Drop in cashew kernel exports and mounting import costs point at healthy domestic consumption

KOCHI: Mounting import of costly raw cashew nut and a drop in cashew kernel exports point to increasing consumption of the nut in the country.

Apart from the proliferation of processors across the country with the withdrawal of import duty, comparative low price of cashew to other tree nuts in the last few years boosted the popularity of the nut in the country.

“The internal consumption should be in the range of 2.7 to 3 lakh tonnes and it has been growing at a rate of 8 to 10%. Of late the growth has stabilised around 5%,’’ said Pankaj N Sampath, director, Samson Traders, Mumbai.

The quantity of import of raw cashew has been increasing in the past years. Now over 60 % of the total requirement for raw nuts of around 16 lakh tonnes is imported with the rest coming from the domestic production.