Nigeria

Nigeria is a long-established West African cacao producer and consistently ranks among the world's largest cocoa-growing countries, typically placed fourth or fifth globally with annual output of the order of 300,000-350,000 tonnes. Cacao has been a significant cash crop and export earner since the colonial era, and although petroleum displaced it as the leading export, cocoa remains the country's most important agricultural export commodity.

Production is concentrated in the southwestern states — Ondo, Osun, Ogun, Ekiti and Oyo — which together account for the large majority of the crop, with Ondo State the leading producer; Cross River in the southeast is also notable. The crop is grown almost entirely by smallholders.

Genetically, Nigerian cacao is mainly Amelonado-derived (West African Forastero), with widespread planting of Upper-Amazon hybrid material; cotyledons are typically dark purple. Beans are usually heap-fermented for several days and sun-dried, giving a robust, earthy, low-acidity bulk cocoa character, and most output is exported unprocessed. The Cocoa Research Institute of Nigeria supports germplasm and agronomy work, while ageing farms and replanting are persistent sector challenges.