Synopsis
Turkey’s hazelnut harvest — the world’s largest — is expected to fall by over a third this year after severe spring frost, according to the Turkish Grain Board. Production is projected at 453,000 tons, down from 717,000 tons last year. In response, the board has raised the price it pays farmers by around 50%.
AgenciesThe world’s biggest hazelnut crop is set to slump, spelling more bad news for chocolate lovers.
The harvest in Turkey is projected to fall by more than a third after the worst spring frost in years, the country’s grain board said, as it hiked the price it pays farmers for their hazelnuts by around half.
That inflation presents a further headache for chocolate companies, after poor weather in Ivory Coast and Ghana pushed cocoa prices to a record high in December, forcing many popular brands to pass the increase on to customers. Nutella-maker Ferrero is the biggest buyer of hazelnuts, but most confectioners use them.
Indeed, some chocolate makers have been increasing the fruit, nut and caramel content of their bars to offset high cocoa costs, while also shrinking the size of some products. Now they face another challenge. Ferrero, which makes millions of jars of hazelnut-packed Nutella every year, didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment on the Turkish harvest.
“As the hazelnut price increases we either reduce the amount we use, or remove it altogether,” said Kazim Tayci, vice chairman of the board of directors at Turkish confectionery firm Tayas Gida. The company has cut the hazelnut content in some of its chocolate bars from their usual 30% to as low as 10% this year, he said.
Hazelnut output is forecast to drop to 453,000 tons this year from 717,000 tons in 2024 due to the April cold snap, the state-run Turkish Grain Board’s general manager Ahmet Guldal said. Turkey accounts for two-thirds of global supply.
The dent to the harvest is another reminder of how vulnerable the world’s food supplies remain to climate change.
Unpredictable weather has boosted coffee and cocoa prices, while olive oil crops have been hit by intensifying heat waves across southern Europe.
The bad news from Turkey could get worse. While the board’s forecast is 25% lower than a projection in May from the country’s main hazelnut exporting group, Guldal signaled it could fall further as the farmers bring in the harvest over the next two months.
“Considering the harvest’s progress, it’s possible to consider this figure optimistic,” he said.
