KONA, Ghana (AP) — Manu Yaw Fofie was born into the cocoa farming business, but the land bequeathed to him has become more of a burden than a blessing. A sharp fall in cocoa prices over the past year has left beans rotting in some West African warehouses, while global chocolate makers scramble for supplies and consumers seek their fix.

With less money coming in, the 52-year-old Fofie in Ghana has taken the desperate step of giving part of his land to illegal sand miners, a lucrative practice driven by high construction demand since sand is used in concrete.

The cost is severe, however: the sand mining makes the land infertile.

Aware of the danger, Fofie said he had been left with little choice. He said annual cocoa bean yields has been declining over the years, from the past heyday of 300 bags to 50 bags in 2025, affected by factors including climate change.

Fofie is one of many cocoa farmers in Ghana and Ivory Coast — countries responsible for nearly 70% of the global cocoa bean supply — who are putting their land for other uses after the price of the once high-flying commodity crashed.

Ivory Coast, the world’s leading cocoa producer, had to purchase an excess supply of cocoa beans from farmers in January and this week slashed the price by more than half for 2026.

While a global commodity like cocoa beans is prone to occasional crisis, Ghanaian authorities were not prepared for one at this scale, said Edward Karaweh, former general secretary of the General Agricultural Workers Union.

“Preparation allows you to mitigate the crisis. It is not that you prevent the crisis altogether,” Karaweh said.

Cocoa futures soared, then crashed

Hundreds of thousands of farmers in West Africa rely on cocoa farming for a living. In Ivory Coast, cocoa bean exports make up 40% of the total export revenue. In neighboring Ghana, they make up nearly 15%.

Government regulators set a fixed price for the cocoa bean at the beginning of every planting season, and the majority of the beans are sold through government-licensed parties to protect farmers from price fluctuations on the international market.

However, after a surge in cocoa futures in 2024 on international markets, the futures — a contract to buy a commodity at an agreed-upon price on a future date — reached more than $12,000 per metric ton, the highest in decades. Then it crashed to around $4,000 as supply outstripped demand.

The downturn in price meant global traders would run at a loss if they purchased cocoa beans from the two African countries.

That led to a mounting stockpile of rotting cocoa beans in warehouses, while farmers who already sold their stocks to governments have not been paid for months.

With structural issues, farmers said they missed out on benefiting from the original surge. The whiplash in prices made some decide enough was enough.

Climate also plays a role

Walking through his cocoa trees in Ivory Coast, François N’Gbin pointed to blackened, dried-up pods caused by disease and a lack of rain.

He said he also has given up part of his land, for a fee, to illegal gold miners, then obtained a mining license out of fear of the authorities.

The mining area, partly filled with murky, yellowish water, covers at least 1,000 square meters (1,200 square yards) on his farm.

“Today, gold is more profitable than cocoa,” he said. “We get 1,500 CFA francs ($2.67) per gram of gold, and we’re about to negotiate an increase.”

Many other farmers are finding other uses for their farms, including leasing them to illegal gold miners, according to Moussa Koné, president of the Ivorian cocoa farmers’ union.

“Cocoa is not selling, but farmers still need money to feed their families,” he said.

Governments race to find solutions

Ghana has initiated efforts to loosen regulations on price controls, and in January slashed its fixed price for cocoa beans by 28% to 41,392 cedis ($3,881) per metric ton, in an attempt to make the beans more accessible to buyers.

This week, Ivory Coast also slashed the price paid to cocoa farmers by more than half to 1,200 CFA ($2.13) per kilogram ($0.97 per pound) for 2026.

Farmers say the price cut has left their profit margin very slim when they factor in the costs of production.

“Accepting the current price means my son will have to drop out of school,” said Mercy Amponsah, a 50-year-old cocoa farmer in Ghana. Shee was among the farmers who visited the capital, Accra, in January to protest the price cut.

Some cocoa producers elsewhere in the world — South America and Asia — have improved their supply but West Africa still makes up the bulk of production.

Farmers like Fofie say they must find other ways to survive, however.

“If I keep this cocoa farm for the next 10 years, I would die a poor man,” he said.

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Adetayo reported from Lagos, Nigeria.

