Cameroon’s cocoa industry has suffered a sharp downturn in the 2025–2026 season, with export revenue plunging 63% as lower shipments and falling international prices put pressure on major market players, including Telcar Cocoa, the country’s leading cocoa trading company associated with Cameroon’s richest woman, Kate Kanyi-Tometi Fotso.

Cocoa beans shipped through the Port of Douala generated CFA400.9 billion during the season, which ran from August 1, 2025, to July 15, 2026, according to figures released by the National Cocoa and Coffee Board (ONCC) on August 6. The latest figure compares with CFA1.07 trillion recorded in the 2024–2025 season, representing a decline of more than CFA673 billion.

Reversal from Cameroon’s cocoa boom

Cameroon shipped 125,468 metric tons of cocoa beans during the 2025–2026 season, down from 192,013 tons a year earlier. The 66,545-ton decline represents a 34.65% contraction in export volumes.

Prices weakened even more dramatically. Cocoa beans at the Port of Douala traded at FOB prices ranging from CFA1,520 ($2.67) to CFA3,110 ($5.47) per kilogram during the latest campaign, compared with CFA3,808 ($6.7) to CFA7,536 ($13.26) in 2024–2025.

Farmgate prices also fell sharply, ranging from CFA700 ($1.23) to CFA4,300 ($7.56) per kilogram during the latest season. This compares with CFA3,210 ($5.64) to CFA5,400 ($9.5) in the previous campaign and a record CFA6,000 ($10.55) reached during the 2023–2024 season. The reversal has created a significantly more difficult environment for cocoa traders and exporters such as Telcar Cocoa, which has played a central role in Cameroon’s cocoa export industry for decades.

Global cocoa surplus pressures market

The downturn has been driven largely by a changing global cocoa supply balance after several years of tight supply and exceptionally high prices. The decline in international cocoa prices is attributed to a second consecutive season of surplus production, following three years of global deficits that pushed cocoa prices to record levels.

As supply begins to exceed demand, the resulting price correction is being felt across major producing countries, including Cameroon.

For Fotso and Telcar Cocoa, whose business is deeply tied to the cocoa trade, the weaker market highlights the exposure of commodity businesses to rapid changes in global supply, demand and pricing.

Pressure mounts on Fotso’s cocoa empire

Fotso, widely regarded as Cameroon’s richest woman, built much of her business reputation through her long association with Telcar Cocoa, one of the country’s most prominent cocoa exporters.

Telcar has been a major force in Cameroon’s cocoa trade for more than three decades, giving Fotso a significant position in one of the country’s most important agricultural export industries.

The current market downturn does not, by itself, establish a corresponding 63% decline in Telcar Cocoa’s revenue or Fotso’s personal wealth. However, the collapse in national cocoa export earnings illustrates the tougher operating environment facing traders and exporters across the sector.

The pressure comes after cocoa’s remarkable rise in Cameroon’s export economy. In 2025, cocoa beans accounted for 26.3% of the country’s export revenue, overtaking crude oil, which represented 22.9%, according to foreign trade data from Cameroon’s National Institute of Statistics. With cocoa export earnings now falling sharply, the commodity’s position as Cameroon’s largest export product could come under pressure again.

Cocoa production falls to five-season low

The weakness in export earnings was accompanied by a significant decline in Cameroon’s marketed cocoa production. The ONCC recorded 247,914 metric tons of marketed cocoa during the 2025–2026 season, down 61,604 tons, or 19.9%, from 309,518 tons in the previous campaign.

The latest figure represents the weakest marketed production result in five seasons.

Cameroon had marketed 295,164 tons in 2021–2022, followed by 262,112 tons in 2022–2023 and 266,710 tons in 2023–2024 before production surged to a record 309,518 tons in 2024–2025.

Marketed production refers to cocoa traded through official marketing channels and does not necessarily capture the country’s total harvested output because it excludes inventories and production that bypasses formal commercial networks.

Centre region remains cocoa heartland

Despite the nationwide decline, the Centre Region retained its position as Cameroon’s largest cocoa marketing hub during the 2025–2026 season. The region accounted for 44.54% of officially recorded cocoa purchases, equivalent to approximately 110,421 metric tons based on total marketed production. Its share was slightly lower than the 45.8% recorded during the previous campaign.

The Southwest Region followed with 19.87%, representing approximately 49,261 tons, while the Littoral Region accounted for 18.50%, or about 45,864 tons. The South and East regions represented 6.54% and 6.17%, respectively, while the West accounted for 4.14%. The Northwest and Adamawa regions contributed 0.19% and 0.06%.

For Fotso’s cocoa empire and the wider industry, the figures underscore how quickly the market has shifted. After record prices helped cocoa become Cameroon’s leading export commodity, lower production, weaker prices and a growing global surplus have created a tougher landscape for farmers, traders and exporters entering the 2026–2027 season.