Peru cocoa exports up 40.5 percent

Peruvian customs statistics show the country’s cocoa bean sales were 40.5 percent higher in the first three months of 2011 compared to the same period last year, website Agraria.pe reported.
The exports had a total value of $6.2 million with the U.S. purchasing one third of shipments, followed by the Netherlands (28 percent), Belgium (21 percent), Italy (9.6 percent) and Canada (2.6 percent).
Shipment figures did not grow as rapidly as sales, with a growth rate of 26.3 percent compared to the same period in 2010 and total volumes of 1,700 metric tons (MT), Agraria reported.
Company Sumaqao SAC accounted for one quarter of the shipments, followed by Cooperativa Agraria Industrial Naranjillo (16 percent), Cooperativa Agraria Cacaotera Acopagro (15 percent) and Amazonas Trading Peru SAC (9.7 percent).
Another Peruvian group, the Cooperativa Divisoria was named in 2010 as one of the best producers of organic chocolate in the world, according to Agraria. The co-op exports 60 percent of its annual production to the United States and another sizable amount of its beans to Switzerland.

(Source: http://www.livinginperu.com/news-14792-economy-peru-cocoa-exports-up-40-5-percent)