Cashew fetches 696 million USD in nine months

Hanoi (VNA) - Vietnam earned 696 million USD from cashew exports in the first nine months this year, 51.5 percent higher than the same period of 2007, thanks to the world's sustained high prices.

With over 400,000 ha of cashew, Vietnam shipped the nut to 40
countries and territories worldwide. The staple is estimated to reach
150,000 tonnes in 2008, earning the country 800-850 million USD.

Vietnam 's cashew industry, however, has been undergoing bad weather
for the third year in a row, the shrinking cultivating areas in the Central
Highland and the Southeast, and higher production cost, said the Vietnam
Cashew Association.

To compensate for the lack of input materials, Vietnam imported
200.000 tonnes of crude cashew nut in 2007. The figure is estimated to hit
250,000 in 2008. In the face of material high prices and the shortage of
local supply, many Vietnamese cashew processers are likely to suspend their
operation by the end of 2008.

In the long term, Vietnam 's cashew businesses have to fiercely compete
with other industrial crops, including tea, rubber and coffee, to maintain
their farming areas.-Enditem