HO CHI MINH CITY, Dec 5 — In the past 30 years since the establishment of the Vietnam Cashew Association (Vinacas), cashew exports have reached more than US$31 billion, according to insiders, reported Vietnam News Agency.
Pham Van Cong, chairman of Vinacas, said the establishment of Vinacas was a turning point for the industry. Starting as a country that exported raw cashew in small quantities, Vietnam has been the leading exporter of the product worldwide for over 15 years.
The cashew industry exports its products to more than 90 countries and territories, accounting for around 80 percent of exports of the nut globally.
In 1990, the association had 12 founding members, but the number is now more than 500, representing the fields of planting, manufacturing, processing, trading, and import-export.
Despite the strong impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the cashew industry in Vietnam has maintained its production and export at a high growth rate compared to the same period in 2019.
According to the Agriculture Processing and Market Development under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, in the first 10 months of the year, raw cashew exports reached 415,000 tonnes, and the value of turnover was US$2.61 billion.
The US, the Netherlands and China remain Vietnam’s top three largest cashew importers, accounting for 33.5 per cent, 13 per cent and 12.7 per cent of the total cashew export value, respectively.
According to Cong, the Vietnamese cashew industry is facing both new opportunities and challenges. Trade integration with the rest of the world offers great opportunities for the industry to expand its markets, and develop production and business.
