Bitter pill: surging cost of cocoa and tariffs push price of chocolate in US up

For many Americans celebrating Easter, the holiday is incomplete without chocolate: chocolate bunnies and eggs, bars tucked into Easter baskets, candy hidden in plastic eggs.

- Lauren Aratani

But rocketing cocoa costs has meant higher prices for treats this year, and Donald Trump's tariff war is likely to keep prices high for the foreseeable future.

Every year, Americans spend billions of dollars on sweets during what the National Confectioners Association calls "the big four candy seasons": Valentine's Day, Easter, Halloween and Christmas. Last year, they spent $5.4bn (£4bn) on Easter candy, according to the association.

The price of chocolate products has been rising over the past year, largely because of the soaring cost of cocoa. In 2023, farmers in west Africa - where 70% of the world's cocoa is harvested - started to struggle with climate-related crises, including drought and plant disease. This has cut production which was already 400,000 tonnes short of the annual output required to meet demand.

Cocoa, which has cost as little as £1,500 a tonne, peaked in 2024 at more than £9,000.

This has led to chocolate prices soaring everywhere. Hershey, the biggest producer in the US, raised its prices last year - a decision that hit sales. The company recorded its lowest profit in seven years last year.