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Top Cashews Exports & Imports by Country Plus Average Prices

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Cashew nuts
Cashew nuts
In 2021, exports of cashew nuts were worth a total US$7.1 billion.

Worldwide sales of exported cashews shrank by an overall average -15% since 5 years earlier in 2017 when exports totaled $8.3 billion.

Year over year, overall export revenues from selling the richly and nutty flavored seed increased by 8.8% compared to $6.5 billion in 2020.

Prized by consumers as snack nuts, cashews seeds come from the fruits of large tropical evergreen trees as tall as 46 feet (14 meters). Cashew nut oil is used in cooking and salad dressings. Cashews are also key ingredients to make cashew butter.

Geographic Insights about Cashew Exports & Imports

By value, the 5 biggest exporters of cashews (Vietnam, Africa’s Ivory Coast, Ghana, India and the Netherlands) sold over three-quarters (77.1%) of all cashews exported during 2021.

Applying a continental perspective, countries in Asia supplied the highest dollar worth of exported cashews during 2021 with shipments valued at $3.74 billion or 54.7% of the global total. In second place were exporters in Africa (34.7%) trailed by those in Europe (8.7%), Latin America (1.4%) excluding Mexico but including the Caribbean, North America (0.5%), and Oceania (0.01%) led by Australia.

Shifting our focus to imports, the 5 leading importers of cashews in 2021 were Vietnam, United States of America, India, Germany and the Netherlands. Collectively, that quintet of most valuable import countries bought almost three-quarters (74.6%) of globally imported cashews as measured by dollar value.

The above percentages suggest the total 99 exporting countries for cashews (77.1% for the corresponding top 5 exporters) is a more concentrated cohort compared to 189 buying countries, islands and territories. At 74.6%, the top 5 importers accounted for a smaller portion of its world total for imported cashews.

As for continental data for global imports of cashews, 64.1% of cashews purchased on international markets was delivered to customers in Asia ahead of importers in Europe (18.9%), North America (14.4%), Oceania (1.3%) led by Australia, Africa (0.9%), and Latin America (0.4%) excluding Mexico but including the Caribbean.

We calculated the average unit price paid by importers of cashews still in-shell to be $3,790 per ton in 2021. That dollar amount reflects a 219.8% spike from the average tonnage rate of $1,185 during 2020.

Exports of shelled cashews attract a higher unit price. For shelled cashews, the average unit price paid by importers was $7,045 per ton in 2021 up 5.1% from the average tonnage rate of $6,708 for 2020. The higher average price results in part from shelling labor costs and other processing expenses.

For research purposes, the 6-digit Harmonized Tariff System code prefix is 080131 for fresh or dried cashew nuts in shell, and 080132 for fresh or dried shelled cashew nuts.

Drilling down on those categories, just over two-thirds (67.3%) of cashews exported worldwide by dollar value were for shelled cashews. The remaining 32.7% was paid for cashews in shell.

Top Cashews Exports by Country

Below are the top 20 countries that exported the highest dollar value worth of cashews during 2021, regardless of whether the shipped cashews were in-shell or shelled.

  1. Vietnam: US$3.1 billion (43.8% of total exported cashews)
  2. Ivory Coast: $1.1 billion (15.7%)
  3. Ghana: $466.9 million (6.6%)
  4. India: $466.4 million (6.6%)
  5. Netherlands: $308 million (4.4%)
  6. Germany: $184 million (2.6%)
  7. Nigeria: $183.1 million (2.6%)
  8. Tanzania: $163.4 million (2.3%)
  9. Guinea-Bissau: $146.7 million (2.1%)
  10. United Arab Emirates: $119.4 million (1.7%)
  11. Burkina Faso: $116.1 million (1.6%)
  12. Indonesia: $110.6 million (1.6%)
  13. Brazil: $96.8 million (1.4%)
  14. Mozambique: $55 million (0.8%)
  15. Benin: $48.6 million (0.7%)
  16. Belgium: $31.8 million (0.5%)
  17. United States: $21.1 million (0.3%)
  18. Turkey: $19.2 million (0.3%)
  19. Myanmar: $18.31 million (0.3%)
  20. Thailand: $14.26 million (0.2%)

By value, the listed 20 countries shipped 96% of globally exported cashews in 2021.

Among the top exporters, the fastest-growing cashews exporters since 2020 were: Turkey (up 92.1%), Burkina Faso (up 71%), Nigeria (up 70.2%) and the United Arab Emirates (up 42.6%).

