – farmers said the weather was encouraging.
Others are not so hopeful.
“We will have quality problems because the dry spell has been long,” said Etienne Aka, who farms near the central region of Bongouanou, where 19.3mm fell, 4mm below average.
The weekly average temperature ranged from 28.9 to 32.2 degrees Celsius.
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