Higher chocolate prices leaving bitter taste for Winnipeg chocolatiers this Easter season

Arturo Chang · CBC News

· Posted: Apr 16, 2025 6:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 8 minutes ago

Local chocolatiers are enjoying a income boost from the Easter season, but Winnipeggers looking to banal up connected cocoa bunnies and different confectioneries may find the costs too bitter for their taste.

Cocoa is presently trading astatine astir $10,700 Canadian per tonne on the London Intercontinental Exchange, aft peaking astatine implicit $17,000 during the vacation season. 

A study by the U.K.-based foundation Christian Aid earlier this February warned the impacts of utmost upwind events and clime change in West Africa — wherever much than fractional of planetary cocoa is grown — person led to a leap successful prices akin to a spike astir the aforesaid clip past year, erstwhile they quadrupled due to the fact that of droughts, floods and climate-related diseases.

Fred Morden, proprietor of Mordens' of Winnipeg, said concern is booming due to the fact that of Easter, but the summation successful pricing is not astatine each sweet.

"A lot of people, smaller operations than mine, are astir apt truly having a hard time," helium said.

"We're watching everything that we're doing close now. We're not over-buying. We're not putting ourselves successful a fiscal concern where, you know, we wouldn't beryllium capable to wage for anything."

The chocolatier said helium started raising prices astir the wintertime vacation season. Mordens' besides plans to present a smaller cocoa container aboriginal this twelvemonth to connection a much affordable product.

The uncertainty of U.S. tariffs is besides weighing connected his business, said Morden.

"We're conscionable sitting backmost and we're waiting," helium said. "We're not going to person immoderate knee-jerk reaction. We're conscionable trying to beryllium arsenic calm arsenic imaginable astir it."

'Had to rise our prices'

Helen Staines, proprietor of Decadence Chocolates connected Sherbrook Street successful Winnipeg, said the summation has forced her to make immoderate changes to her merchandise line.

"I've added immoderate antithetic products that are inactive chocolate-focused, but they person different ingredients successful them arsenic well," she said.

"We've had to rise our prices, yeah. There's nary 2 ways astir it. You can't conscionable instrumentality connected a 400 per cent increase." 

WATCH | Winnipeg chocolatiers rise prices up of Easter amid shortage:

Some Winnipeggers outside a market store Tuesday said the terms of cocoa kept them from purchasing a saccharine treat.

"The cashier offered the woody of the day, [which] was a … [chocolate] bunny rabbit" said Anne Oramasionwu. "I said, 'Is it a dollar?' She said, 'No, it's $6.'"

Oramasionwu declined the deal.

"That's expensive," she said.

Leyla Angel said she saw a Lindt Lindor cocoa container which cost her about $8 past twelvemonth connected merchantability for $10.99.

"Nowadays with everything, I person to prioritize what you're really going to buy," she said. "I don't request cocoa today."

Morden said helium expects markets to correct, but it mightiness instrumentality clip for farmers to recover, arsenic they person to re-plant their cacao trees.

"It takes astir 5 oregon 7 years for these trees to get to a mature stage."