Visitors view cocoa beans at an exhibition stand during the Ghana Cocoa Festival in Accra, capital of Ghana, on Sept. 28, 2013. (Xinhua/Seth Gafah)
ACCRA, July 5 (Xinhua) -- Feverish preparations are underway for Ghana to make a strong case for its cocoa during the upcoming Shanghai International Import Exposition (Shanghai Expo) in November, an official told Xinhua here on Wednesday.
Noah Amenya, Head, Public Affairs for Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD), said the cocoa market regulator would be part of Ghana's representation at the expo where its stands would showcase Ghana's brand of cocoa and cocoa products to provide information on the market to the Chinese.
"We will use the occasion to make inroads into the Chinese market," he disclosed, adding that COCOBOD would go along with some processors who would also take advantage of the trade show to identify supply avenues in the Chinese market.
Already, Genertec, a Chinese company, buys cocoa from Ghana for its quality chocolates, and Amenya believed this could be built upon.
"Our presence there will help Genertec to expose the industry more to their consumers," he added.
Ghana cocoa, according to him, is already gaining grounds in China as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of COCOBOD has paid frequent visits to China culminating in many requests for supply.
The governments of Ghana and China have been in talks for support to set up a new cocoa processing plant at Sefwi Wiawso, 398 km north-west of the capital.
The West African cocoa, gold and oil exporter has been seeking new markets for its cocoa beans in response to volatility in global cocoa prices.
