The Africa Cocoa Finance & Investment Forum (ACFIF) will meet at 48 Wall Street in New York today (Monday, 26 October). Discussions will focus on financing cocoa businesses, managing price risk and expanding US sales of African cocoa products.
The organiser’s programme places the forum between two visits: one to the Pennsylvania Chocolate & Coffee Festival on 24–25 October, where delegates can observe the consumer market, and another to the Port of Philadelphia on 27 October, where selected delegates will examine cocoa import and distribution operations.
The New York meeting follows ACFIF’s inaugural London event in May. A central question is whether African producers and processors can secure the capital and commercial relationships needed to earn more from cocoa beyond bean exports.
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The stakes are substantial. The International Cocoa Organization estimated that Africa produced 69.2% of the world’s cocoa in 2024-25. That share of production does not ensure that African businesses earn a comparable share of the income from processing, manufacturing and selling chocolate.
The forum will examine opportunities in processing, logistics, farm productivity and cocoa-based consumer products. ICCO annual report
Finance and Price Risk
The first of four scheduled panels will examine investment partnerships for cocoa-sector development. Speakers are also due to discuss bankable projects across the value chain, giving investors and businesses a chance to assess the financing plans behind proposed facilities and services.
Another panel will address price risk: how cocoa businesses and producing countries manage market fluctuations and participate in commodity markets. Sharp price movements can affect exporters’ financing, processors’ costs and the income available to support farmers.
Ghana Cocoa Board chief executive Ransford Abbey is scheduled to present on Ghana’s cocoa reforms and financing opportunities. The published agenda also lists representatives of banks, commodity firms, cocoa businesses and chocolate companies, creating scope to connect policy proposals with financing and purchasing decisions.
From Investment to Buyers
The final panel will cover US–Africa cocoa trade and market access, following a presentation on specialty cocoa opportunities. Discussions with buyers could help African exporters and processors understand demand for particular products and the quality, consistency and delivery terms required to supply them.
The visits address other parts of that challenge. The Pennsylvania Chocolate & Coffee Festival offers delegates a view of products and brands sold to US consumers. The planned port visit turns attention to the infrastructure through which cocoa enters and moves around the market.
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ACFIF lead convenor Fuad Abubakar Mohammed has identified longer-term finance for processing, infrastructure and productivity as a priority. In an interview with Pan African Visions, he argued that investment remains heavily focused on short-term trade finance for bean exports.
The measure of the New York programme will come after the meetings: whether African businesses secure viable financing prospects, buyer relationships and clearer paths to market.