Modica Igp chocolate, production doubled in five years and new licences
2025 growth despite high cocoa prices: cocoa bean processing plant coming soon that will shorten the supply chain and cut costs
The cocoaaro cacao does not seem to be denting the market for Modica chocolate - the only PGI in Europe in this sector - which continues to grow even in the number of licences granted for its use as an ingredient in other products.
According to data from the latest Qualivita Report released at the end of November, production has doubled in five years, reaching 348 tonnes in 2024 (+6.1% per year). Both the production value (6.9 million, +14.7%) and the consumption value (12.2 million, +12.5%) are growing. And, pending official figures, 2025 will also be remembered as a good year.
"Should the trend of October and November be confirmed," says the Consortium's general manager Nino Scivoletto, "which marked a growth of 22% compared to the same months in 2024, we would register an increase in production of around 5% on an annual basis. The use of the product as an ingredient in processed products from leavened goods to ice cream is also significant'.
In recent years, 173 authorisations have been issued for the use of Modica IGP chocolate in processed products, confirming the great interest in the Sicilian speciality as an ingredient increasingly used to enhance pastry, ice-cream and liqueur products.
The rising costs of the raw material have been partly absorbed by the companies and partly passed on in prices, but this does not seem to have discouraged consumers given the rising demand. "The Consortium companies have at an advanced stage of planninga cocoa bean processing plant in Modica," adds Scivoletto, "and this will not only shorten the production chain, but also lead to significant savings on the cost of bitter cocoa paste.
