Cocoa production is important to economic growth and the welfare of rural populations. Economic policy is oriented toward encouraging production, maintaining a stable cocoa price, and using cocoa sales as a source of tax revenue and foreign exchange. This chapter will concentrate on the economics of production-related issues at the farm, industry, and government levels. Special emphasis is given to constraints on the decision-making process of the cocoa producer, as well as to the existing knowledge on cocoa production economics. Rather than providing a systematic framework for decisions in cocoa production, we will consider economic insights into specific problems. The former information can be obtained from basic texts on farm management. A summary of the research evidence on specific cocoa production problems is less readily available
