Chocolate makers have said they are being severely affected by the rising costs of cocoa. Problems such as extreme weather and under-investment in farms in major producing regions of West Africa has disrupted cocoa bean plantations, causing problems with supply.
In the last 12 months the wholesale price of cocoa - a crucial ingredient for the sweet treat - has gone up four-fold. It caused a challenging time for small chocolate businesses even in the run up to Christmas, traditionally a busy year for these firms.
Head chocolatier at Zara's Chocolates in Bristol, Helen Jones, said: "Our profit margins are small, and people think we're making lots of money but that isn't the case. Our core ingredients have increased [in price] a lot. Some things by 25%, some up to 200% increases in the chocolate that we buy in.".
The business tried to absorb the cost in order not to pass the price increases onto customers, but Helen added that this "became impossible". She said: "Many of the problems affecting our chocolate were happening a year ago, and the effects are still being felt. We put a little note in the shop to explain why the prices were increasing, and thankfully people were really good about it.".
The price rises have also been seen on supermarket shelves in recent months. Consumer group Which?'s latest inflation tracker found chocolate in supermarkets went up 12% in the year to November 2024, the highest across all the food and drink categories it looked at.
Some saw even higher increases. At Ocado, a Cadbury Milk Tray Chocolate Box (360g) rose by 120% from £2.63 on average in November 2023 to £5.78 in November 2024 and at Morrisons, a Cadbury Chocolate Xmas Santa Selection Box Medium (125g) increased by 83% from £1.50 to £2.75 on average.
