Cashew Production Guide

CASHEW PRODUCTION 1 CASHEW APPLE AND NUT 2 Taxonomy of the Cashew Tree Kingdom: Plantae Division: Magnoliophyta Class: Magnoliopsida Order: Sapindales Family: Anacardiaceae Genus: Anacardium Species: A. occidentale...

CASHEW PRODUCTION 1 CASHEW APPLE AND NUT 2 Taxonomy of the Cashew Tree Kingdom: Plantae Division: Magnoliophyta Class: Magnoliopsida Order: Sapindales Family: Anacardiaceae Genus: Anacardium Species: A. occidentale 3  INTRODUCTION  The Cashew (Anacardium occidentale) is a tree in the flowering plant family Anacardiaceae.  It is a native of tropical America particularly Mexico, Peru, Brazil and West Indies.  It was introduced to India and Brazil by the Portuguese at about 15 centuries for the purpose of afforestation and soil conservation. 4  INTRODUCTION cont’d From its humble beginning as a crop intended to check soil erosion, cashew has emerged as a major foreign exchange earner next only to tea and coffee. Cashew nut is one of the important nuts grown in the world and ranked first. 5  HISTORY OF CASHEW IN NIGERIA The history of cashew in Nigeria dated back to 15th century. Then, it was mainly used in afforestation schemes for the control of erosion in the former Eastern Nigeria. However, the commercial cashew plantations started in Nigeria in the early 1950s with the establishment of first commercial plantations at Oghe, Oji and Mbala by 6  HISTORY OF CASHEW IN NIGERIA cont’d the defunct Eastern Nigeria Development Corporation (ENDC) and Iwo, Eruwa and Upper Ogun by the defunct Western Nigeria Development Corporation (WNDC). From these locations, the planting of the crop spread to other parts of Nigeria particularly the Central and Northern States of Nigeria. 7  HISTORY OF CASHEW IN NIGERIA cont’d Research on cashew production and its uses started at the Cocoa Research Institute of Nigeria (CRIN), Ibadan in 1971. The introduction of Brazilian cashew biotype with improved and desirable nut and kernel quality characteristics by CRIN has further increased the crops spread and popularity in Nigeria 8 REQUIREMENTS FOR CASHEW CULTIVATION 9  CLIMATIC REQUIREMENTS  Cashew is a tropical plant and can thrive even at high temperatures. Young plants are sensitive to frost. The distribution of cashew is restricted to altitudes up to 700 m above mean sea level where the temperature does not fall below 20°C for prolonged period. Areas where the temperatures range from 20 to 30°C with an annual precipitation of 1000 - 2000 mm are ideal for cashew growing. 10  CLIMATIC REQUIREMENTS cont’d  However, temperatures above 36°C between the flowering and fruiting period could adversely affect the fruit setting and retention.  Heavy rainfall, evenly distributed throughout the year is not favourable though the trees may grow and sometimes set fruit. Cashew needs a climate with a well-defined dry season of at least four months to produce the best yields. 11  CLIMATIC REQUIREMENTS cont’d  Coincidence of excessive rainfall and high relative humidity with flowering may result in flower/fruit drop and heavy incidence of fungal diseases. It is also drought resistant. 12  EDAPHIC REQUIREMENTS While Cashew can be grown in poor soils, its performance would be much better on good soils. The best soils for cashew are deep and well- drained sandy loams without a hard pan. Cashew also thrives on pure sandy soils, although mineral deficiencies are more likely to occur 13  EDAPHIC REQUIREMENTS cont’d  Water stagnation and flooding are not good for cashew.  Heavy clay soils with poor drainage and soils with pH more than 8.0 are not suitable for cashew cultivation.  Excessive alkaline and saline soils also do not support its growth.  Red sandy loam, lateritic soils and coastal sands with slightly acidic pH are best for cashew. 14  Planting material a.Nuts: -  Fresh seeds that sink in water are planted in an upright position in a planting bag containing a loose, sterilised soil mixture. The plant bags should be 350 to 400 mm deep, as the tap-root grows very fast and bends around as soon as it touches the bottom. Nuts should weigh between 8 and 9 g with a density of not less than 1,0. 15  Planting material cont’d Vegetative propagated planting material is necessary to obtain higher and early yield. Many techniques of vegetative propagation like grafting, budding and layering have been tried in cashew with varied degrees of success. Amongst different vegetative methods of propagation tried so far, soft wood grafting has been found suitable giving 60 % success. 