Cashew exports set to decline 8 per cent in H1

Cashew kernel exports from the country have declined by 8.14 per cent in value terms at Rs 1,222.93 crore during the first half of the year ending September 30, 2006. In volume terms the country exported 58,210 metric tonnes.

However, the exporters realised 6.7 per cent less per kg of cashew kernel exported during the period to Rs 210.09 per kg as against Rs 225.23 per kg earned in the same period last year.

For the same period last fiscal, India exported 59,112 metric tonnes valued at Rs 1,331.41 crore. However, exports have registered a positive growth of 8.96 per cent rise in value terms at Rs 152.31 crore for the month of September 2006 as against Rs 139.78 crore exported in September 2005.

Walter D'Souza, chairman,Cashew Export Promotion Council of India (CEPCI) said, "we are expecting this trend to continue during the second half of this fiscal and make good for the decrease in exports during the first five months of the current fiscal year."

While the installed capacity to process cashew in India is estimated to be 12 lakh tonnes per annum, the industry could get less than half for processing last year.

India's domestic rawnut production is about 5.5 lakh tonnes, whereas the industry imports the same quantity from many countries to meet the shortage. Already, many processing units have shut shop due to shortage of rawnuts.

The CEPCI has initiated efforts to increase the productivity in India on par with Vietnam, which is reportedly 2,000 kg per hectare as against about 815 kg per hectare in India, D'Souza told Business Standard.