![2,000 tonnes of falsely declared cocoa beans seized in Ivory Coast [World News]](https://foodcom.pl/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Foodcom_World_News_Global-1520x760.jpg "2,000 tonnes of falsely declared cocoa beans seized in Ivory Coast [World News]")
- The unfavourable financial conditions of the cocoa trade, including high taxes and low prices for farmers, are causing the smuggling of beans from the Ivory Coast.
- In the port of Abidjan, 2,000 tonnes of cocoa beans declared as lower-taxed rubber were confiscated.
- The fraud may have been made possible by a corrupt administration, but the prosecutor’s office has not provided any information about the ongoing investigation.
Ivory Coast’s biggest seizure
Cocoa from Côte d’Ivoire is usually smuggled across the country’s western border to Guinea and Liberia, where farmers can expect higher than local prices. This time, however, Côte d’Ivoire customs confiscated some 2,000 tonnes of cocoa beans worth around $19 million at the main port of Abidjan. The commodity had been incorrectly declared as rubber in an attempt to reduce tax duties. As part of the operation, 110 containers were seized which, according to the documentation, were supposed to contain rubber, when in fact they contained cocoa. This is the first case of such a large seizure of falsely declared cocoa in the country.
What caused the fraud on such a large scale?
Cocoa exports in Côte d’Ivoire are subject to a 19.5 per cent tax, including a 14.5 per cent export tax and a 5 per cent registration fee, which would yield £2.9 million in tax for the state. Rubber exports, on the other hand, are only subject to 1.5% tax. Such a difference has prompted rogue exporters to falsely declare the goods in order to avoid the higher levy. Sources close to the judicial authorities indicate that the fraud was made possible by corruption and the complicity of various departments of the administration. The investigation into the case is ongoing and the public prosecutor’s office is not providing additional information for the time being.
We recommend reading the article, which presents interesting information: Ceremonial cocoa – how does a ritual drink with extraordinary properties differ from ordinary cocoa?
