Cashew Prices Are About to Go Nuts
- Crop shrinks 11% as world sales grow faster than any other nut
- U.S. is world’s top importer, biggest buyer of Vietnam cashews
Cashews are seen after being covered with salt at a Select Harvests Ltd. processing facility in Melbourne, Australia, on Monday, Feb. 22, 2016. Australian grower Select Harvests is scheduled to report half-year results on Feb. 25.
Photographer: Carla Gottgens/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Get ready for some cashew sticker shock.
The global popularity of the kidney-shaped nut has been growing faster than any other tree nut -- even almonds. Demand jumped 53 percent since 2010 and outpaced production in at least four of the past seven years, industry data show. Now the worst drought in a century for Vietnam, the largest exporter, is raising concern that supplies will be even tighter in a market valued at $5.2 billion.