Quality Control Company

The Post-harvest activities of COCOBOD start with quality control measures of QCC in which farmers must observe to ensure the production of premium quality cocoa Ghana is noted for.

QCC is responsible for inspection, grading and sealing of cocoa, coffee and sheanut for the local and international markets and also responsible for fumigation and disinfestation of produce.

Maintaining Premium Cocoa Beans

The International Cocoa Standards require cocoa of merchantable quality to be well fermented, thoroughly dried, free from smoky beans, free from abnormal or foreign odour and free from any evidence of adulteration. It must reasonably be free from living insects, broken beans and any other foreign materials. The quality of cocoa from Ghana has been used as a standard to measure cocoa from other countries.

Ghana’s cocoa has high content of Theo-bromine, thus making it the best cocoa for high quality chocolate. Cocoa from Ghana continues to enjoy premium on the World’s Commodity markets because of its unsurpassed high quality. The premium quality cocoa beans still continue as the preferred choice of all chocolate and beverage producers of high reputation and distinction. This status has been diligently maintained, over the years, through effective quality assurance practices of the Quality Control Company of COCOBOD.

QCC is also responsible for maintaining the quality of other exportable crops such as coffee and sheanut. The Company has the responsibility of inspecting storage sheds and issuing certificates of registration for premises accepted as grading centres or depots.

No grading or sealing or storage of produce is allowed in any shed/depot which has not been duly approved by QCC. Staff of QCC, stationed in 73 operational districts within six cocoa-growing regions, carry out inspection, sampling, grading and sealing of cocoa before evacuation to take-over points for subsequent shipment to international buyers or delivery to the local processing factories.

At the take-over points, cocoa arrivals are ‘check-sampled’ by the QCCL staff to enable them advise the Cocoa Marketing Company (GH) Limited (CMC) to either take over the cocoa from the Licensed Buying Companies (LBCs) or reject it if the quality falls below a specified standard. A ‘purity certificate’ is issued for every parcel of cocoa taken over. Another ‘check-sampling’ is conducted for all consignments prior to shipment to ensure that only good quality cocoa is exported.