Vietnam is currently referred to as the “undisputed King of Cashew nuts for exports,” outdoing many Southeast Asian countries, and emerging as the leading producer and exporter of cashew nuts for the last 17 years.

This is yet another reason why Vietnam is considered a fast growing country, especially following the Vietnam War that destroyed most of the economic generating sectors in the country. Vietnam has managed to utilize strategic approaches, as well as innovative agricultural practices to outdo its competitors in the production of cashew nuts, a leading revenue generating exports in the country.

One top-secret of Vietnam’s success in the production and exportation of cashew nuts is working hand in hand with the manufacturing companies in the country to help boost the production and exportation rate in Vietnam. Most of the cashew nuts companies in Vietnam have chosen to work together to improve product quality, in the processing, and storage, and further, for the increased value of the products.

Background and Statistics of Cashew Nuts Exports in Vietnam

Cashew was first introduced in Vietnam back in the 19th century. From 1990, Vietnam started leading the charts of producing and exporting cashew nuts to other worlds, including Asia. Cashew nuts were first grown in home gardens, and the government of Vietnam began supporting its production soon after. The government established the Vietnam Cashew Association, abbreviated as VINCAS, to develop the production of cashew nuts in the country.

The processing of cashew nuts in Vietnam started immediately after the industry began exporting it to external worlds. During this time, Vietnam has about three cashew nut processing factories, with about 1000 tons per year. Later on, in 1999, the production amounts rose to about 62 processing factories, with a total capacity of about 250000 tons annually.

Up to this point, Vietnam has continued to develop its cashew production and became the world’s second-largest cashew nuts processing country, with a yearly output of about 1.2 million tons that adds up to about 40% of the world’s total processing capacity. Vietnam has almost 500 large and medium-scale processing plants and 500 small-scale firms and about 371 export firms of cashew nuts.

By 2015, Vietnam had exported about 328819 tons of cashew nuts, with an export turnover of about 2.4 billion US dollars. On the same note, Vietnam became the leading cashew nuts exporters globally, further maintaining this position over the years from the year 2006. Vietnam cashew was exported to over 50 countries, with China, Netherlands, and the US being the leading export countries.

Vietnam ended up outdoing India in the production and exportation of cashew nuts to other worlds by 2006. Vietnam produces about 400000 tons of cashew nuts annually. However, Vietnam can still produce about 1.2 million tons annually. A large percentage of Vietnam’s cashew is exported to Africa, Cambodia, and Ivory Coast.

By the year 2018, Vietnam produced approximately 2.66 million tons of cashew nuts, as well as their shells, which was about a 23% rise from the year 2017. This was about 3.4 times higher than in India. This amount later grew to about 790000 tons, making Vietnam an unquestionable leader of cashew nuts production and export.

By the year 2018, Vietnam exported approximately 370000 tons of cashew units, about 14% of its entire production. This makes Vietnam a top exporter as per volume on a global scale.

One of the most abundant cashew nuts producing area is in the Southern region of Binh Phuoc. In this area, the farmers plant cashew nut trees that are of South American origin.

Vietnam, through its Ministry of Agriculture, has endeavored to boost the cashew nuts sector to increase the production level to lower further the overdependence of imported cashew nuts that come with quality standard issues. Vietnam is presently gearing towards boosting cashew nuts’ productivity from about 1700 kg to 2000 kg per ha.

VINCAS is fostering farmers to reevaluate their processing designs and improve the quality of their cashew plants to meet international standards of cashew nuts. This is also tagged along with building a strong brand for Vietnam cashew nuts and fostering farmers and firms to participate in initiatives aimed at creating a robust national and international brand to increase sales.