Cashew processors have imported 80,000 tonnes of raw nuts – mostly from ASEAN, Brazil and India – since the beginning of this year, the Viet Nam Cashew Association (Vinacas) said.
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Cashew processors have imported 80,000 tonnes of raw nuts – mostly from ASEAN, Brazil and India – since the beginning of this year, the Viet Nam Cashew Association (Vinacas) said.
Earlier, Vinacas estimated that domestic firms needed to import 300,000 tonnes of raw cashew nuts to meet demand this year.
Despite fluctuations in quality and price, local enterprises have been forced to import raw cashew nuts over the last few years due to insufficient domestic supply, said Nguyen Thai Hoc, chairman of Vinacas and general director of Donafoods Co.
Hoc said his company needed to import 15,000-20,000 tonnes each year to meet demand.
Tran Hoang Son, director of Gia Bao Cashew Joint Stock Co, said his company had 20 ha cashew orchards but that they could only meet 30 per cent the firm's demand.
Son cited the example of southern Binh Phuoc Province, one of the biggest cashew nut cultivation areas in the country. He said the province was home to 230 cashew processors that required 600,000 tonnes of raw cashews each year. However, the province can only supplies 200,000 tonnes.
Meanwhile, Nguyen Duc Thanh, general director of Tan An Agriculture Import Export Co, said many cashew processors preferred to import raw nuts because they were generally cheaper than those grown in Viet Nam.
African traders sell raw cashews for between US$1,000-$1,100 a tonne, while on the domestic market they cost $1,400-$1,500 a tonne, Thanh said.
However, Son said the cashews grown in Viet Nam, particularly Binh Phuoc Province, were considered the best in the world in terms of quality.
Son added that importing lower-quality cashews for processing could detrimentally affect the image of Viet Nam's cashew nut industry abroad.
To reduce dependence on imports, Vinacas has developed a 200,000ha area for growing cashew nuts in Binh Phuoc Province, while new orchards are planned in Dong Nai, Tay Ninh, Ba Ria-Vung Tau and Long An provinces.
The association has also provided Cambodian farmers with seedlings in an attempt to help Vietnamese processors have other sources of raw cashews.
Meanwhile, Hoc suggested local processors pay more attention to technical innovation to produce better-value cashew products.
Viet Nam is expected to export 175,000 tonnes of cashews this year, worth $1.5 billion, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.
If the target is met, exports would this year increase by 25,000 tonnes in volume and $250 million in value against last year, enhancing the country's position as the world's leading cashew exporter, the ministry said.
During the first four months of this year, the country earned $369 million from shipping 53,000 tonnes of cashew nuts abroad, up 30 per cent in quantity and 26 per cent in quality against the same period last year.
(Source: VNS)