Those countries that posted declines in their exported cashews sales were led by: Tanzania (down -55.1%), Myanmar (down -37.3%), Mozambique (down -25.4%), Indonesia (down -24.4%) and Benin (down -14.7%).

Top Cashews Imports by Country

Overall spending on imported cashews was a reported $9.24 billion for 2021. That dollar metric reflects a 4.1% rise from $8.9 billion starting with the 5-year period starting in 2017. Starting from $6.7 billion for 2020, imported cashews accelerated by 38.1% year over year.

Below are the 20 best buying markets as measured by the highest dollar value worth of cashews imported during 2021, for any cashews regardless of whether shelled or not.

  1. Vietnam: US$3.8 billion (40.6% of total imported cashews)
  2. United States: $1.22 billion (13.2%)
  3. India: $1.15 billion (12.4%)
  4. Germany: $425.7 million (4.6%)
  5. Netherlands: $347.8 million (3.8%)
  6. China: $203.6 million (2.2%)
  7. United Arab Emirates: $171.5 million (1.9%)
  8. United Kingdom: $152.7 million (1.7%)
  9. France: $133.4 million (1.4%)
  10. Canada: $109.6 million (1.2%)
  11. Japan: $102.6 million (1.1%)
  12. Australia: $98.4 million (1.1%)
  13. Spain: $85 million (0.9%)
  14. Italy: $78.9 million (0.9%)
  15. Saudi Arabia: $78.7 million (0.9%)
  16. Poland: $72.3 million (0.8%)
  17. Belgium: $71.9 million (0.8%)
  18. Thailand: $65.6 million (0.7%)
  19. Russia: $62.7 million (0.7%)
  20. Turkey: $57.9 million (0.6%)

By value, the listed 20 countries bought 91.3% of globally imported cashews in 2021.

Among the top importers, the fastest-growing cashews importers since 2020 were: Vietnam (up 140.4%), United Arab Emirates (up 55%), Russia (up 38.6%) and mainland China (up 21.9%).

A trio of major buyers posted declines in their imported cashews purchases namely Germany (down -13.3%), Australia (down -9.7%) and Thailand (down -0.6%).

Imported In-Shell Cashews: Lowest and Highest Unit Prices

In 2021, the world’s average unit price for imports of in-shell cashews was US$3,790 per ton.

Ranked in ascending order, listed below are the countries paying the lowest average unit prices for imported in-shell cashews in 2021.

  1. Togo: US$28 per ton (up 33.3% from 2020)
  2. Mauritania: $143 per ton (2020 data unavailable)
  3. Belarus: $204 per ton (up 129.2%)
  4. Guatemala: $298 per ton (2020 data unavailable)
  5. Greece: $500 per ton (down -83.3%)
  6. El Salvador: $500 per ton (down -11.2%)
  7. Angola: $500 per ton (down -91.3%)
  8. Laod: $500 per ton (2020 data unavailable)
  9. Ghana: $731 per ton (down -34.6%)
  10. Morocco: $760 per ton (2020 data unavailable)
  11. China: $898 per ton (down -9.8%)
  12. Burundi: $1,000 per ton (2020 data unavailable)
  13. Grenada: $1,000 per ton (2020 data unavailable)
  14. Antigua & Barbuda: $1,000 per ton (2020 data unavailable)
  15. Indonesia: $1,087 per ton (up 151.6%)

There were 5 reductions in average unit price paid per ton for in-shell cashews from 2020 to 2021. These were low-cost importers Angola (down -91.3%), Greece (down -83.3%), Ghana (down -34.6%), El Salvador (down -11.2%) then mainland China (down -9.8%).

The following countries paid the highest average unit prices for imported in-shell cashews.

