Cashew Production Needs Advanced Technology

Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Bui Ba Bong said that cashews have become a major export for the country, and that Vietnam produces almost half of all cashews globally.

Although Vietnam was the world’s biggest cashew exporter in 2007, 2008 and 2009, the country faced a number of difficulties in cashew production. There was a lack of cashew varieties that are suitable for specific production regions. Cashew plantations were not highly regulated before 2008, but they have since then been re-planned and restructured.

Most of Vietnamese cashew exports are raw cashews and processed cashew kernels, which are not highly valued on the world market.

A number of cashew processing facilities have yet to properly invest in research and development (R&D) and workforce development. Production technologies in most cashew processing facilities are outdated. Many businesses in the cashew industry are still unmindful of trademark development. There are a number of businesses that have been awarded the ISO (International Organization for Standardization), GMP (good manufacturing practice) and HACCP (hazard analysis critical control point) certifications. However there are only a small number of companies that have received these awards.

National Office of Intellectual Property (NOIP) statistics show that no cashew product-related geographical indication has been registered in Vietnam, and that only four cashew products have been registered for copyright protection.

The Vietnamese cashew industry needs to find a new way to develop and needs to consider using advanced science and technology to develop applications for further growth.

Technological investment is an effective solution for businesses to improve their competitiveness. Advanced technology can help businesses ensure the quality of their products, while satisfying international standards in tandem.

When the domestic cashew industry first developed in 1999, Vietnamese scientists created almost 10 high quality cashew varieties which were grown in the southeastern region and Tay Nguyen provinces providing an average yield of two to three tonnes of cashews per hectare. This yield is almost six times that of the cashew varieties produced by the average farmer. Scientists have so far created hundreds of high quality cashew varieties.

In 2001, scientists from the Institute of Agricultural Sciences for Southern Vietnam carried out project KC.06.04.NN to research market solutions for developing cashew plantations and export processing. This project helped reduce the price of each cashew sapling to only VND2,000. It was applied in most of the cashew growing provinces in the southeast, the central coastal region and in the Central Highlands.

The technology was then transferred to hundreds of businesses in Vietnam and Cambodia.

There were many other projects in which scientists researched and found ways to produce dry alcohol and juices from cashew fruit and wine from cashew nuts.

Research institutes and academies in Vietnam have a number of notable projects to develop the domestic cashew industry in 2010 and in the next decade. These projects include high quality cashew cultivation plans at the Institute of Agricultural Sciences for Southern Vietnam, Tay Nguyen Agricultural and Forestry Sciences Institute and the Agricultural Sciences Institute of South Central Coast of Vietnam, and cashew yield and quality improvement projects at agriculture promotion centers and seed centers in different localities.

Apart from using advanced technology, Vietnamese cashew businesses need to pay attention to trademark development and protection. Deputy Minister of Science and Technology Nguyen Quan said that brand development is congruent with product circulation, which helps to establish the customer’s trust. Successful brands also contribute to production and trade success. Brand registration is a key to being successful in the global market./.

Tags: Vietnam cashew