A worker in a cashew processing facility displays unprocessed nuts. - Photo: The Phnom Penh Post/ANN
PHNOM PENH: A cashew processing factory in Kampong Thom Province, valued at approximately US$12 million and owned by CSNC Agriculture Co., is almost complete.
Construction began in late 2023 and the facility is expected to begin operating early next year. At present, more than 40 cashew processing facilities are online in Cambodia, the majority of them small, artisanal plants.
The new facility, located in Kampong Svay district, covers a total of 14 hectares, with CSNC – a joint Cambodia-Singapore venture – expecting to employ around 200 workers once it opens.
Uon Silot, president of the Cashew nut Association of Cambodia (CAC), told The Post on October 25 that, according to plans, the new facility will have the capacity to process 40 tonnes of cashews per day, or approximately 12,000 tonnes annually.
He explained that as more local processing plants are established, it will not only reduce the export of raw cashews – helping Cambodia retain more added value – but also create jobs and income for farmers and processors, boosting the Kingdom’s economy as a whole.
“When CSNC Agriculture’s factory is operational, it will enhance the export capacity of processed cashews to several markets. It will be Cambodia’s seventh medium-sized processing plant,” he added.
According to Silot, Cambodia currently has 44 cashew processing plants.
Six of them are medium-sized (able to process between 7,000 and 14,000 tons annually), while 38 are small artisan-style factories.
The majority of cashew processing facilities are located in Kampong Thom, Kampong Cham, Preah Vihear and Tboung Khmum provinces.
He noted that Cambodia currently exports processed cashews to several markets, including in China, the US and the EU.
However, a much larger volume of unprocessed, or raw, cashews is exported to nearby countries.
“Due to limited domestic processing capacity, over 80% of Cambodian cashews are exported raw to be processed in Vietnamese factories,” he said.
He added that the average price of dried cashews in 2024 reached 6,500 riel per kilogramme, up from 5,900 riel in 2023, a jump of more than 25%.
Silot said that up until October 25, Cambodia has produced 840,000 tons of cashews this year, marking a 26% increase.
Of this, 796,000 tons were exported to Vietnam, generating $1.01 billion in revenue, a 31% increase, according to CAC figures.
In January 2023, the Cambodian government approved the draft “National Cashew Policy 2022-2027”, which balances enhanced production, processing and competitiveness with environmental sustainability and economic diversification.
The policy aims to make Cambodia a key producer and supplier of cashew products for local, regional and global markets.
According to the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries, Cambodia has over 580,000 hectares of cashew plantations, yielding more than 800,000 tonnes annually.
In the first eight months of 2024, Cambodia exported over 560,000 tons of cashews to 11 countries. - The Phnom Penh Post/ANN
