QUALITY CONTROL COMPANY LTD (COCOBOD)

What QUALITY CONTROL COMPANY LTD (COCOBOD) does

Quality Control Company Limited (QCC) is a wholly state-owned statutory body operating under the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) that serves as the sole mandated inspection, grading, and certification authority for Ghana's cocoa, coffee, shea nut, and cashew exports. Founded circa 1950 and headquartered on Kwame Nkrumah Avenue in Accra, QCC operates across 73 districts within 10 cocoa-growing regions plus take-over centres at Tema Port, Takoradi Port, and Kaase Inland Port, delivering services to Licensed Buying Companies (LBCs), the state-owned Cocoa Marketing Company (CMC), and approximately 800,000 cocoa farm families.

QCC's core offering is divided into five operational lines: Grading & Sealing of produce at scheduled grading centres against international cocoa standards; Laboratory Services delivered through five functional units (Physical, Entomology, Microbiology, Biochemistry, and Metrology) equipped with GCMS, HPLC, AAS, and ASE instrumentation for pesticide residue analysis, mycotoxin (ochratoxin A) surveillance, and bean quality auditing; Disinfestation and fumigation of warehouses, schools, hotels, hospitals, and residential facilities; a Training School at Bunsо Cocoa College; and a Quality Management System conforming to ISO/IEC 17020.

QCC's revenue is generated through government-prescribed regulated fees for inspection, grading, sealing, and disinfestation services. As a statutory monopoly, it does not engage in market-priced commercial sales; go-to-market is operationally embedded in Ghana's cocoa supply chain via field staff at take-over points, ports, and grading centres. The company's five-member Board was inaugurated in August 2021 with Dr. Ebenezer Owusu as Chairman and Julius Martinson as Managing Director; the entity is part of COCOBOD's consolidated governance structure with no external shareholders.

Name

QUALITY CONTROL COMPANY LTD (COCOBOD)

Legal name

Quality Control Company Limited

Website

https://qccgh.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1950

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Quality Control Company Limited is a wholly state-owned statutory body under Ghana Cocoa Board that holds the mandated monopoly on inspection, grading, and certification of Ghana's cocoa, coffee, shea nut, and cashew exports, serving Licensed Buying Companies, the Cocoa Marketing Company, and approximately 800,000 cocoa farm families.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cocoa Quality Assurance and Inspection Services

SIC

Services-Testing Laboratories (8734)

akta.pro primary industry

Food Safety Certification Bodies (ISO 22000, FSSC 22000, BRCGS, SQF) (AFALAAAC)

akta.pro secondary industry

Conformity Assessment, Testing, Inspection & Certification Cooperation (BPADANAD)

Keywords

• Cocoa quality inspection
• Agricultural produce grading
• Produce certification services
• Pest control fumigation
• Laboratory residue analysis

Headquarters

HQ city

KWAME NKRUMA AVENUE, ACCRA

HQ country

Ghana

HQ region

Africa

Offices11 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Inspection and Grading Services: Fees charged for inspection, grading and sealing of cocoa, coffee, shea nut and cashew at scheduled grading centres. Both up-country and take-over centre inspection services are performed for prescribed regulated fees.
2. Disinfestation Services: Commercial disinfestation services provided to Licensed Buying Companies, Cocoa Marketing Company, and the general public (schools, hotels, hospitals, residential facilities) at reasonable fees.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Quality Control Company Limited (QCC) is Ghana's statutory quality assurance body for cocoa, coffee, shea nut, and cashew, operating as a subsidiary of Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD). It provides inspection, grading, sealing, and certification of produce for local and international markets, complemented by laboratory analytical services (pesticide residue, mycotoxin, microbiology, biochemistry, entomology), fumigation/disinfestation of warehouses and public facilities, and a Cocoa College training school, all delivered across 73 districts in 10 cocoa-growing regions.

Product overview

Quality Control Company Limited (QCC) is a conformity assessment body operating under Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) that provides world-class inspection services for agricultural produce. The company operates as a unified service organization offering five integrated core functions: Grading & Sealing services for cocoa, coffee, sheanut and cashew nuts; Laboratory Services including pesticide residue analysis, microbiology, entomology, and physical testing; Disinfestation Services for warehouses and produce; Training School for staff development; and a Quality Management System conforming to ISO/IEC 17020. The company maintains 73 operational districts across Ghana's cocoa-growing regions with field staff conducting inspection, sampling, grading and sealing activities at take-over points and ports.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• Ghana produced 1.033 million tonnes of cocoa in 2020/2021 season, setting a new national record
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Cocoa Research Institute of Ghana (CRIG)coreTechnology or IntegrationTechnical support partner for the Fine/Flavour cocoa production initiative. Provides research expertise for fine flavour cocoa cultivation and fermentation processes. Executive Director Dr. Isaac Yaw Opoku oversees technical aspects.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Intertek: Global TIC provider with significant agricultural and food inspection operations, including commodity loading supervision and laboratory testing. Comparable to QCC in third-party inspection and analytical services for cocoa, coffee, and other agricultural commodities.
• ALS Limited: International testing services group with food and environmental testing capabilities including pesticide residues and microbiology. Overlaps with QCC's laboratory service lines (PRA, microbiology, physical testing) for agri-commodity clients.
• Bureau Veritas: Major TIC group offering agricultural commodity inspection, laboratory testing, and certification across the supply chain. Overlaps with QCC in laboratory testing (including pesticide residue and contaminant analysis) and conformity assessment for food and agri commodities.
• SGS: Global leader in testing, inspection, and certification (TIC), including agricultural commodity inspection and laboratory services. Comparable to QCC where it provides independent inspection and grading services for cocoa and other soft commodities in origin and destination markets.
• Eurofins Scientific: Largest food and agro-environmental testing laboratory network globally, offering pesticide residue, mycotoxin, microbiology, and contaminant analysis — directly mirroring QCC's PRA Lab, Microbiology, and Biochemistry Units.
• Mérieux NutriSciences: Food testing and safety service provider offering microbiological, chemical, and contaminant analysis. Comparable to QCC's ISO-accredited laboratory functions supporting agricultural produce inspection.
• Cotecna Inspection: International TIC firm with agricultural commodity testing, inspection, and origin supervision services. Comparable to QCC in field-based inspection and laboratory support for cocoa and other soft commodities in West African origin markets.

Direct peers

• Conseil du Café-Cacao (CCC): Côte d'Ivoire's state-owned regulator for the coffee-cocoa sector, responsible for marketing, quality control, and sector development across the world's largest cocoa producer. Closest structural analog to QCC given its parallel statutory role over cocoa quality, grading, and export oversight.
• Control Union: Specialist in agricultural commodity inspection, certification, and supply-chain assurance for soft commodities including cocoa, coffee, and nuts. Directly comparable to QCC in origin-side inspection, grading, and sustainability/traceability certification for cocoa.

Regional players

• Nigerian Cocoa Marketing Board / CRIN: Nigeria's Cocoa Research Institute of Ghana's regional counterpart, providing research, quality guidance, and standards support for Nigerian cocoa. Comparable to QCC in supporting cocoa quality and standards across West Africa, though operating in a different country.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com//qccgh
• Facebookfacebook.com/profile.php?id=100006624018681
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/quality-control-company-ltd-cocobod

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about QUALITY CONTROL COMPANY LTD (COCOBOD)