Tanzania’s impressive race towards cashew nuts
TANZANIA has reached new heights in its cashew nut industry, attaining record export levels by shipping 428,296 tonnes last year.
This performance is particularly remarkable considering that in 2023 Tanzania was ranked only eighth globally. During the same period, traditional giants such as Thailand, Ghana and Nigeria experienced a slight decline.
Prices were also highly favorable: At the Port of Mtwara, one tonne of cashew nuts fetched 1,265 US dollars—a price higher than that achieved by other leading exporters such as Côte d’Ivoire and Cambodia.
Globally, the cashew nut trade currently stands at 777,115 tonnes, valued at 4.6 billion US dollars, up from 2.7 billion US dollars just five years ago.
The major importers are Vietnam, India, the United Arab Emirates, China and Thailand.
Production
According to the Cashewnut Board of Tanzania (CBT), production for the 2024/25 season reached 528,260 tonnes, a significant increase compared to 387,970 tonnes in 2017.
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The leading cashew producing regions in the country are Mtwara, Lindi, Pwani (Coastal Region), Ruvuma, Tanga and Dar es Salaam, in descending order of contribution. However, production declined in 2019, dropping to 232,681 tonnes, which accounted for about 10 per cent of global output at the time.
The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) ranks Tanzania eighth in the world and fourth in Africa, behind Nigeria, Côte d’Ivoire and Guinea-Bissau.
The CBT has ambitious plans to raise production to 700,000 tonnes; A goal considered achievable given the country’s favorable climate and the growing interest among local farmers in cashew cultivation. Cashew nuts are the country’s leading export cash crop, generating USD 221.1 million in 2019.
Thanks to their high quality, Tanzanian cashews fetch premium prices in international markets. For the past decade, India has been Tanzania’s primary export destination, accounting for an average of 66 per cent of exports.
However, in 2019, for the first time in many years, Vietnam overtook India as the top importer, purchasing cashews worth 197 million US dollars or 89 per cent of Tanzania’s exports.
Recent trends, however, suggest that this dominance may be slowing.
Seasonality
Tanzania’s harvest season runs from October to January, giving it a competitive edge since most West African producers harvest from February onwards. Exports typically begin in November, peak in January and then decline in subsequent months.
Trading
All cashew nuts in Tanzania are sold through government-supervised auctions, overseen by four institutions: Cereals and Other Produce Regulatory Authority (COPRA), Warehouse Receipts Regulatory Board (WRRB), Tanzania Mercantile Exchange (TMX) and Tanzania Cooperative Development Commission (TCDC).
Unlike other crops such as pulses and sesame, cashews have performed strongly under this auction system, ensuring both price transparency and farmer participation.
