Gebana Faso commissions new cashew, mango processing complex in Burkina Faso 

BURKINA FASO – Swiss group Gebana Faso has commissioned a new industrial complex for cashew and mango processing in Burkina Faso, strengthening the country’s efforts to expand local value addition and boost agricultural exports. 

Located on a 7.2-hectare site, the facility comprises 15,000 square metres of industrial buildings and includes a social block with administrative offices, a canteen, a medical centre and a kindergarten.  

Although the total investment value has not been disclosed, the complex has an annual processing capacity of 10,000 tonnes of cashew nuts and up to 400 tonnes of dried mango. 

To secure raw material supplies, Gebana Faso works with a network of approximately 7,200 local producers, supporting the development of agricultural value chains and providing market opportunities for farmers. 

Christoph Schmidt, Chief Executive Officer of GEBANA AG, described the project as the Swiss group’s largest investment in more than five decades. 

“Christoph Schmidt, CEO of the Swiss company GEBANA AG, called this project the group’s largest investment in more than 50 years of its existence,” the company stated. 

According to the company, the plant is equipped with processing technologies from Vietnam, the world’s leading cashew processor, as well as equipment sourced from South Africa. The facility has been designed to comply with international food safety and quality standards. 

Management said the project is expected to create thousands of jobs, generate stable incomes for farming households and strengthen local processing capacity for agricultural products. 

The development adds to recent investments in Burkina Faso’s cashew industry. In December 2025, President Ibrahim Traoré inaugurated the Burkina Cajou processing plant in Bobo-Dioulasso.  

The facility, which cost 9.74 billion CFA francs (US$17.4 million), has an annual processing capacity of 150,000 tonnes and is regarded by authorities as the country’s largest cashew processing plant. 

The commissioning of the Gebana Faso complex is expected to support the ambitions of the Interprofessional Cashew Committee (CIAB), which aims to process 50% of Burkina Faso’s cashew production locally by 2033, compared with about 10% currently. 

Official statistics indicate that Burkina Faso produced an average of nearly 140,000 tonnes of cashew nuts annually between 2018 and 2022. Meanwhile, independent advisory firm N’kalô estimated that average annual processing volumes reached only 15,400 tonnes between 2021 and 2025. 

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