A South Korean agricultural resources association has announced that it intends to examine the possibility of establishing a cashew processing plant in Cambodia, which could help increase the export of value-added cashew products to the world.

The intention was revealed at an August 3 meeting between Reach Ra, secretary of state at the Ministry of Commerce and a representative from the Korea Overseas Agro-Resourced Association (AOAA).

The Korean delegation, led by project manager Heo Jang, had arrived in Cambodia specifically to examine and discuss the possibility of establishing the plant.

The talks were also joined by the officials from the Deputy General Directorate of Trade Promotion and experts from the Department of Trade Policy, according to the commerce ministry.

Ra thanked the AOAA for its desire to contribute to the promotion of the cashew sector in Cambodia.

Heo Jang informed the Cambodian participants of the associations intention to promote the sector, noting that the majority of the Kingdom’s exported cashews are unprocessed, resulting in the loss of added value.

“We came to Cambodia to study the possibility of establishing a processing plant through the Official Development Assistance (ODA) programme of the South Korean government, which may help increase the value of cashew exports,” he said.

Ra welcomed the important initiative, which aligns with the National Policy on Cashew Nuts for 2022-2027 and thanked the South Korean government for its continued support and close cooperation thus far.

He suggested that the visiting delegates help promote and attract more Korean investors to invest in the Kingdom’s cashew sector, and also buy more goods from Cambodia, as the two nations have entered into a free trade agreement. Many goods – including cashew nuts – have a tax rate of zero per cent under the agreement.