Cocoa bean exports from Cameroon reached 184,090 tonnes by the end of February, up 22 percent on the same period last year, according to data from two industry organisations in the world's fifth largest grower.
Exports for February, the seventh month of the season, reached 10,086 tonnes, down from 25,031 tonnes in January but up from 9,246 tonnes in the same month last year, according to the Cocoa and Coffee Interprofessional Board (CCIB) and the National Cocoa and Coffee Board (NCCB) on Wednesday.
For the first time ever, Gic Proba was the leading exporter of the month with 1,505 tonnes, followed by Camaco with 1,455 tonnes, down from 3,010 tonnes the previous month.
No. 3 exporter was Ets Ndongo Essomba with 1,254 tonnes, down from 2,408 tonnes in January.
Cameroon's cocoa season runs from August 1 to July 31, with the main harvest period from October to February.
The South-West and Centre regions account for 40 percent each of total cocoa beans output in the country, while the remainder come from the South and East regions.
The country hit a production record of 205,000 tonnes of cocoa beans in 2008/09, before slowing to 197,000 tonnes in 2009/2010. But experts and farmers now foresee production rising to over 200,000 tonnes in 2010/11.
Reuters
To ease your site search, article categories are at bottom of page.
