If you’ve been feeling like chocolate is more expensive this year, you’re not alone. According to data from Groundwork Collaborative, the price of Halloween candy in 2025 is expected to increase by 10.8% compared to the previous year. While trade tariffs imposed by the United States on some cocoa-producing countries, such as Ivory Coast, the world’s largest supplier, have had an impact on the market, the recent price hike has a deeper cause: diseases that are destroying the cocoa plant. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, up to 40% of cocoa beans are lost each year to pathogens, most notably the fungus Phytophthora, which causes the disease known as “black pod” or brown rot.
This disease affects cocoa fruits during periods of heavy rainfall, covering them with black spots and making them unusable. To save one of humanity’s most beloved pleasures, scientists at Penn State University have taken a revolutionary step: Genetically modifying the cocoa plant to make it resistant to the disease. In a study published in the Plant Biotechnology Journal in 2025, the team led by Professor Mark Guiltinan announced that they had used CRISPR-Cas9 technology to edit the TcNPR3 gene – a gene that naturally “inhibits” the plant’s immune system.
By disabling this gene, researchers were able to create the first non-transgenic cocoa plant, which showed 42% less damage from diseases. Traditional methods of improving cocoa varieties take years, while genetic engineering allows for much faster and more accurate results. Although this achievement does not guarantee an immediate reduction in the price of chocolate, it could slow the increase in production costs and help farmers protect their crops from massive losses. The global chocolate market, worth billions of dollars, still seems to have reason for optimism, and consumers should not give up the pleasure and health benefits of dark chocolate, at least for now.
