Cashew nuts are a major economic asset for a number of African countries. Africa is responsible for 40% of world’s cashew supply. Africa produces more than one-third of the world’s cashews. In 2007, several West African countries namely Benin, Burkina Faso, Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, Nigeria and Senegal produced over 450,000 metric tons, almost a third of the world’s cashew crop (1.65 million tons) and the crop promises great earnings potential for the region. However, Africa processes only 10-15% of them, thus losing out on the jobs and added value that processing can create. One of the highest-value commodity nuts on the global market, worldwide trade in raw cashew nuts is estimated at $1.5 billion, and Africa’s share in this is an approximated $347 million FOB. The African cashew industry employs three million households, but is dogged by depressed prices and dwindling production.

In Africa, domestic consumption of cashews is quite low, providing little incentive to process the nuts closer to home. As a result, African raw cashews continue to be exported to India and Vietnam where they are processed and shipped to different countries including US and Europe (which consume about 70% of the global cashew supply) for consumption. At present, Africa sells the majority of its cashew crop to India and Vietnam for processing. However, it can provide enormous job opportunities and a (relatively) stable market for cashew producers if more of Africa’s 642,000 metric tons are processed locally. As a result of the growing awareness about the vast potential of the cashew industry, there has been an upward trend in the African processing capacity as cashew processing is being recognized as an important means to create employment opportunities, thereby improving the living standards of the population. While East Africa now processes 20% of its domestic production, West Africa is likely to increase its current processing rate of 3% by adding processing plants. The future of African cashew industry looks bright, especially with increased interest and investment promoting growth in the global cashew market.

West African Trade Hub (WATH), in collaboration with NGO’s and US government agencies, facilitates the cashew industry by providing technical assistance to processors and an access to the US market. On the other hand, African Cashew Alliance (ACA) has been instrumental in providing the much needed support to the cashew sector as expanding cashew production is environment friendly and is an important source of supplemental income to the farmers. ACA is a platform for sharing of knowledge and information and create synergies among different countries. WATH manages the secretariat for the ACA, which is an important link between different companies and donors to increase investments, improve quality and provide access to global markets. Ultimately, it promotes the African cashew in the global market.

Filed under: Agriculture, Food Processing, Micro Credit, Relationship