advertisement
India consumes the most cashew worldwide and ranks second in cashew production globally.
However, in the last few years, the productivity of cashew has been affected owing to multiple reasons, including unseasonal rain, extreme weather conditions, among others.
Farmers say they are also suffering losses owing to reduced import duty on the cashew nut.
Harishchandra Desai, a farmer from Maharashtra’s Ratnagiri district, has 1,100 cashew trees. But only a few have yielded fruit this season. The 65-year-old belongs to the Zapade village of the Lanja taluka. He estimates around 70 percent decrease in cashew production from his trees this year.
Other farmers in the region are experiencing a similar situation and are facing economic loss. They attribute the low yield to changing weather conditions, crop disease and pests.
Desai lives in the Konkan region of Maharashtra, which is known for its cashew cultivation. It is also the main source of livelihood for people from Ratnagiri, Sindhudurg and Raigad districts in this coastal region.
He adds that many farmers in Lanja now do not receive yields from any tree, as Konkan has been witnessing changing weather conditions over the last few years.
In India, the production of cashews is linked to the livelihood of 1.5 million people, including over 500,000 (five lakh) farmers. Maharashtra is the largest cashew-producing state in India.
BN Sawant, Executive Director at the Regional Agricultural Research Station, Vengurla, Sindhudurg, attributes the fall in cashew production to unseasonal rain and below-normal temperatures.
Like Desai, another farmer, Prakash Toraskar, too has suffered losses, and blames it on the changing climate. Toraskar hails from the coastal Sindhudurg district, also in the Konkan region of Maharashtra, and 100 kilometres from Desai’s village.
Toraskar, who has 1,000 cashew trees, says, “Last year, I had eight tonnes of cashew nuts (raw cashew). This year, I could get only 2.5 tonnes, which led to an 80 percent loss in my income.”
RC Gajbhiye, a scientist at the Regional Agricultural Research Station, says there indeed have been rapid temperature changes over the last decade.
Cashew is cultivated in 19 states of India, which occupies the second place in terms of cashew production and first in consumption, worldwide. Raw cashew production in India for 2020-21 was 6,91,000 tonne and in 2019-20 was 7,42,000 tonne. Maharashtra, Kerala, Goa, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, and Odisha are prominent states where cashews are cultivated.
According to the first advance estimate of area and production of horticulture crops 2021-22, by the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, the area and production of cashew has increased over the past few years. In 2021-22, cashews were cultivated over an area of 1.16 million hectares (1,166,000 ha).
Venkatesh Hubballi, Director of the Cashew and Coconut Development Institute, in Kerala’s Cochin city, told Mongabay-India, “There is a 25% decline in production of cashew nuts across the country, not just Maharashtra,” he estimates, though official data on decline of production of cashew in Maharashtra is not available.
According to scientists that Mongabay-India spoke to, cashew is a ‘hardy crop,’ as it easily bears seasonal burns. However, unseasonal rains are its worst enemy, which has been more frequent in the last few years, including coastal areas of Maharashtra.
Mahesh Dinkar Sawant, a farmer, hailing from Sindhudurg district, says that the climate in the Konkan region has changed a lot over the years. “In Konkan, rain would start after June 15. Now, it starts in May. I was already troubled by pests, as it was affecting production, but now, nature is also creating havoc.”
Sawant has trained many other farmers on climate-friendly natural farming. However, rising temperatures are causing cashew flowers to dry up and posing as a challenge.
In addition, over the years, cyclones such as Tauktae, Gulab, Shaheen, and Nisarga have impacted cashew farming in coastal areas. Ecology expert Madhav Gadgil told Mongabay-India that western shores in the Arabian Sea have never witnessed such intensive and speedy cyclones, owing to which the sea temperature has risen and subsequently brought about many changes.
The Directorate of Cashew and Cocoa Development, Kerala in its 2019-20 annual report said that India has 4,000 cashew processing units in the organised and unorganised sectors, with an annual capacity of 17 lakh metric tonnes of raw cashew. Hence, to meet the domestic demand, India imports 54% of its raw materials from African countries.
According to International Nut and Dried Fruit Council records, in the last five years, India stands at a number two position with 1,82,642 metric tonnes of cashew kernel production.
Farmers say that apart from unfavourable weather conditions, they are also suffering losses owing to reduced import duty on cashew nuts.
Desai says that earlier, there was 12% import duty on cashew nut coming from abroad, which was reduced to 2.5%.
Owing to lack of benefits, only a few farmers are planting new orchards in Ratnagiri and other districts of Konkan.
Usa Toraskar, who runs a cashew processing unit in Sindhudurg, tells Mongabay-India that it’s not only the farmers who are at a loss, but also the small industries. “Konkan cashews are good quality, but traders prefer cashew coming from outside, as it is a cheaper option and they get it for Rs 60 to Rs 80.”
Export of cashew nuts has also declined in the country. According to the data from the Directorate of Cashew and Coconut, the export of cashew nuts decreased from 67,647 metric tonnes in 2019-20, valued at Rs 2,867 crore, down to 48,575 metric tonnes in 2020-21, valued at Rs 2,840.39 crores.
(This story was originally published in Mongabay. It has been published here with permission.)
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)