Cocoa is one of Ghana's most important crops and a main source of income for farming families, yet many farms are producing far less than they could, and expanding into forest has often been the easy way to grow more.
A survey of 739 cocoa-farming households in 20 communities across Ashanti, Ahafo, Bono, Bono East, Eastern and Western North found that 58.25% of the 927 plots studied used neither yield-raising methods nor sustainable practices in the 2022/2023 season. Only 6.9% combined both.
Many basic practices were rare. More than half of the plots (55.12%) were never pruned, only 30.20% received inorganic fertiliser and just 16.50% were hand pollinated. Fewer than three in ten (28.59%) had any renovation of cocoa trees, and farmers used protective equipment on only 25.35% of plots.
The gap in output is wide. Plots using neither approach averaged about 272 kg of cocoa per hectare, while plots that combined both averaged about 882 kg. After allowing for differences between farms, the study's model links combining both approaches to yields 34% higher and income about GHS 1,325 per hectare higher than those farms would otherwise have earned. Pushing inputs alone, without sustainable practices, was linked to income 25.8% lower, which the study suggests may reflect high input costs.
The findings matter because Ghana needs more cocoa from the land already planted. They suggest the answer is not simply more chemicals but better care of trees, soil and shade alongside improved varieties and fertiliser. The study points to a fair producer price, payments for protecting the environment, secure rights over shade trees and farmgate price premiums as incentives that could help more farmers make the switch.
Research Scope
This article is based on a 2025 PhD thesis in agricultural economics at the University of Ghana, held in UGSpace. It draws on a survey sample of 739 cocoa-farming households and 927 cocoa plots in 20 communities across six cocoa-growing regions, Ashanti, Ahafo, Bono, Bono East, Eastern and Western North, covering the 2022/2023 season. The Western Region was not surveyed. Yields are based on the beans farmers reported selling, and the yield and income effects are statistical model estimates, not results from a controlled trial. It is a research signal from selected cocoa communities, not a full national survey.