For decades, starting in the 1950s, American children became familiar with the marketing jingle, “N-E-S-T-L-E-S. Nestle's make the very best ... CHOCOLATE.” The following video is an early example of that marketing campaign featuring ventriloquist Jimmy Nelson and his puppets Danny O’Day and Farfel the dog.

Most people love their chocolate in whatever form it takes. But for the last year, chocolate lovers have noticed prices rising on one of their favorite foods. The key ingredient in chocolate is cocoa, which comes from the seeds of the Theobroma cacao tree. Last December, cocoa prices soared to over $12,000/metric ton. Since then, the price of cocoa has dropped closer to $7,000/metric ton. Nevertheless, higher prices have affected confectioners around the world, including Nestlé. Back in July, journalists Owen Tucker-Smith and Jesse Newman reported, “Inflation isn’t finished with your chocolate bar.”[1]

Causes of the Cocoa Crisis

Food journalist Augustus Bambridge-Sutton explains that the cocoa crisis resulted from the convergence of several factors.[2] The primary factor is weather. He explains, “The process of cocoa production requires very specific climatic conditions [and] cocoa farmers are not getting the conditions they need for the best yields.” Another factor mentioned by Bambridge-Sutton is disease. He reports that rates of cacao swollen root virus have been high. He also observes that aging trees, whose yields are lower than younger trees, are not being replaced because cocoa farmers can’t afford to replace them on low incomes they currently receive from their crops. He adds, “Even the soil around these trees is often being depleted due to lack of fertilizer, which many farmers can’t afford.” Bambridge-Sutton also reports that the lure of illegal gold-mining in Ghana, is luring some growers away from their farms.

Tucker-Smith and Newman agree with that analysis. They report, “[Consumers can expect cocoa prices to] remain far above historical levels, with poor weather and plant disease squeezing cocoa supplies in West Africa, where the world gets roughly 70% of its cocoa beans. Analysts don’t expect prices to return to traditional levels anytime soon.” On 8 September, President Trump exempted cocoa from tariffs in order to help ease rising prices. Nevertheless, food manufacturers and consumers will feel the pinch throughout the holidays.

According to Tucker-Smith and Newman, many companies are raising prices to maintain profits. They report, “The continuing cocoa market turmoil has cut into food companies’ profits and played into price increases. Chocolate maker Lindt & Spruengli has attempted to pass rising costs to its consumers through higher prices. Mondelez, supplier of Oreo cookies, has also blamed cocoa costs as it announced earlier this year a planned price increase. Hershey … informed its retail customers of a roughly double-digit percentage increase.”

What’s Being Done

Food manufacturers know that chocolate (and other cocoa-based products) are moneymakers. Journalist Christopher Doering reports, “Chocolate accounted for a record $21.4 billion in confectionery sales during the last year, with 65% of consumers indulging in the treat.”[3] That’s why food journalist Flora Southey reports, “Cocoa innovation is all around, from cocoa-free chocolate through to cell cultivation. That’s unsurprising given the state of the cocoa sector.”[4]

Doering reports, “Some companies have worked on cocoa substitutes, but taste and consumer perception of these products remain headwinds for buy-in from major CPG companies. Mondelēz International’s SnackFutures Ventures, the company’s venture capital arm, has invested in Celleste Bio, a producer of cell-cultured cocoa ingredients.” He also reports, “Snickers maker Mars announced it is using gene-editing CRISPR technology to breed a better cocoa plant.”

Southey reports that Nestlé is taking a different approach. She writes, “Nestlé isn’t concentrating efforts on alternatives. Instead, it’s working to get more yield from cocoa fruit with a new, patented technique. The new process can use up to 30% more cocoa fruit in the production of chocolate.” In addition to those efforts, Southey reports, “Chocolate makers have been reformulating to reduce cocoa content in their products.”

Concluding Thoughts

One would think that higher cocoa prices would be good for cocoa farmers. That hasn’t been the case. Darrell High, Nestlé’s cocoa manager, told Southey, “At the moment, it’s a double whammy for farmers, with lower production but not yet the higher prices.”[5] He explained that “it takes time for high prices to filter through to farmers because of national selling systems.” High indicates that Nestlé is working to increase productivity and farmer incomes. With few locations growing the bulk of cacao plants, it’s good business to try and make farmers as resilient as possible. The world’s sweet-tooth will likely continue to crave chocolate in the years ahead — especially during the holidays. But don’t expect chocolate prices to go down during this holiday season.

Footnotes

[1] Owen Tucker-Smith and Jesse Newman, “Hershey Lifts Candy Prices, Citing High Cocoa Costs,” The Wall Street Journal, 22 July 2025.

[2] Augustus Bambridge-Sutton, “Cocoa crisis: The main causes,” Food Navigator Europe, 5 August 2025.

[3] Christopher Doering, “Nestlé develops ‘groundbreaking’ process to boost cocoa production,” Food Dive, 2 September 2025.

[4] Flora Southey, “Nestlé invents novel cocoa technique amid chocolate crisis,” Food Navigator Europe, 20 August 2025.

[5] Flora Southey, “Nestlé’s cocoa boss on surviving the ‘biggest shock in 25 years,” Food Navigator Europe, 23 September 2025.