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For more on Africa and development: https://apnews.com/hub/africa-pulse

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A Russian ballistic missile strike on a residential building in Kharkiv, Ukraine, killed at least 10 people, including two children, and wounded 16 others Saturday, officials said.

The strike was part of a broader overnight assault in which Russia launched 29 missiles and 480 drones targeting Ukrainian energy infrastructure, with damage reported in Kyiv and at seven other locations across the country, according to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Zelenskyy called for an international response following the attack.

“There must be a response from partners to these savage strikes against life. I thank everyone who will not remain silent. Russia has not abandoned its attempts to destroy Ukraine’s residential and critical infrastructure, and therefore support must continue,” he said in a post on X.

“We count on active work with the European Union to guarantee greater protection for our people,” he added. “I am grateful to everyone who helps strengthen our protection.”

Preliminary Ukrainian data showed air defense systems downed 19 missiles and 453 drones, while nine missiles and 26 strike drones hit 22 locations.

Russia’s Defense Ministry said the strikes targeted Ukrainian military factories, energy facilities and air bases.

TRUMP SAYS ‘HATRED’ BETWEEN PUTIN, ZELENSKYY BLOCKING UKRAINE PEACE DEAL

Speaking Saturday at the Shield of the Americas Summit in Doral, Florida, President Donald Trump said the “hatred” between Russia and Ukraine was complicating efforts to reach a peace deal.

“It’s so great that, you know, Ukraine, Russia, you’d think there would be a little bit of camaraderie, [but] there’s not. And the hatred is so great. It’s very hard for them to get there. It’s very, very hard to get there. So we’ll see what happens,” Trump said. “But we’ve been close a lot of times and one or the other would back out.” 

“But we’re losing, you know, they’re losing, you know, doesn’t really affect us very much because we’ve got an ocean separating. I’m doing it as a favor to Europe, and I’m doing it as a favor to life because they’re losing 25,000 souls,” Trump added. “Think of that every month. 25,000. Last month, 31,000.  Both sides, 31,000 people died, mostly soldiers.”

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Last month, Zelenskyy told Fox News that Russia is trying “to play with the president of the United States” and stalling U.S.-brokered efforts to end the war.

Fox News Digital’s Greg Norman-Diamond and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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07/03/2026 – 21:58 GMT+1

Lion-emblazoned flags of pre-revolution Iran fluttered in cities across Europe as protesters gathered on Saturday to express support for the Iranian people amid the ongoing war with the US and Israel.

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Many of the demonstrators, including in Berlin, Stockholm and Paris, voiced support for the exiled crown prince Reza Pahlavi, son of Iran’s last shah, who presents himself as an alternative after Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei was killed in an Israeli-American strike.

In London, people demonstrated against the war while some others marched in support of Khamenei.

Between 5,000 and 6,000 people attended the “Hands Off Iran” march, according to the Metropolitan Police, chanting “stop the bombing now, now, now”.

Paris saw two demonstrations: one supporting the son of the late shah to head up a transition, and another denouncing that scenario.

“I support Pahlavi who is calling for a revolution,” Masoud Ghanaatian, a 35-year-old student said at a protest in southern Paris, where participants carried photos of the late shah’s son and waved US, Israeli and pre-revolution Iran flags.

“He’s a democrat. He can oversee a transition and promises to organise elections.”

But other protesters wearing yellow vests reading “Free Iran” showed off stickers on their hands that read “No Shah, no Mullah”.

Hundreds of pro-Pahlavi demonstrations also gathered in Stockholm, holding up pictures of him and his late father.

In Amsterdam, protesters marched along one of the city’s canals, holding up Israeli, American and pre-revolution Iran flags, as they called on the government to invite Pahlavi to the country and to close the Iranian embassy.

Shortly after dawn in Britain, anti-war protesters gathered at the entrance of an air force base in Fairford, southwest of England, holding signs reading “Hands off Iran,” “Peace” and “Yanks go home”.

US President Donald Trump has promised to help rebuild Iran’s economy if Tehran installs someone “acceptable” to him to replace its late supreme leader.

Amir Saeid Iravani, Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations, said the US would have no role in selecting Khamenei’s successor.

“The selection of Iran’s leadership will take place strictly in accordance with our constitutional procedures and solely by the will of the Iranian people, without any foreign interference,” he added.

Additional sources • AFP