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G K Nair

Kochi, Aug 26 The Kerala state owned, Cashew Development Corporation has received a boost for marketing its products in China with the visit of the Chinese Ambassador to India, Mr Zhang Yan, to its processing factory in Kollam last week. This was especially at a time when the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT) is conducting a market study in China and Russia for selling its cashew kernels and value-added cashew products in those countries.

The market study is being conducted with financial assistance from the Centre for the corporation, which employs around 20,000 workers, mostly rural women, in 30 factories spread over the State. The Chinese Ambassador, said to be interested in Indian cashew kernels, visited CDC’sprocessing factory during his visit to the State as part of improving India-China Economical Cultural Co-operation.

He was very much impressed by the women workers whose dexterity of hands and patience in removing the thick shell of cashew and getting the kernels intact, Dr K.A. Retheesh, Managing Director, CDC, told Business Line. Mr P.K. Gurudasan, State Labour and Excise Minister, who also looks after the Kerala State Cashew Development Corporation (KSCDC), took the Chinese Ambassador to the KSCDC factory in Kollam.

Not much Indian cashew kernels are sold in the Chinese markets at present and they are at present catered by Vietnam cashew kernels. Around 40 per cent of the Indian exports of cashew kernels are to the US. Other traditional markets are Europe, Gulf, Japan, Australia.

The CDC has decided to explore these markets of the new emerging economies, after fully realising the difficulties in marketing its branded products in consumer pouches in the US and European markets monopolised by the big multinationals, he said. The Corporation is launching its value-added products with a technical tie-up with the CFTRI, Mysore, he added.

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