About 70 percent of the global cocoa production originates from Africa, mainly West Africa. The EAC Partner States are not among the large producers on a global perspective, but there is great potential.
Nearly 90 percent of cocoa is produced by small scale farmers, thus it is a sector with high employment and poverty reducing opportunities.
The EAC trades four types of Cocoa mainly with the European Union (EU): cocoa beans, cocoa butter, cocoa powder/cake and cocoa paste. Of these, cocoa beans are the only significant cocoa exported to the EU market and Uganda is the biggest producer of cocoa in East Africa.