PBC Limited (PBC) has directed Atlas Commodities and other Licensed Buying Companies (LBCs) to immediately vacate its depots and sheds in the Volta Region following what it describes as the unauthorized use of its facilities.
In a press statement issued on February 24, 2026, PBC alleged that Atlas Commodities, in collaboration with some PBC staff, had been using the company’s depots, sheds and other tools of trade in the Volta Region for private business activities without express approval from management.
Management said the directive takes immediate effect and applies to all LBCs operating from PBC facilities without formal authorization.
While acknowledging the importance of healthy competition within Ghana’s cocoa sector, PBC stressed that collaboration among industry players must follow due process and receive executive approval. The company noted that any LBC seeking to use its logistics and infrastructure must do so through formal agreements.
The statement further called on the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) to strictly enforce regulations requiring LBCs to maintain physical offices within their operational areas. According to PBC, this would help reduce the risk of some LBCs shortchanging farmers on credited cocoa beans.
PBC also urged cocoa farmers in the Volta Region and across the country to remain calm, assuring them that their interests would be protected and that no action would be allowed to result in loss of income.
Additionally, the company advised all LBCs that have received payments from COCOBOD to promptly pay farmers for cocoa supplied. It warned that recalcitrant LBCs who exploit farmers would be reported to the regulator for sanctions.
It would be recalled that, a formal petition by the Member of Parliament for Old Tafo, Vincent Ekow Assafuah, was sent to the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) and the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ), alleging serious conflict-of-interest violations and regulatory compromise within the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD).
The petition, grounded in constitutional, statutory, and administrative law, raises concerns about the dual professional relationships and operational intersections involving Mr. Ato Boateng, the Acting Deputy Chief Executive (Finance & Administration) of COCOBOD, and Atlas Commodities Limited, a private cocoa trading company with which he previously held executive leadership positions.
According to the petition, Mr. Boateng occupies one of the most influential positions within COCOBOD, with authority over financial management and approvals, administrative control, regulatory coordination, compliance systems, and institutional decision-making affecting Licensed Buying Companies (LBCs) and cocoa sector operators nationwide.
This role places him at the core of COCOBOD’s regulatory and operational machinery — a position that directly influences how the cocoa industry is financed, regulated, supervised, and governed.
He also stated that Under COCOBOD regulations, each warehouse must be registered under and used exclusively by a specific Licensed Buying Company, and such facilities must not be used for the storage, grading, sealing, or processing of cocoa belonging to any other company.
The alleged use of PBC-registered warehouses by Atlas Commodities therefore raises serious regulatory compliance concerns, particularly given Mr. Boateng’s prior executive leadership role in Atlas Commodities and his current senior management position within COCOBOD.
He says such an operational intersection creates the appearance of institutional facilitation, regulatory compromise, preferential access, or abuse of authority, even before any criminal liability is established.
The MP’s petition requests investigations into whether:Mr. Boateng’s prior leadership role in Atlas Commodities, combined with his current COCOBOD position, constitutes a conflict of interest under Article 284, full disclosure of this relationship was made to COCOBOD and state oversight institutions, Atlas Commodities has received preferential access, regulatory accommodation, or operational advantage within COCOBOD-regulated systems and the use of PBC-registered warehouses by Atlas Commodities violates COCOBOD regulations, Any institutional facilitation, tolerance, or approval enabled such operations, the circumstances disclose abuse of office, administrative malpractice, regulatory capture, institutional compromise, or corruption-related offences.
But reaffirming its commitment to partnership with COCOBOD, competitors, cocoa farmers and other stakeholders in the cocoa value chain, PBC pledged to resume full operations and work towards building a sustainable, farmer-friendly cocoa sector.
