Cameroon has reached a significant milestone in its cocoa processing sector, achieving a local transformation rate of 80%. On February 27, 2026, the Minister of Trade, Luc Magloire Mbarga Atangana, accompanied by the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Gabriel Mbairobe, presided over the laying of the foundation stone for a new cocoa grinding and processing plant of Samen Industry S.A. in Baré-Bakem, in the Littoral region.
With an installed processing capacity exceeding 250,000 tons, Cameroon now locally transforms over 80% of its cocoa production, a world record according to the Minister of Trade. This accomplishment far exceeds the initial target of 40% local processing. The new Samen Industry S.A. plant, with an annual capacity of 32,000 tons of beans, strengthens the country's industrial infrastructure, in accordance with the National Development Strategy SND30 and the import-substitution policy promoted by the Head of State, Paul Biya.
Beyond the figures, this industrialization aims to ensure that the added value created locally benefits the entire value chain, especially the producers. The Minister of Trade emphasized the need to counter speculation and opacity in the international trade of raw materials. Local processing is seen as a protection against the volatility of world prices.
Luc Magloire Mbarga Atangana called on industrialists to open the capital of their companies to producer cooperatives, so that they can benefit from the dividends generated by the sale of processed products. This inclusive approach aims to modernize industrialization by breaking with the rent-seeking practices of the past.
In November 2025, the Minister of Trade inaugurated the second cocoa processing plant of Africa Processing Company SA in Ngolambélé, in the Eastern region. This factory, alongside other initiatives such as the future "Chocolat Rouge" chocolate factory in Obala, contributes to the rise of local cocoa processing in Cameroon. The SND30 aims to triple national production and increase manufacturing value added, thereby reducing dependence on raw materials.
