At the briefing session between leaders of the Vietnam Confederation of Trade and Industry (VCCI) and business associations - taking place on the afternoon of April 19 in Ho Chi Minh City, Mr. Bach Khanh Nhut - vice president of the Cashew Association Vietnam (Vinacas) - used the word "call for help" when referring to the industry's difficulties. According to Mr. Nhut, Vietnam's cashew industry has an export value of about 3.5-3.8 billion USD/year, leading the world in production and export for many years, but this position is being shaken due to the current situation. The situation of imported cashew kernels has increased rapidly, and competition is not equal. Enterprises importing cashew kernels are currently mainly implemented by FDI enterprises, and profits are mainly focused on these enterprises. "These businesses take advantage of the incentives of African countries, so they build a preliminary processing factory here. Then they transfer the cashew kernels to Vietnam at a cheap price (low shipping costs because 1 container of cashew kernels is processed from more than 4 people). containers of raw cashews), simply processed in Vietnam and then exported. Meanwhile, Vietnamese enterprises invest in a complete processing plant from raw cashew nuts to kernels, losing from 100 to 500 billion dong, but importing raw cashews costs high because Africa imposes export tax on raw cashew nut and is exempt from export tax. Cashew kernels should lose their competitive advantage, "Mr. Nhut informed. What are the main characteristics of each member of the staff? Mr. Bach Khanh Nhut spoke at the conference According to a representative of Vinacas, if businesses switch to importing cashew kernels from Africa, they will only perform 1 to 3 final stages to have finished products for export (about 20% of the whole processing line if counting from raw cashews), from That wastes the invested line and has to lay off workers, workers lose their jobs. Citing India (a cashew exporter), Nhut said that Vietnam had previously exported to this country, but for domestic protection, India imposed a 25% import tax on cashew kernels, so there was no container left. what is being exported to. Meanwhile, Vietnam does not have the protection of domestic production. "In the face of this fact, we urgently propose the Government, the Ministry of Industry and Trade and other departments to study solutions. It is necessary to negotiate for African countries to exempt from tax on raw cashew exports, creating fairness in competition. This request is not met, Vietnam needs to impose a 25% import tax on cashew kernels similar to what India has done with Vietnam to prevent the future of the cashew industry from being strangled," Vinacas suggested. Cashew kernel imports increase rapidly According to Vinacas, in the first two months of 2023, more than 10,158 tons of cashew kernels were imported, equivalent to nearly 44,000 tons of raw cashews. In 2022, 78,583 tons will be imported into Vietnam, equivalent to nearly 350,000 tons of raw cashew nuts - larger than the total output of raw cashews produced by Vietnam in a year.