The Hindu Business Line : Centre plans Cashew Board

Kochi Jan. 5 In order to bring agricultural, plantation, commercial, and export interests of the cashew industry under one umbrella, the Ministry of Commerce is planning to to set up a Cashew Development Board in the country, Mr Jairam Ramesh, the Union Minister of state for Commerce, said.

He did not disclose where the Board would be set up.

India, which is the largest producer, importer, processor, and exporter of cashew in the world, is confronting a formidable threat from Vietnam. While India has 24 per cent of the global area under cashew, it contributes only 19 per cent of the global production.

On the other hand, Vietnam, which has only 10 per cent of the global area under cashew, contributes a significantly higher share of the global production. While the average productivity in Vietnam is 2.8 tonnes per hectare, the Indian average is only 663 kg.

Production

Of the total cashew production in the country estimated at 5.7 lakh tonnes, Maharashtra is the top producer at 1.8 lakh tonnes followed by Andhra Pradesh with 92,000 tonnes, Orissa with 74,000 tonnes, and Kerala with 67,000 tonnes, a study conducted by the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade said.

While over 50 per cent of the cashew is processed in Kerala, the remaining is processed in Tamil Nadu.

The Government has also signed an MoU with the Government of Brazil and Vietnam to set up a Global Cashew Alliance to look after the interest of the major producer countries.

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