Bad weather has sent the price of the key ingredient for chocolates soaring. Even if cocoa prices drop with a good crop, long-term structural issues in the industry will mean you will pay more and more for your chocolates.
Figures released Thursday showed so-called grinds — where cocoa is turned into butter and powder used in confectionery — fell only about 2% in Europe and inched lower in Asia during the first quarter from a year earlier.