Ivory Coast dominates the market for cocoa beans with a world market share of over 30 percent. But the trees and farmers producing the beans are ageing and the crop is seen as unprofitable by young Ivorians. Alternatives like rubber or palm oil vie with cocoa for the precious fertile land and are in many ways advantageous for farmers. Industry and government initiatives to shore up cocoa production will probably take decades to show their full effects. One way or the other, the Ivorian cocoa sector will undergo a tremendous transformation in the coming years, with dramatic consequences for international business, the Ivorian government and farming communities.
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