APM Terminals gears up for cocoa harvest season

The world's leading producer of chocolate's key ingredient is gearing up for harvest season beginning next month, and so is APM Terminals at our locations in Côte d’Ivoire – in Abidjan and the port of San Pedro. APM Terminals stevedores approximately 35% of the port of San Pedro's entire market share.

As chocolate lovers celebrate International Chocolate Day on September 13, for our stevedore teams, meeting the demand for the West African nation's major export crop means handling 0.3 million tons of beans a year, all bagged, securely stuffed and loaded into containers for safe onward passage to the world, with the majority headed for Europe.

The Port of San Pedro is located on the Gulf of Guinea, and ideally positioned to serve as a transhipment hub for the West African coast. It is the second economic gateway to Côte d'Ivoire after Abidjan and the world leader in the exportation of cacao beans.

Key component

According to data from the Sustainable Trade Initiative, IDH, cocoa production accounts for around 15% of Gross Domestic Product for Côte d’Ivoire, and over 40% of export earnings. As such, the cocoa bean is described as “the main driver of the country's economic growth.”

APM Terminals therefore fulfills a vital role in the cocoa value chain. Says Yannick Atakla, Chief Financial Officer, APM Terminals at San Pedro: “APM Terminals  is a key stevedore for the vast majority of this unique plant raw material coming from Côte d’Ivoire. That makes us a key component for the efficient and sustainable exportation of cocoa – which is an important contributor to the nation’s GDP. Fulfilling our part in the supply chain is a tremendous responsibility, and as harvest season approaches, we intend to continuously improve on our delivery to our customers and stakeholders.”

Infrastructure investment

As part of continuous improvement plans, APM Terminals announced earlier this year infrastructure investments in Africa which included the delivery of 2 ship-to-shore cranes and 9 rubber-tyred-gantry cranes for Cote d’Ivoire Terminal (CIT).