ABIDJAN, April 15 (Reuters) - Ivory Coast's cocoa grind was down 25.8% year on year in March at 50,656 metric tons, data from the exporters' association GEPEX showed on Monday.

The total grind from the start of the 2023/24 season in October stood at 339,012 tons of beans by the end of March, down 7.4% compared with the same point last season.

The GEPEX data covers six of the largest grinding companies, including Barry Callebaut, Olam and Cargill Inc.

Ivory Coast has a total grinding capacity of 712,000 metric tons. It is the world's top cocoa producer and vies with the Netherlands as the leading grinder. (Reporting by Ange Aboa; Writing by Portia Crowe; Editing by Alessandra Prentice and Louise Heavens)