Maharashtra cashew board plans to expand area under the crop, promote organic farming

Maharashtra Cashew Board plans to expand the area under cashew and replant in other area with high density and high yielding varieties besides promoting organic cultivation, its director Parashram Patil has said. 

“The proposal is to expand area and replant (cashew) with high density and high yielding varieties on 12,000 hectares in the State at a cost of ₹8 crore over a period of 3 years. This will yield approximately 6,000  tonnes in the third year and 12,000 tonnes in the fourth year. The increase in production will reduce the dependency on the imported raw material by 25 per cent,” he told businessline in an online interaction.

Other measures planned are production and distribution of planting materials by promoting model cashew nurseries , training programme for farmers and extension workers on new technologies and aconcentrated approach in socially backward areas to safeguard the livelihood of small and marginal farmers with the involvement of farmer producer organisations (FPOs) and other stakeholders, he said.

Emphasis on R&D

The board would lay more emphasis on research and development on good agricultural practices in cashew farming, support farmers to get remunerative prices, promote organic cashew production, processing and exports, expansion in new markets, upgradation and mechanisation of cashew processing industries, Patil, also a board member of the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (Apeda).

“A unique Maha(rashtra) brand can be established in India. Diplomatic interaction with African countries can help in constant supply of raw material,” he said, adding that the States cashew can be marketed as one from a distinct origin.

Maharashtra, the leading State in cashew business and accounting for one-fourth of the country’s production, has 274 medium and 320 small factories. The government has plans to make the State a major manufacturer, said Patil, also senior advisor, agriculture, Maharashtra Institute for Transformation.

Import dependent

Despite the State being the top producer, it ranks seventh only in exports and is the largest import of raw cashew. “Almost 200,000 farmers are engaged in cashew farming in the State, generating numerous employment opportunities in rural areas,” he said.  

Cashew production in Maharashtra has been affected by climate change and diseases. Due to this, farmers struggle to get remunerative prices.

For the processing sectors, the dependency on imported raw materials affects the scale of economies. Maharashtra has very few large plants for processing, which is more at the cottage level. There has been no technology upgradation in these plants and value-addition is less, Patil said.

Other issues affecting processing are its labour-intensive nature and the unavailability of skilled workers. The raw cashew market is not well organised in the country resulting in farmers getting a raw deal at the hands of agents, the Maharashtra Cashew Board director said.

JSW Ratnagiri port

Stating that commercial cultivation must be promoted for increasing production and productivity, he said market intelligence needs to improve to cope with the changes in the international market. 

Cashew processing and export clusters at Kolhapur, Sindhudurg and Ratnagiri districts need to be developed further. Raw cashews should be allowed to be imported at the JSW Ratnagiri port with facilities to export cashew kernel. Apeda should promote cashew exports aggressively, he said. 

Stating that Apeda is preparing a comprehensive plan for cashew exports, Patil said cashew exporters are extended financial assistance for infrastructure and quality development apart from market promotion. 

Maharashtra Cashew Board is implementing a cashew price differential scheme and thousands of farmers benefitted from it, he said, adding that natural and organic cashew farming has good scope in Sindhudurg, Ratnagiri and Kolhapur districts. 

Tapping cashew apple

The cashew board will support organic farming by helping smallholders to a large extent, he said.  

On the utilisation of cashew apple, he called for extraction of juice and exporting it to Goa for conversion into alcohol. The second approach will be to make concentrated juices and distributing in it villages to help improve nutrition. 

“The cashew apple residue can be very important cattle feed as well as potentially baby feed in nutrition for the masses. A cashew apple wine can be done in many ways and this will add to farm income at least by 20 per cent,” said Patil.