Brief Product Description 

The cashew tree originates from Brazil, occurring naturally on Caatinga, Cerrados and Amazonian biomes. Nowadays, the cashew tree is grown around the world especially in Brazil, Vietnam, India, Nigeria, Indonesia, Philippines, Benin, Guinea-Bissau, and the Ivory Coast. It belongs to Anacardiaceae family and the genera Anacardium has approximately 22 species; Anacardium occidentale has commercial utilization. The cashew tree is evergreen with different sizes, but usually, it is 8–15 m height. The real fruit from cashew tree is the nut, a brown, reniform achene composed of the pericarp (shell) and the almond. The peduncle, known as the cashew apple, responsible for 90% of the weight, is, in fact, a pseudofruit. Its color ranges from yellow to red. Both parts are edible, but the nut needs to be removed from the shell that contains a corrosive liquid called “cashew nut shell liquid.”

Production

• 60 years in production.
• 220 – 240,000 tonnes inshell.
• 6th largest in the World.
• 3rd in Africa.
• 22 States Producing.
• Smallholders and commercial farmers.
• Yields 300-800 kgs p/ha.
• Improving quality.
• Early crop Feb-April.

Trends

• Production growth 10% CAGR 10 years.
• Replacement of aging trees.
• Growth forecast to continue.
• New varieties Brazil Jumbo and Medium.
• Quality “Ogbomosho” 47-49lbs/ 190 nut count.
• Quality “Nigerian” 42-46lbs 195-205 nut count.

Markets

• 85% exported inshell ( 81% Vietnam, 19% India)
• Kernels processing 7 – 10,000 tonnes RCN.
• Kernels exports growing 8% CAGR 5 Yr.

Did you know?

• Nigeria’s cashew sector is undergoing rapid development. Aging trees are being replaced with new high quality varieties. Commercial cashew farming is taking off and better post-harvest handling is solving the old problem of difficult peeling.
• Nigeria has the lowest export taxes on RCN in Africa.
• Nigeria can process 25,000 – 35,000 tonnes of cashew every year but is currently only utilising about one third of the capacity. This too is changing.
• Nigeria has West Africa’s largest domestic cashew kernel market. It is likely to grow as the economy develops.