Rainfall in most of Ivory Coast's main cocoa-growing regions last week raised hopes for the April-September mid-crop following a long dry spell, which dampened cocoa output expectations in the world's top grower, farmers said on Monday.
Cocoa watchers polled by Reuters last month expect total output for 2011/12 to be around 1.4 million tonnes, down around 10 percent on the International Cocoa Organisation's (ICCO) estimate for last year. Some estimates put last year's total output as high as 1.7 million tonnes after smuggled cocoa is included in the count.
Farmers said the latest downpours would strengthen cocoa trees, weakened by an unusually harsh dry spell since November. But farmers, who need bouts of rainfall mixed with periods of sunshine for the good development of crops, said another downpour would be needed every week until the end of February to lift prospects for the mid-crop.
"We have finally had some rain," said Attoungbre Kouame who farms in the outskirts of Daloa, which produces about a quarter of Ivory Coast's national output.
"This rain will help strengthen the trees. Many of them were already weakened, and some have been killed by the drought," Kouame said. "More rain is needed every week until the end of this month for us to expect at least a bit of mid-crop."
In the western region of Soubre, at the heart of the Ivorian cocoa belt, farmers said they were happy because the rainfall was abundant and would help trees grow new foliage that would trigger new flowering for the mid-crop. "If we have a regular humidity pattern from now onward, I think that we will start seeing an abundant cocoa harvest from the mid-crop by the month of May in the area," said Lazare Ake, who farms near Soubre. Similar weather and growing conditions were reported in Southern regions of Divo, Aboisso and Agboville, in the western region of Duekoue and in the coastal region of Sassandra.
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