Country Profiles

Due to its specific requirements, cocoa only grows in a narrow belt along the equator, about 20 degrees south and 20 degrees north. The cultivation countries are mainly located in West and Central Africa, Central and South America and Asia/Oceania. From there, cocoa reached Europe and the so-called New World via the trade routes of the time. In the countries where cocoa is grown, cocoa is still only processed in small quantities and hardly consumed.

The situation is completely different in the import and consumer countries. Europe, along with Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and North America, are among the leaders here. In addition, demand is growing in North Asia and increasingly also in East Asia.

For further information on the producing countries and on Germany as a country of import and consumption please follow the links.