• Ivory Coast set the 2026 minimum farmgate cashew price at CFA400 per kilogram, down 6% year on year.

• Authorities cited weaker international prices and U.S. tariff measures that disrupted global demand in 2025.

• Regional processors could benefit as lower raw nut prices support West Africa’s expanding cashew processing industry.

In Ivory Coast, authorities set the minimum farmgate price for raw cashew nuts at 400 CFA francs per kilogram for the 2026 season. Agriculture and Sustainable Development Minister Bruno Nabagné Koné announced the decision on February 6.

The new price marks a 6% decline from the CFA425 applied during the previous campaign. Authorities attributed the cut to a downturn in international markets, which U.S. trade measures further amplified.

The United States imposed additional tariffs on agricultural and food imports, including cashew nuts, between August and November 2025. These measures tightened global market conditions during the year. Authorities also flagged uncertainty over a rebound in U.S. demand in 2026, despite the removal of the additional tariffs.

“Trumponomics caused a drastic drop in imports in 2025. North America fell behind Europe and China as a cashew import market. Did final stocks absorb this decline, which would imply extremely low inventories, or did consumption genuinely fall? Market participants must closely monitor U.S. import trends in 2026, as they could become the main market disruptor,” independent commodities advisory firm N’Kalô said in its February 3 cashew market bulletin.

Minister Koné said authorities opted for a cautious but protective farmgate price to ensure full marketing of national output while safeguarding farmers’ incomes. “The minister did not rule out the possibility of an upward revision, as occurred during previous campaigns, if international conditions improve,” the statement said.

Data compiled by Ivory Coast’s General Directorate of Customs show that the United States ranked as the third-largest destination for Ivorian cashew kernel exports in 2024. U.S. purchases reached CFA29.3 billion ($52.7 million), behind Vietnam and the Netherlands.

Although these sales accounted for only 11.8% of total export revenues from the cashew kernel sector, a renewed drop in U.S. demand, as seen in 2025, could trigger a domino effect. Vietnam and India purchase most of Ivory Coast’s exported raw cashew volumes, but these countries primarily supply the U.S. market with processed kernels.

A regional trend to watch

Across West Africa, the world’s main cashew supply hub, Ivory Coast does not stand alone in lowering producer prices. In December, Ghana set its minimum farmgate price for raw cashew nuts at 12 cedis ($1.04) per kilogram, marking a 20% decline from the previous season.

Ghana’s Tree Crops Development Authority cited international market conditions to justify the decision. The upcoming launch of campaigns in other major producing countries, including Benin, Nigeria, and Guinea-Bissau, will help determine whether a broader regional trend is emerging.

Lower raw nut prices could nonetheless stimulate processor interest across the region. In 2025, cashew processing volumes in West Africa rose 51% to 732,000 tonnes, according to preliminary estimates from N’Kalô.

Ivory Coast, Benin, and Ghana drove this growth. As the regional leader, Ivory Coast alone reportedly processed 600,000 tonnes of cashew nuts, accounting for about 81% of total processed volumes in West Africa.

This article was initially published in French by Stéphanas Assocle

Adapted in English by Ange J.A de BERRY QUENUM