The Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD), Dr Randy Abbey, has rejected claims that the Cocoa Board Bill 2026 will restrict cocoa farmers from intercropping, describing such assertions as deliberate misinformation about the proposed legislation.

He said the Bill was developed to tackle persistent challenges within the cocoa sector, including the destruction of cocoa farms, financing constraints, weak financial controls, limited domestic processing and inadequate returns for farmers.

Dr Abbey said the legislation specifically seeks to give cocoa farms greater protection by requiring authorisation before cocoa trees can be destroyed, uprooted, damaged or felled, except where such action forms part of an approved rehabilitation programme.

He said the need for stronger protection had become urgent because cocoa farms were increasingly being lost to activities such as illegal mining, logging and real estate development.

“Every single week, I receive petitions from farmers who come complaining that their cocoa farms are being destroyed for one activity or the other. If it is not mining, it’s lumbering. If it’s not lumbering, it’s real estate. This is the same industry that has held this economy from Gold Coast to Ghana for over a century. We obviously needed to do something,” he said.

The COCOBOD boss insisted that the proposed restrictions should not be interpreted as a ban on farmers growing food crops alongside cocoa.

He said the relevant provisions were aimed at protecting cocoa trees and farms from destruction rather than preventing farmers from adopting approved farming practices.

Dr Abbey accused some individuals and groups of intentionally distorting the contents of the Bill, arguing that such claims could undermine reforms intended to strengthen the industry.

“It is therefore unfortunate, still speaking about the bill, that we have persons or group of persons who have gone on a misinformation and disinformation drive, misinforming stakeholders and the public about what these reforms are about,” he said.

He further explained that the Bill would introduce tighter financial controls at COCOBOD, including greater compliance with the Public Financial Management Act, to prevent decisions that could expose the cocoa sector to significant financial risks.

The proposed legislation also provides for a new cocoa pricing framework under which farmers would receive 70% of the gross free-on-board value of cocoa, while producer prices could be reviewed in response to movements in international market indicators.

According to Dr Abbey, the arrangement is intended to ensure farmers benefit when global cocoa prices rise while also reducing the risk of financial losses when prices fall.

He described the proposed legislation as the most significant overhaul of Ghana's cocoa industry since the 1984 law, saying the reforms are intended to improve the sector's financial sustainability, strengthen farmer welfare, promote local processing and drive the industrialisation of the cocoa value chain.