Egg-spensive Easter: Cocoa prices tumbled, but chocolate bunnies didn’t get the memo

2026-03-20 - 19:20

Prices for chocolate ‌eggs and bunnies will remain high this Easter in the US despite the fact that prices for the main raw material used to make ​them – cocoa beans – have gone sharply down over the ​last year, a report said on Friday. “Even though cocoa futures ⁠have dropped, retail prices remain sticky because candy makers buy ​cocoa months in advance and work through existing inventory and hedges,” ​said David Branch, Sector Manager at Wells Fargo Agri-Food Institute, in a report. “Most Easter chocolates were produced when cocoa was still extremely expensive, so shoppers ​should expect prices similar to or slightly above Valentine’s Day levels,” ​he added. Cocoa futures prices fell more than 70% since a record-high level reached ‌at ⁠the end of 2024 due to a recovery in production and changes in the industry, which reduced the size of packages and increased the use of alternative, non-cocoa ingredients. Branch said that some ​price reduction might ​reach store shelves ⁠in the U.S. by mid‐2026, around Halloween time, as lower cocoa costs work their way through ​production cycles. Easter in the US. is a smaller candy ​holiday ⁠compared with Halloween and winter holidays, but it is heavily chocolate-driven, with approximately 90% of all Easter baskets including chocolate, according to the ⁠National ​Confectioners Association. The industry estimates consumers to spend $3.3 ​billion on Easter candy this year.