Licensed cocoa buyers in Ghana expect the 2006 mid crop to total 60,000 to 80,000 tonnes, up from around 50,000 last year, they said on Thursday.
The mid crop refers to beans purchased from June 30 until the season ends on a date yet to be announced in September or October, though farmers have been harvesting and selling smaller beans, referred to as light crop beans, since March or April.
"We have already bought a lot (of light crop beans) in the main crop. I would expect the mid crop to be about 60,000 tonnes," one buyer said.
Other buyers told Reuters they expected the crop to reach as much as 80,000 tonnes.
"We will get some now in July, (then) it will tail off. It will appear again in August/September. It has been raining intermittently with sunshine. The weather is favourable," a Kumasi-based buyer said.
Buyers said mid-crop beans were still available in the important western growing areas, although the harvest had slowed down in eastern regions.
"I don't think we have a lot of cocoa to pick. We are trying in the Western Region and in the middle belt, Ashanti Region. In the Eastern region, the cocoa is almost picked," another buyer said.
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