Dar es Salaam. An Algerian cashew processor, Sarl Anacard’Or, plans to establish three modern cashew processing plants in Tanzania as it seeks to tap into the country’s high-quality cashew production and expand its presence in the global market.
The company’s owner and Chief Executive Officer, Walid Dib, announced the investment plan during a meeting with Tanzania’s Ambassador to Algeria, Mobhare Matinyi, who visited the company’s processing facility in Oran.
Dib said the company would begin with a processing plant in Masasi District, Mtwara Region, equipped with modern machinery sourced from Vietnam.
He said the company was already working with a local partner to finalise registration of its first Tanzanian venture, Kilimanjaro Nuts Limited.
“Tanzanian cashew nuts are of exceptional quality and we have resolved to build three plants, starting with one in Masasi, Mtwara Region, where we will install modern machinery from Vietnam,” Dib said.
The investment is expected to increase local value addition, create employment and expand Tanzania’s earnings from cashew exports.
Ambassador Matinyi welcomed the planned investment and assured the company of government support as it moves to establish its operations in Tanzania.
He said increased investment in local cashew processing was part of the government’s efforts to ensure that more value was added to the crop before it reached international markets.
“It is the government’s intent to support investment in local cashew nut processing to boost the percentage of value-added exports to the global market and significantly reduce the sale of in-shell raw cashew nuts,” Ambassador Matinyi said.
Dib said preparations were already under way in Masasi, including the establishment of warehouses to store cashew nuts.
He added that the company would order processing equipment from Vietnam in September, with the machinery expected to arrive in Tanzania alongside technical experts who will train Tanzanian workers from January 2027.
The Algerian investor also demonstrated the processing of Tanzanian cashew nuts at his Oran facility, where the nuts undergo 11 stages before being packaged for the market.
Dib said his experience with Tanzanian cashews had convinced him to make the country his main source of the raw material.
“I received six containers last month; I have six more at the port of Oran, while seven are on their way, with another seven at the port in Dar es Salaam waiting to be shipped. Each container is packed with 27 tonnes of cashew nuts,” he said.
The planned investment comes as Tanzania continues to strengthen cashew production and value addition.
According to Ambassador Matinyi, efforts by the Tanzania Cashew Board (CBT) helped increase cashew production to 617,683 tonnes during the 2025/26 season, generating Sh1.25 trillion in revenue.
The production level places Tanzania among the world’s leading cashew producers, after Côte d’Ivoire, Vietnam and India.
The government has been encouraging greater domestic processing of cashew nuts to increase export earnings, create jobs and reduce dependence on exports of raw, unprocessed nuts.