16  Planting material cont’d b. Grafting Self-pollination and cross-pollination play an important role in the formation of cashew seed. Seedlings therefore show great variation and no "true to type" trees can be grown from seed. Selected trees should preferably be multiplied by grafting or air layering because vegetative propagation will ensure the best production and quality. 17  Planting material cont’d Trees that bearers fruit early and grow vigorously are selected. Trees with yellow to grey-brown apples have exhibited the most resistance against anthracnose and are associated with the best production. 18  Planting material cont’d Two grafting techniques, namely side grafting and wedge grafting are practised with success. Grafting should commence as soon as possible (seedlings of 3-4 months old) and planted out in the orchard to prevent the tap- root from bending. 19 GRAFTING METHODS 20  Preparation of Land The land should be ploughed thoroughly and levelled in case of agricultural lands. In case of forestlands, the jungle should be cleared well in advance and the debris burnt. The land preparation work should be completed prior to the onset of the rainy season i.e. during May – June. 21  Spacing and Planting Systems (Layout) A spacing of 7.5m x 7.5m or 8m x 8m is recommended for cashew which gives a tree density of 175 and 156 trees per ha, respectively. High density planting at 4m x 4m giving a tree density of 625 trees per ha in the initial years and subsequently thinning in stages to reach a final spacing of 8m x 8m is also practiced in some areas. 22  Spacing and Planting Systems (Layout) cont’d This enables higher returns during the initial years and as the canopies grow in volume, alternate trees are removed to achieve the desired final spacing. In level sites however, it would be advantageous to plant cashew at a spacing of 10m x 5m which will give a tree density of 200 trees per ha and at the same time providing sufficient space for growers to plant inter-crops during the initial years of establishment. 23  Digging and filling of pits The work of digging of pits has to be completed much in advance (May – June). 15-20 days before transplanting Cashew can be planted in pits of 60cm x 60cm x 60cm size in soils with normal strata. In hard lateritic soils, pits of 1m x 1m x 1m size are recommended. The top soil and sub-soil are kept separately and allowed to wither under sun. It helps in migration of termites and ants. 24  Digging and filling of pits Burning of the debris and forest wastes inside the pits before planting is advantageous. The pits are then filled with topsoil mixed with farmyard manure or compost (5 kg) or poultry manure (2 kg) and rock phosphate (200 g). In order to mitigate soil borne diseases, Benzene hexachloride (BHC) @ 100g/ pit is also added to the soil mixture. 25  Application of Manures and Fertilizer Application of manures and fertilizers is very limited in the case of Cashew. In order to get better yield, it is essential to maintain adequate N:P:K ratio in the soil. Application of 10-15 kg of farmyard manure per plant is recommended to ensure adequate organic matter in the soil. The fertilizers recommended for a mature cashew tree are 500 g N, 125 g P2O5, 125g K 2 O per tree per year. 26  Weeding and Weed control Until tree canopies shade out the weeds, weeding is essential around the tree trunks up to a radius of about 2 m. The rest of the orchard requires slashing of under growth at least twice a year. 27  Weeding and Weed control cont’d Alternatively, herbicides (weedicides) may also be applied after slashing, well in advance of the rainy season if the under growth is too dense. The recommendation is to apply 2-4 D at the rate of 4 ml/litre of water followed by Grammoxone at the rate of 5ml/litre of water. Approximately 400 litres of spray is required to cover one ha. 28  Training and Pruning During the initial phase of orchard establishment, shoots arising on the rootstock have to be regularly removed to promote better scion growth, particularly in the first year after planting when scion rejection could occur if rootstock shoots are left unchecked. Training of young trees during the first three years is essential to develop uniform canopies. 29  Training and Pruning cont’d Training in the juvenile phase comprises of removing basal branches and water shoots. The plants are trained to a single stem and branches are allowed to grow about 0.75-1m from ground level. Deformed branches are also removed during the first few years. Since cashew trees tend to spread their canopies and lodge easily, proper staking is also essential. 