In Ivory Coast, a country which concentrates 40% of global cocoa production, local producers suffer from a chronic lack of rain due to climate change. Like them, thousands of planters have seen their cocoa trees wither, sometimes die, since the rains are unpredictable, less abundant and temperatures rise in this West African country particularly vulnerable to climate change, despite its low contribution to global CO2 emissions.
In this context, scientists from the National Agricultural Research Center have created cocoa that is more resistant to water stress. At the same time, observations are carried out in the laboratory, in particular to find the origin of resistance to lack of water.
The same month, the State announced the creation of an institute dedicated to research on cocoa and coffee, in Divo.
The precious beans of Côte d'Ivoire represent 40% of world production and 15% of national GDP, and in total support some five million people, directly and indirectly. Demand is growing, particularly in Europe, which concentrates 70% of Ivorian cocoa exports according to government data, has a large processing industry and remains the world's largest consumer of chocolate products.
Temperatures have already increased by 1°C between 1991 and 2020 according to a government report, and they could continue to rise by 1.7°C to 3.7°C by 2080, according to scenario-based studies from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Especially since national projections predict a deterioration of the climate for the coming decades, in particular seasonal instability and extreme weather episodes, intense droughts or torrential rains.