The export value of cashew nuts is expected to reach $l billion this year, $150 million higher than last year, according to the Viet Nam Cashew Association.
The country will see a total output of 400,000 tonnes of the nut this year, 50,000 tonnes higher than last year.
In the first two months of the year, Viet Nam exported a total of 23,000 tonnes of cashew, earning $124 million, said the association, adding that those figures marked a 13 per cent increase in volume and 33 per cent growth in value against the same period last year.
At present, Vietnamese cashew nuts are exported to 50 countries and territories, with the US being the largest market with 25 per cent of the total cashew export volume.
Besides cashew nuts, the association expects exports of products processed from the nut to increase in the coming time.
However, the biggest challenge for export cashew processors was a shortage of raw material for processing factories, the association said.
The association estimated the processing industry would purchase 400,000 tonnes of raw cashews on the domestic market and import an additional 250,000 tonnes this year to process 1S0,000 tonnes of the nut and 60,000 tonnes of cashew oil. Viet Nam has 220 factories processing cashew for export with a total design capacity of 600,000-700,000 tonnes a year.
In order to meet demand, 14.82 trillion dong ($780 million) would be required, said the association. It has already proposed that banks provide loans to the tune of 4.6 trillion dong ($242 million) at a preferential interest rate.
To boost cashew exports, the industry would increase trade promotion programmes, explore new markets and improve the competitiveness of Vietnamese cashew exports.
Last year, Vietnam earned $S50 million from cashew exports, 6.8 percent lower than 2008.
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