  1. Finland: US$291,000 per ton (2020 data unavailable)
  2. Norway: $14,500 per ton (up 17.5% from 2020)
  3. Bermuda: $13,000 per ton (2020 data unavailable)
  4. Czech Republic: $12,000 per ton (up 28.6%)
  5. Belgium: $11,718 per ton (up 21%)
  6. Maldives: $11,545 per ton (up 20.4%)
  7. Bhutan: $11,500 per ton (up 21.1%)
  8. New Caledonia: $11,500 per ton (2020 data unavailable)
  9. Netherlands: $11,472 per ton (up 44.9%)
  10. Switzerland: $11,167 per ton (down -19.5%)
  11. Portugal: $10,591 per ton (up 394%)
  12. Bahrain: $10,254 per ton (up 20.8%)
  13. Luxembourg: $9,615 per ton (down -37.6%)
  14. Saint Lucia: $9,500 per ton (2020 data unavailable)
  15. Mauritius: $9,333 per ton (up 18.5%)

The greatest increases in terms of higher average unit prices paid in 2021 compared to 2020 were experienced by importers in Portugal (up 394%), Netherlands (up 44.9%), Czech Republic (up 28.6%), Bhutan (up 21.1%) and Belgium (up 21%).

Imported Shelled Cashews: Lowest and Highest Unit Prices

In 2021, the world’s average unit price for imports of shelled cashews was US$7,045 per ton.

Ranked in ascending order, listed below are the countries paying the lowest average unit prices for imported cashews in 2021 that that have already had their shells removed.

  1. Togo: US$33 per ton (up 3.1% from 2020)
  2. Cambodia: $926 per ton (2020 data unavailable)
  3. Kyrgyzstan: $953 per ton (down -4.7%)
  4. Belize: $1,333 per ton (up 33.3%)
  5. Ghana: $1,378 per ton (down -73.7%)
  6. Uzbekistan: $1,582 per ton (down -1.2%)
  7. Gabon: $1,750 per ton (up 425.5%)
  8. Dominican Republic: $2,088 per ton (down -10.4%)
  9. Tajikistan: $2,137 per ton (up 64.4%)
  10. Suriname: $2,250 per ton (down -71.9%)
  11. Kazakhstan: $2,436 per ton (up 16.6%)
  12. Burundi: $2,500 per ton (2020 data unavailable)
  13. Indonesia: $2,542 per ton (down -2.8%)
  14. Sudan: $2,611 per ton (down -77.4%)
  15. Mali: $2,657 per ton (down -50.8%)

The 5 double-digit reductions in average unit price paid per ton for shelled cashews from 2020 to 2021 belong to low-cost importers in Sudan (down -77.4%), Ghana (down -73.7%), Suriname (down -71.9%), Mali (down -50.8%) and the Dominican Republic (down -10.4%).

The following countries paid the highest average unit prices for imported cashews without their shells.

  1. Antigua & Barbuda: US$48,429 per ton (up 24.2% from 2020)
  2. Liberia: $18,000 per ton (up 20%)
  3. Faroe Islands: $15,000 per ton (2020 data unavailable)
  4. Bonaire, Saint Eustatius & Saba: $15,000 per ton (up 25%)
  5. Bermuda: $13,346 per ton (down -4.1%)
  6. Seychelles: $11,083 per ton (up 13.3%)
  7. Gibraltar: $11,000 per ton (down -35.3%)
  8. Maldives: $10,620 per ton (up 6.2%)
  9. Ethiopia: $10,000 per ton (2020 data unavailable)
  10. Ireland: $9,766 per ton (down -6.6%)
  11. Saudi Arabia: $9,549 per ton (up 36.9%)
  12. Marshall Islands: $9,500 per ton (up 5.6%)
  13. Ecuador: $9,133 per ton (up 5.9%)
  14. Mauritius: $9,128 per ton (up 8.5%)
  15. Switzerland: $8,869 per ton (down -1.8%)

Strongest inflation in terms of higher average unit prices paid in 2021 compared to 2020 were experienced by importers of shelled cashews in Saudi Arabia (up 36.9%), Bonaire, Saint Eustatius and Saba (up 25%), Antigua and Barbuda (up 24.2%), Liberia (up 20%) and Seychelles (up 13.3%).

See also Top Peanuts Exports & Imports by Country Plus Average Prices, Top Almonds Exporters by Country, Top Walnut Exporters by Country, Top Pistachios Exports & Imports by Country Plus Average Prices, Top Hazelnuts Exports & Imports by Country Plus Average Prices and Top Brazil Nuts Exports & Imports by Country Plus Average Prices

Research Sources:
Alibaba, Cashew Showroom. Accessed on December 12, 2022

Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook Field Listing: Exports – Commodities. Accessed on December 12, 2022

International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on December 12, 2022

Wikipedia, Cashew. Accessed on December 12, 2022

Wikipedia, Cashew business in Kollam. Accessed on December 12, 2022