Bittersweet Valentine's: Chocolate price rise to persist

Chocolates and roses. It has always been chocolates and roses on Valentine's Day. But unlike the song of The Green, Filipino lovers may have to resist a sweet bite of chocolate as the price of the beloved sweet continues to turn bitter.

- JASPER EMMANUEL ARCALAS

The world was in for a roller-coaster ride last year after cacao prices skyrocketed to unprecedented levels following a steep decline in West African supplies that caused a global supply crunch for the commodity.

Extreme weather conditions like El Niño caused erratic rainfall patterns and higher and dry temperatures, making it conducive for pests and diseases to proliferate. This significantly slashed cacao yields in West Africa, which accounts for 70 percent of the world's supply.

Global cocoa prices peaked at a record high of $12,646 per metric ton in the middle of December last year. That translates to roughly about P750 a kilo, almost equivalent to two kilos of pork belly.

In its November update, the International Cocoa Organization (ICCO) revised upward its global production estimate to 4.382 million metric tons from its previous projection of 4.332 million MT.

However, the increase remained insufficient to meet the projected global demand of 4.816 million MT, resulting in an estimated shortage of almost 480,000 MT.