Cassava used to be the “famine relief” in Vietnam. To date, cassava is cultivated by people to meet domestic consumption and export; however, its price is very low.
According to the General Department of Customs, by the end of November this year, Vietnam has exported over 2.3 million tons of cassava and cassava products, worth more than 1.04 billion USD.
Although exports decreased by 12.9% in volume and 10.2% in value compared to the same period last year, cassava and cassava products are the 9th group of agricultural products with a turnover exceeding 1 billion USD.
The average export price of cassava and cassava products in 11 months of 2024 was about 449.3 USD/ton, an increase of 3.1% compared to the same period in 2023.
China is the largest traditional customer, accounting for 91.4% of the cassava and cassava products exported by Vietnam.
Vietnam’s cassava exports have surpassed the 1 billion USD mark this year.
According to the Vietnam Cassava Association, it is now in harvest season, so there is an increase in cassava production to the factories. Some factories in the Central and Central Highlands regions have lowered the price of raw material.
Since the beginning of November, the price of raw cassava in some provinces in the Central and Central Highlands has fluctuated between 1,900-2,300 VND/kg, a decrease of 100-300 VND/kg compared to the end of October. The price of fresh cassava in the North fluctuates around 2,000-2,050 VND/kg.
Currently, some factories have to adjust their production levels downwards due to the slowdown in demand from China.
The Vietnam Cassava Association said that although the inventory of cassava starch at Chinese ports has decreased (around 170,000 tons in total), Chinese traders are buying cautiously. The reason is partly because they want to wait for the new season supply from Southeast Asian countries.
The Association also forecasts that the cassava slice market in the 2024-2025 crop will continue to decrease in both price and demand.
Accordingly, in regions that produce dried cassava annually, farmers may consider postponing the harvest to the next year instead of harvesting fresh cassava to make dried cassava for the 2024-2025 season.