"Cacao Shock" Hits Valentine's Day

"Cacao Shock" Hits Valentine's Day.
Poor Harvest and Historic Yen Depreciation Cause Prices to Quadruple in Two Years


January 8, 2025 | TBS** The New Year's festivities may have just ended, but preparations for next month's Valentine's Day are already underway. However, soaring cacao prices have made this year's situation very different. At a department store in Tokyo, a "Valentine's Day" product showcase featured an array of colourful chocolates, including limited-edition creations by renowned international pastry chefs not typically available in Japan. However, what stood out this year was…

Reporter "Not just chocolate itself, but also items like chocolate-infused curry and freshly baked cookies are available." The sales floor for baked goods, rather than chocolates, has increased by 30% compared to last year. Why the shift?

Miho Satou (Fammie by Miho Satou) "We've never seen price hikes like this before. The most expensive chocolates are now priced at premium Wagyu beef. This year, we've shifted half of our lineup to baked goods." The driving factors behind this shift are poor harvests due to unstable weather and a historic yen depreciation, collectively called the "Cacao Shock." The market price of cacao has been rising since two years ago and has now skyrocketed to over four times its previous level. This directly impacts the cost of chocolates. According to a research firm, the average price of a single Valentine's chocolate is nearing 400 yen.

Consumer Comments "It's too expensive! I'll only give chocolates to my closest friends." "If I have someone special, I'll prioritize them, but I might skip 'giri-choco' (obligatory chocolates) this year. Maybe I'll give cookies or marshmallows instead." At this department store, chocolate prices have risen by an average of 10%. As a result, they have strengthened their lineup of domestic brands to keep transportation costs low.

Kaori Matsumiya (Takashimaya Valentine's Buyer, 10 years of experience) "Product lineups evolve with the times. I expect prices will continue to rise. We're trying to take measures while still delivering delicious chocolates."

Valentine's chocolates are no longer just tools for confessions of love or obligatory gifts. With prices soaring this year, who will you give a gift to—and what will it be?

The trend of skipping giri-choco is nothing new. It's an industry-induced custom, and people are getting tired of it. Rising prices are a good excuse to do away with something no one was ever particularly fond of.

A recent survey by Nippon Life Insurance found that Japan's tradition of giving giri choco—obligatory chocolates—at workplaces is fading. Only about 10% of people still participate in the practice by gifting chocolates to colleagues or business associates on Valentine's Day. The survey was conducted in January, polling around 10,000 people about their Valentine's Day gifting habits. The most common recipients were "spouses or partners" at 64.3%, followed by "children" at 28.0%, which remained consistent with previous years.

Tied for third place were "parents" and "co-workers," at 12.5%. However, the latter figure has been steadily declining, dropping by more than 10 percentage points from 23.7% in 2020, the last Vaelntine's Day before the coronavirus pandemic. What do consumers think about giving "obligatory" chocolates? When asked about the practice of giving presents to co-workers and business acquaintances, of the respondents, a total of 70.8% of women and 73.6% of men responded that it was "unnecessary."

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Giri-choco, ehomaki, KFC on Christmas and nengajo are all nearly dead. All these artificial traditions are now thought of as more hassle than it's worth:

As a Bloomberg story from a little over a decade ago notes, the habit was once so entrenched it could boost the stocks of chocolate-makers. But like many things in Japanese workplaces, changing norms mean the tradition is dying out. Just 13% of those who plan to give chocolates for Valentine's this year said they'd be for coworkers, according to a survey from Nippon Life Insurance. Another survey found those who'd treated colleagues collapsed to just 5% in 2023, from 14% in the year before the COVID-19 pandemic, citing the expense and hassle involved.

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If giri-choco is no longer, there is now tomo-choco for friends, kazoku-choco for family members, and jibun-choco — chocolate you buy and eat yourself.

And there is another new, amazing trend among the young:

Following a long marketing push by the flower industry to encourage Japanese men to be more romantic, more than 14% of men in their 20s now give them on Valentine's Day, according to the Flowering Japan Council, up from just 1.7% in 2013. Who said romance is dead?

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Getting a honmei choco, on the other hand...what a great feeling!

60% of Men Don't Want Valentine's Chocolate – Wh

Nearly Half of Men Have No Interest in Valentine's Day

A recent survey by Datacom, a system development company based in Sendai, revealed that 60% of men do not want gifts such as chocolates on Valentine's Day. The reluctance to receive presents, which are traditionally given as a gesture of appreciation or love, seems to be linked to the expectation of reciprocation on White Day, a month later.

The survey, conducted in December 2024, aimed to gauge men's interest in Valentine's Day, which is often seen as a women-focused event. The company surveyed 450 men aged 20 to 60, asking about their chocolate consumption habits and their impressions of Valentine's Day.

When asked, "Do you want to receive a gift on Valentine's Day?", 44.4% of respondents answered "No", while 14.9% said "Absolutely not." This means that a total of 59.3% of men did not wish to receive gifts such as chocolates.

Younger Generations More Likely to Reject Valentine's Gifts

Looking at the results by age group, the percentage of those who found gifts undesirable ("Absolutely not") was around 20% among men in their 20s to 40s, significantly higher than 6.7% among those in their 50s and 7.8% among those in their 60s.

While "reward chocolates" or "personal chocolates" are becoming a common trend among women, men remain largely uninterested. When asked, "Do you buy chocolates for yourself on Valentine's Day?", 81.4% of men responded "No." Among them, 6.9% said they avoid buying chocolates out of embarrassment.

The percentage of men who do purchase chocolates for themselves was 23.3% in their 20s and 30.0% in their 30s. This suggests that some younger men see Valentine's Day as a rare chance to buy high-quality chocolates, but overall, the trend remains uncommon among men.

Nearly Half of Men Are Indifferent to Valentine's Day

Regarding their general impression of Valentine's Day, 48.9% of men stated they have no interest in the occasion. Meanwhile, 25.3% observed that "the streets and stores feel more festive", and 14.7% felt that "women seem excited about it." These responses indicate that many men view Valentine's Day with emotional detachment. Only 11.1% considered it a "special day."

Datacom concluded that "Overall, men's interest in Valentine's Day and chocolates remains low. Many are reluctant to reciprocate gifts, and concerns about White Day may be a key reason why they prefer not to receive anything in the first place."

(Source: Yomiuri Shimbun Media Bureau, Kota Suzuki)