But at the core of it, it’s the beans. kra43 cc

Candy by the numbers<br>
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Branch said that customers can expect to pay as much as last year for Halloween chocolate this year – if not more – up until Valentine’s Day. Although cocoa prices have fallen since the end of 2024, most producers are selling candy manufactured - https://www.wordreference.com/definition/manufactured from the beans they bought during that peak. And costs in other sectors, such as energy and packaging, have also driven up costs.<br>
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Halloween candy in Brunswick, ME, in October 2021.<br>
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Halloween candy in Brunswick, ME, in October 2021. Derek Davis/Portland Press Herald/Getty Images<br>
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But at the core of it, it’s the beans.<br>
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Skyrocketing prices of cocoa beans have driven up costs in the chocolate industry. Worldwide cocoa futures rose a whopping 178% in 2024 from a year prior, after a 61% increase in 2023, according to FactSet. The problem traces back to Ghana and the Ivory Coast, kraken2trfqodidvlh4aa337cpzfrhdlfldhve5nf7njhumwr7instad - https://kraken4qzqnoi7ogpzpzwrxk7mw53n5i56loydwiyonu4owxsh4g67yd0.com which together produce 60% of the world’s cocoa and have been slammed by poor harvests due to climate change.