|
|
|
Commodity |
| CASHEW |
 |
| Description | Overview |
History | Cultivation pattern | Cashew
producing
countries | Indian cashew market |
Major trading centers |
| Description |
Cashew is a tropical evergreen plant, belonging to the family of
Anacardiaceae, known for its seeds that are consumed worldwide.
This plant is actually a small to medium sized tree with a single
trunk and thick leaves. The sweet flavored nut like seeds are
obtained from the bottom of the false fruit of this tree, which is
termed as cashew apples. The outer covering of the seeds are toxic
and is hence removed before consuming the seed. These kidney
shaped kernels are of different grades, sizes and colors.
|
|
Overview |
Cashew seed is the food product of the new world as it is a native
to Brazil. It is placed third among the largest consumed tree nuts
in the world. Cashew is largely consumed as a dry fruit or an
ingredient in different cuisines of different cultures of the
world. It is also used in the grounded form that is called cashew
butter. This seed has a high level of oil content in it and that
is why has some industrial uses as well. the oil is required for
two main purposes i.e. used in brake linings as a friction particle
and also as a major constituent in phenalkamine that is used as a
floor coating material.
The commercial production of cashew seed is
done in more than 32 countries of the world. The seed generally
prosper in the hot and humid regions of the earth near the equator
like in central and south American zone, India and oceanic zone
and African zone. The world’ total produce in the context of
cashews is around 22.5 lakh tons per annum. Vietnam is the largest
producer of raw cashew followed by India and Brazil. India
dominates and leads the cashew kernel production list. The total
area in the world under cashew cultivation figures up to 35.1 lakh
hectares. The world consumption of cashew has ever been rising
with time. In 1955 the world production figures for cashew
consumption was 125000 tons which rose up to around 1 million tons
in 1995 and now it is almost same as the level of production. The
major cashew consuming countries in the world leaded by United
States of America are
-
United States of America
-
European Union
-
India
The trade pattern in cashew in the world
suggest that 8 to 9 million cartons of cashews are traded in the
world in an year. The main countries that constitute the world
cashew exporting list are
-
India (4.5 million cartons)
-
Vietnam (2.3 million cartons)
-
Brazil (1.75 million cartons)
-
Tanzania
-
Ghana
India contributes to over half of the world
cashew exports. Vietnam gives a tough competition to India in the
world market as it is the largest cashew producing nation of the
world but still India is ahead in this scenario. Vietnam plans to
take over India's dominance till 2010. Due to a large consumption
level of this seed in the world, there is a long list of cashew
importing countries, dominated by United States. Following are
some of the major countries in that list
-
United States of America (4.5 million
cartons)
-
European Union (2 million cartons)
-
China (0.75 million cartons)
-
United Arab Emirates
-
Japan
-
Saudi Arabia
|
|
History
|
As already mentioned, cashew plant is a
native of the tropical parts of the South
American continent commonly around Brazil. The
weather in those regions remains quite hot and
humid that played a key factor for the plant to
survive and develop. The rain forests in that
part were the places where the cashew tree
actually grew but in those areas it hardly
produced many nuts. The question that for how
long the Native Americans had been using the
cashew nuts is unanswered till now but when
America was discovered, it was found that the
local South American people were already using
the nuts from these plants. Cashew nuts were
consumed after roasting and removing all the
toxic. If anyone owned a cashew tree in the
1500s, it was considered to be among the richest
and important persons in that region.
The Portuguese took this
plant to the old world and planted it European
countries. This was the time cashew started to
become famous in the world. Portuguese were the
one who introduced this crop into India mainly
in Goa five centuries ago for wine and brandy
production. It was also planted as it helped in
binding the soil. The commercial importance of
cashew nuts was not known at that time. The
climate in here was well suited to the plant and
it prospered in the other parts of the country
too. Trading in cashews started as late as in
1920s.
|
| Cultivation
pattern
|
Cashew is a plant that depends on tropical
climate to prosper. Rain is also a significant
factor, which affects the growth of the crop and
that is why an appropriate level of rainfall is
required. The plant has a vast root system that
makes it a drought resistant crop. The soil type
that suits the plant is poor sandy type of soil.
The fact that the plants have deep complex root
system suggests that the soil should be a
properly drained one. Cold temperatures also
affect the crop negatively. Cashew plant begins
to bear nuts after 3 to 5 years of plantation.
