Who pays for extra cost? – COCOBOD CEO questions EU on new regulations

The Chief Executive of Ghana Cocoa Board, Joseph Boahen Aidoo has raised critical concerns about the implementation of the new EU Regulations on Deforestation and its cost ramifications to farmers and producing countries.

The new EU Regulations on Deforestation require amongst others, that producing countries comply with stringent measures aimed at protecting the environmental ecosystem, resulting in sustainable and ethically sourced cocoa.

Despite the noble intentions behind the promulgation of the regulations some of which were already being addressed, there are huge ethical and economic concerns for countries like Ghana, Cote d’Ivoire and Cameroun, as to who bears the extra cost of compliance.

Ghana, for example, even before the advent of the EU Regulations, had already commenced and completed the Cocoa Management System (CMS), one of the critical requirements for the cocoa traceability system and will be ready for full roll-out in October this year.

“Ghana is very much aligned to implementing the European Union regulations but this will come at a cost to farmers and producing countries which is likely to increase the cost of cocoa from Ghana, Cote d’Ivoire and Cameroun”, Hon

Joseph Boahen averred that long before the EU considered the new regulations, steps had already been taken by producing countries, particularly in Ghana, to address the myriad of challenges associated with climate change and its consequences on production.

Considering the substantial investments in resources involved in compliance and the fact that producing countries are already reeling under economic pressure, advocates of this position believe that the EU and other developed countries should be prepared to support cocoa-producing countries for ethically and sustainably sourced cocoa.