30  Training and Pruning cont’d Trees are kept under check by topping off the main stem at a height of 4-5m from ground level. Orchard operations such as terracing, weeding, fertilizer application, nut collection and stem/root borer infestation control can be easily achieved if trees are properly trained. 31  Training and Pruning cont’d Pruning should be carried out in August- September at least once in three years when unwanted growth is removed to provide adequate sunlight into the canopy. Since fruiting is only encouraged from the third year, de-blossoming has to be carried out as flower clusters appear during the juvenile phase. 32  Pests and Disease control  More than 60 species of insect pests have been identified in cashew.  The major pests are the tea mosquito bug, stem/root borer, leaf miner, leaf and blossom webber and flower thrips.  For efficient management of the tea mosquito bug (Helopeltis antonii), it is important to check the build up of the pest population on the cashew crop as well as on the alternate crop. 33  Pests and Disease control cont’d  No major diseases that cause economic losses have been reported so far in cashew. Control Hosts such as neem, drumstick, cocoa, guava etc. Tea mosquito bugs can be effectively controlled by three sprays at flushing, flowering and fruiting stages with endosulfan or monocrotophos (0.05 %) for the first and second sprays and carbaryl (0.15 %) for the third spray. 34  Harvesting Of Nuts Bearing commences after the third year of planting and the trees will be in full production by the tenth year whilst the economic life of a tree is about 25 years. The main harvesting season is from February to May. Most farmers harvest their crop before they drop to prevent pilferage. This very often results in poor quality of the kernels. 35  Harvesting Of Nuts The optimum stage of harvest is when nuts drop to the ground. High quality nuts are obtained when freshly fallen nuts are separated from the cashew apples and sun dried for 2-3 days to bring down the moisture percentage from about 25 percent to below 9 percent. The drying process helps to retain flavor and quality of the kernels. 36  Harvesting Of Nuts cont’d When cashew apples are used for processing, harvesting has to be carried out before they drop. A simple test of maturity is to float nuts in water when mature nuts will sink while the immature and unfilled nuts will float. Nuts are usually gathered every week during the harvest season. Cashew apples for the fresh fruit market should be harvested daily. 37  YIELD Normally, about 92 % of the trees yield by the third year from planting. The average yield per tree increases from about 2 kg at 3-5 years to 4 kg at 6-10 years and 5-10 kg when trees are 11-15 years of age. Thereafter, trees yield in excess of 10 kg as the trees get older. 38  PROCESSING Drying Roasting Shelling Removal of testa Grading Packaging 39  USES i. Uses of Cashew Nut  Cashew nut is the most versatile of all nuts. The kernels are rich in nutrients and are put to use in a variety of ways.  The kernels are used in cocktail parties, in confectioneries.  They are mostly salted. The kernels are low in carbohydrates but rich in proteins, fats and vitamins.  The kernel oil is reported to be superior to olive oil and almond oil. 40  USES cont’d  Cashew nuts are a common ingredient in Asian cooking. They can also be ground into a spread called cashew butter similar to peanut butter. Cashews have a very high oil content, and they are used in some other nut butters to add extra oil.  Cashews contain 180 calories per ounce (6 calories per gram), 70% of which are from fat. 41  USES cont’d ii. The cashew apple used for its juicy but acidic pulp, which can be eaten raw or used in the production of jam, chutney, or various beverages. juicy and is rich in vitamin C. However, at present most of the produce is not at all utilized. 42  USES cont’d  From cashew apple, tasty drinks can be prepared mixing with juice of lime, pineapple, grapes, etc., jam; chutney and pickles can also be prepared out of cashew apple. Wine can also be prepared.  The cashew apple contains much tannin and is very perishable. For this reason, in many parts of the world, the false fruit is simply discarded after removal of the cashew nut. 43  USES cont’d  CNSL has many industrial uses which include automobile and airplane brake fluid, adhesives, paints and varnishes, insecticides, electrical insulation, and anti-microbial  In addition to CNSL, resins and gums from fruit stems or bark is used as a varnish for books, wood, and flooring to protect from ants and other home-invading insects. 