In India, cashew is mostly planted in the
months of June, July and August before the onset
of the monsoon as it is considered to be the
ideal time for the cashew seeds to be sown. The
nuts require around 8 to 10 weeks to
develop and become mature. The cashew apple and
the cashew nut shed off themselves when they
reach the stage of maturity. The nuts are
manually collected by hand from the ground and
the apples still on trees are hand picked.
Great care is needed in the post harvest period
until the cashews are processed.
|
|
|
| Cashew
producing countries |
|
Cashew is produced in almost 32 countries of the world
and now it has become the number 1 crop in the world
taking over almonds. It is generally found in the
tropical zone of the planet as it thrives on a hot and
dry climate. The world production figures of this crop hover around 22.5 lakh tons per
year. The major
raw cashew producing countries along with their
production figures in 2005 are
Regarding the production of
cashew kernels in the world, India is the top most
producer. Prior to 2002, India was also the leading
producer of raw cashews in the world but in that year
Vietnam took over the lead from India. The production
trend of cashew has ever been rising and it has
doubled since the year 1994. World’s total area
under the cultivation of cashew crop is around 35.1 lakh
hectares, India is at the top in list of the
countries regarding the maximum area utilized in
production of cashew. It is considered to be a high ratio
of area as compared to the yield of the crop due to
low productivity, the world’s average yield being
just 700 ponds per acre of land.
Production of
cashew in India
India has always been a major
player in the production of cashew. It is the second
largest producer of raw cashew in the world but
conquers the 1st place among the largest producing
countries of cashew kernels and also in the maximum
area covered that figures to be 7.70 lakh hectares
currently. The country provides with around 55% supply
of cashew kernels in the world. The Indian production
of cashews contributes to around 4.6 lakhs tons per
annum. The major states in India in which cashew is
cultivated are
-
Kerala
-
Karnataka
-
Goa
-
Maharashtra
-
Tamil Nadu
-
Andhra Pradesh
-
Orissa
-
West Bengal
Maharashtra leads the list above
with an annual production of 174000 tons and also has
the maximum area covered i.e. 160000 hectares. The
country’s average annual yield per hectare is 810
kilograms.
|
| Indian
cashew market
|
|
Cashew made an entry into Indian subcontinent through
Portuguese colonists in the 16th century. The climate
in the country suited the crop so well that it spread
along in all the direction of the continent. India
became the leader in the cashew production till in
2002 its dominating position was taken over by
Vietnam. The country is still the second largest
country producing raw cashew nuts. It is also is the
largest country producing cashew kernels, the largest
country indulging in the processing of this food
product and the largest exporter of cashews in the
world.
The Indian production of cashews
is around 4.6 lakh tons per year. Maharashtra stands
1st among the main cashew producing states in India
followed by Andhra Pradesh and Orissa. The country
also is the third largest consumer of the food product
in the world after United States and European Union as
it consumes over 3 million cartons per annum.
As India is the largest processor
country in the world, it is left with more quantity
for exports that also makes it the largest exporter in
the world cashew market. It annually exports around 4
million cartons in one year. The major countries that
import Indian cashew are
-
United States of America
(61546 tons)
-
Netherlands (15693 tons)
-
United Kingdom (7108 tons)
-
United Arab Emirates (6690
tons)
-
Japan (5047 tons)
-
France (3329 tons)
-
Saudi Arabia (2998 tons)
-
Spain (2870 tons)
-
Russia (2331 tons)
-
Germany (1966 tons)
-
Canada (1540 tons)
-
Greece (1511 tons)
India some how imports small
quantities raw cashew nuts from the African countries
so as to meet the international demand for Indian
processed cashew kernels. Cashew industry is directly
connected to the growth of the economy as India earns
a good amount of foreign exchange by exporting
cashews. Cashew ranks second among the horticultural
commodities exported from India. This industry also
gives employment to around 3 lakh people in the
country and the demand for Indian cashews is quite
large due to qualitative edge over other countries.
Market Influencing Factors
- Production fluctuations in the major raw cashew
nut producing countries
- Indirect domestic demand due to the presence of
large unorganized sector
- Government policies
- Market share held by the competitive countries
|
|
| Major
trading centers of cashew |
|
The major trading centers of cashew in India are
-
Palasa
-
Kollam
-
Manglore
-
Quilon
-
Kochi
Also, cashew is traded in
Indian commodity exchanges namely, National
Commodity & Derivatives Exchange ltd and Multi
Commodity Exchange of India ltd
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
