Cambodian farmers benefiting from high cashew prices

International commodity prices for cashew nuts are rapidly increasing due to lower supply from Cambo…

International commodity prices for cashew nuts are rapidly increasing due to lower supply from Cambodia and Vietnam, which is driving up profits for the Kingdom’s farmers, according to industry stakeholders.

According to Reaksmey, current prices reached $1.5 per kilo with Cambodia having a total area of cashew cultivation around 64,840 hectares, of which 40,745 are currently harvestable.

Chhiv Ngy, director of the Cashew Nut Association of Kampong Thom, said that the current market for cashew nuts greatly benefited the country’s farmers, pushing their revenues to $10,000 per hectare.

“Currently there is a lot of demand from China and South Korea,” he said. “So right now we are not worried about the market.”

Chhay Leang, a cashew farmer who started with a 9 hectare plot, now farms 130 hectares of cashew crops. When he first started, cashews sold for $1 a kilo, but now a high quality harvest of cashews can sell for up to $2 a kilo.