44  USES cont’d  CNSL is fractionated in a process similar to the distillation of petroleum, and has two primary end products: solids that are pulverized and used as friction particle for brake linings, and an amber-colored liquid that is emanated to create phenalkamine curing agents and resin modifiers.  Phenalkamines are primarily used in epoxy coatings for the marine and flooring markets, as they have intense hydrophobic properties and are capable of remaining chemically active at low temperatures. 45  USES cont’d iv. Traditional and Modern Medicines made from the Cashew Tree There are many medicinal uses of cashew leaves, bark, and juice from the cashew apple. In Brazil, cashew bark teas were used to stop diarrhea while the caustic shell oil was used to treat skin infections, warts, intestinal worms, and parasitic larvae beneath the skin. Teas and fruit juices from the cashew apple and leaves are known to have antimicrobial, anti- inflammatory, astringent, diuretic, hypoglycemic, and other medicinal properties. 46  USES cont’d The active ingredients in the teas and juices are thought to be tannins, anacardic acid, and cardol. Modern uses of shell oil and fruit juice include facial peels and scalp conditioners and shampoos. The cashew apple has also been a long time nutritional supplement as it contains up to 5 times more vitamin C than citrus and strawberries. 47  Nutritional value of the nuts The nut contains 47% fat, 21% protein and 22% carbohydrate. It also contains vitamins, especially thiamine. Cashew nut proteins are complete, having all the essential amino acids. 48  Economic potential The raw cashew nut industry yields N23billion annually from the production of 120,000 metric tons of cashew putting the sector to possibly another revenue spinner for the federal government. The industry is said to provide livelihood for over 300,000 families and has created over 600,000 jobs. Eighty percent of raw cashew nuts from Nigeria is exported to India, Vietnam and other countries. 49 CASHEW VALUE CHAIN 50  CASHEW VALUE CHAIN Value chain can be defined as a set of value adding activities a particular product passes through from production till it is delivered to the final consumer. The cashew value chain refers to the entire process involved in producing, processing, and distributing cashew nuts, from the farm to the consumer. 51  CASHEW VALUE CHAIN  It encompasses various stages and activities, each adding value to the cashew nut as it moves along the chain.  The cashew value chain shows how value is being added to the cashew and how the cashews are modified from the farmer to the final consumer.  The aim of this is to add more economic value to the nut and make it more acceptable in the export market. 52  STAGES IN CASHEW VALUE CHAIN Producers/Farmers: Smallholder farmers who grow the nuts. Cashew farming involves planting, nurturing, and harvesting the cashew apples and nuts Harvesting/Collectors: Harvesting involves carefully removing the cashew apples from the trees and collecting the nuts. Shelling: the cashew nuts are removed from their hard shells. as it determines the quality and appearance of the final product. 53  STAGES IN CASHEW VALUE CHAIN Drying: Once the nuts are shelled, they are spread out to dry. Proper drying is essential to reduce moisture content and prevent mold and spoilage. Sun drying and mechanical drying are common methods used. Grading and Sorting: After drying, cashew nuts are graded and sorted based on size, color, and quality. This ensures that only high-quality nuts move further along the value chain. Roasting: Cashew nuts are often roasted to enhance flavor and remove any remaining moisture. Roasting can be done using various methods, such as dry roasting or oil roasting. 54  STAGES IN CASHEW VALUE CHAIN Wholesalers: Purchase and store the nuts Processors: Remove the shell from the nuts to produce the kernel Retailers: Sell the nuts to consumers Exporters: Ship the nuts to international buyers Consumption: Consumers purchase and consume cashew nuts. They may use them as snacks, ingredients in recipes, or in various culinary applications. 55  STAGES IN CASHEW VALUE CHAIN Agrochemical sellers: Sell chemicals to the industry By-product producers: Create products from the cashew nut's by-products, such as cashew nut shell liquid (CNSL) 56  VALUE ADDITION 1. flavoring, seasoning, or packaging cashew nuts in unique and attractive ways to cater to specific markets or consumer preferences. 2. Research and Development: Continuous research and development efforts are made to improve cashew cultivation techniques, processing methods, and product innovations to enhance the overall value chain. 57 SOME PRODUCTS FROM CASHEW NUTS 58