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Offinso South MP Blasts Government Over ‘Manipulated’ Cocoa Price, Demands Fulfilment of GH₵6,000 Per Bag Promise
Ranking Member on Parliament’s Food and Agriculture Committee, Dr. Isaac Yaw Opoku, has sharply criticised the government’s newly announced cocoa producer price, branding it a “top-bottom” decision built on manipulated figures rather than genuine consultation with farmers.
The government last week announced a 62.58% increase in the cocoa producer price for the 2025/2026 season — from US$3,100 to US$5,040 per tonne. In cedi terms, the price moves from GH₵49,600 to GH₵51,660 per tonne, equivalent to GH₵3,228.75 per 64kg bag. The new rate, approved by the Producer Price Review Committee chaired by Finance Minister Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, takes effect Thursday, August 7.
Speaking on Channel One Newsroom on Monday, August 4, the Offinso South MP alleged that the price was fixed before any stakeholder consultations took place.
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“What the government is doing is a top-bottom approach. What do we want to pay? What price do we want to give to farmers? So they established that figure before they worked around it to achieve what they gave out to farmers today,” Dr. Opoku said.
He dismissed the economic assumptions used to calculate the new price.
“I do not even agree to the FOB price they are quoting. I do not agree with the cedi exchange rate they are quoting. I do not agree to any condition they have established. I do not agree to any of them,” he insisted.
Dr. Opoku also accused the Mahama-led government of failing to honour its campaign pledge to cocoa farmers.
“What was the basis for promising cocoa farmers that when they win power, they will pay GH₵6,000 per bag? In fact, Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson even went further — at one point, he promised GH₵7,000. The cocoa farmers don’t know any calculation, they do not believe in these gimmicks. All they are asking the government to do is to fulfil its promise of GH₵6,000 per bag,” he stressed.
The MP maintained that cocoa farmers remain sceptical about government figures, arguing that without fulfilling its pledges, the administration risks losing the trust of a vital agricultural sector.
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