Increase cashew yield to meet domestic demand for kernels, says former KCMA chairman

Former chairman of the Karnataka Cashew Manufacturers’ Association (KCMA) Prakash Kalbavi said here on Monday that there is a need to increase the yield of raw cashew nut in the country from the current average 700 kg to 800 kg a hectare to 2,000 kg a hectare to meet the increasing domestic demand for cashew kernels.

Speaking at a technical session during the second day of the cashew mela organised by Karnataka Cashew Development Corporation (KCDC), Mr. Kalbavi said that more model cashew plantations should be developed to infuse confidence among farmers to go for cashew cultivation. It will inspire farmers to take up cashew cultivation, he said.

Mr. Kalbavi, also a former director of KCDC, said that there is a need to create a price discovery mechanism for farmers. At the same time, the cashew industry as a whole should have a crop forecasting system.

Quoting statistics from the International Nut and Dried Fruit Council, he said that the Ivory Coast produced 15 lakh tonnes of raw cashew nuts (RCN) in the marketing year of 2025-26. If Cambodia produced 9.30 lakh tonnes of RCN, India’s production stood at 7.25 lakh tonnes during the same marketing year. The global production was at 63.83 lakh tonnes.

He suggested that farmers dry the harvested cashew nut before marketing to reduce the moisture content.