Prof. (Dr.) P. L. Saroj, Principal Scientist and Head, Division of Crop Production, ICAR- Central Institute for Subtropical Horticulture, Lucknow, UP, & Former Director, Directorate of Cashew Research, Puttur, Karnataka enlightens on the ‘Latest Trend in Cashew Research in India’.
The cashew, an exotic wonderful crop, is often grown on poorest land and eaten by the richest people in the country. Cashew kernel is very delicious crispy and milky taste. It is grown all along the coastal areas of the country and was introduced in India by the 16th century as a forest crop for soil conservation in the coastal belt. So the plantation was not planned properly. Later on, people realised that it is a wonderful crop and has all the nutritional benefits like the other nuts. It has least saturated fatty acid, and so its attributes are similar to other nuts like almond or walnut. It can manage weight loss with the omega fatty acid present in it; prevent cancer with the flavonoids and antioxidants, and other health issues. Later on it was classified as a dry fruit, as an important horticultural crop. It is grown in more than 65 countries as an important crop.
India is the leader in promoting crop with various government and non-government organisations supporting the cultivation. ICAR-Directorate of Cashew Research was established in Puttur, Dakshin Kannada in Karnataka and Directorate of Cashew and Cocoa Development in Kerala under the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare, Govt. Of India are looking after the research and development of cashew in the country. Government is taking lot of initiatives to promote the crop. In India, it is grown in more than 0.7 million hectare land with production at 0.8 million tons. The productivity per hectare is 762 kg. It earns a huge amount of foreign exchange too. The advantage of this crop is it requires less input for cultivation. Though our country has huge potential to produce raw cashews, what we are producing is not enough.
Global production of cashew nut is fluctuating. Cote d’ Ivoire is the largest producer of raw nut with 20% contribution, followed by India,. Cote d’ Ivoire, India, and Burundi contribute more than 50% of the total raw cashew nut production, followed by Vietnam, Philippines, Tanzania, Mali, Guinea Bissau, and Brazil. Vietnam is the highest producer of cashew kernel. Besides, its own production, substantial amount of raw nut is being imported by the Vietnam for further processing. India comes second, Cote, d’ Ivoire third, and Philippines 4th. India is 4th in productivity though we have better average productivity among the world countries. In India, Maharashtra produces 1378 kg per ha, West Bengal 1140 kg and Gujarat 900 kg. There is plenty of scope in production of cashew in different states, and we need to harness it so that we can produce more as we have the potential.
The concern is productivity and profitability is very low as cashew is grown on rainfed, degraded land under neglected conditions. Poor land is given for cultivation. Cashew is not irrigated but rainfed. We do not use the new varieties, and the old ones are senile. Non- adoption of recommended package of practices is the main reason of poor orchard efficiency. Rejuvenation technology for old orchard is also not adopted. Poor marketing system and lack of growers’ organisation like other fruits owing to poor economic realization. To improve these conditions, we have to strategically adopt the innovations, technology, and replace the old plantation. New plantation with high yielding variety with quality planting material is needed. We have to do them in gradual pace, go for grafts with high yielding variety, remove the old unproductive trees and plant new ones. Limb Pruning Technique has to be followed to improve the profitability and productivity. For replanting program, we have to go for quality planting material, good variety propagated by appropriate technique, and plants as per standard. We have to follow soft wood grafting technique. Indian scientists are making a good dent in this area. Old orchard rejuvenation is important, and we have to cut the branches in the months of May and June, and in July we have to go for grafting with improved variety. In this operation, there may be problem of stem and root borer which has to be managed with recommended management practices.
We have more than 50 to 60 varieties in India of which 22 are hybrid. Ullal 3, Priyanka, Bhaskara, V 3, V 4, and V 7, Madakathara 3 and BPP 3 are some popular varieties. Some varieties have specific traits like Bhaskara, Indira caju, Priyanka, and Vengurla 8. We have developed H 125, H 126, and H 130 which are jumbo sized varieties, which produces nuts of about 11-12 g. Some of these are very good for high density planting. Each state is recommended to grow specific variety of cashew. If the size is big and productivity is high, the price for the cashew goes up. Some cashew types get pink apple which has colour brown nut. The apple colour is yellow and yellowish pink. There is a purple apple coulour cashew also having all leaf, fruit and nut in colour purple. Nethra Ubhay in Karnataka is the first dual purpose variety, of its kind in the world.
Management of plant canopy architecture is not being focused on and generally we forget after planting cashew plants. Therefore, since beginning, proper training of plants is required. There should have branches on all the four sides and follow modified central leader system of training. Regular pruning of dried branches is needed. We have technology for high density planting. Earlier plantations were established at 7 to 8 metres distance as normal method of planting accommodating 150-200 plants/ha. Now, we accommodate 400-500 plants per hectare which is 4 times more than earlier. With more plants per unit area, productivity is higher. In high density planting, appropriate management skill is required. We have to select the good variety which are prone to pruning and look for the canopy architecture management. In ultra high density planting, 1600 plants can be accommodated in one hectare by planting in 2.5 x 2.5 metre distance. Regular pruning, use of Bordeaux paste, and recommended dose of fertiliser and drip irrigation are to be followed. Karnataka and Maharashtra are following this system for enhancing productivity of cashew nut.
Since cashew is grown on neglected areas having poor fertility status, thus we have to do proper nutrition and water management. We have worked out on how much NPK is required for each plant. We have to apply gradually and after 5th year follow the recommended dose. While applying, we have to mix at least 15 to 20 kg FYM per plant to improve the soil condition and moisture. When we follow closer planting of cashew, the requirement of nutrients is different. In a 500 plant population, if we give 150 g of Nitrogen, 50 g of Phosphorus, and 50 g Potassium, it gives high yield. Lower amount of fertiliser and higher plant number will give good response. We have optimised the limit of fertilisers to 150:50:50 of NPK per plant per year which is sufficient. Method of application is also important as deep application is not good. Giving fertiliser beyond major canopy is not correct. Fertilizers have to be given at a radius of 2 m and top 15 cm of soil depth. Foliar spray urea, H2PO4 and K2O4 gave good response on nut yield. Foliar feeding is important in dryland areas where the soil moisture is less. We can grow plants like Glyricidea and Sesbania for green manuring in cashew plantation. Cashew is a crop that is very much prone for organic management.
Water is the limiting factor in cashew cultivation as most of the cashew plantations are manged as rainfed. To harvest post monsoon rains, we can have modified 3 m crescent bund and 6 meter length 1 metre width and 0.5 m height on the upstream of the plant for maximum yield. We can fill the trenches with biomass to improve productivity. For good yield, cashew should be irrigated regularly, and when we go for drip irrigation and fertigation, we can save fertiliser cost and increase productivity. About 20 litres of water is needed per day per plant. It helps in flowering, fruit setting and nut development. We have to focus on intercropping also to increase the income. We have found that when we grow pineapple as intercrop, we can earn Rs. 1.50 lakh easily, pepper can give Rs. 1.74 lakhs, and they can be intercropped in the cashew orchard to increase productivity and profitability.
Pest and disease management is very important; otherwise there will be heavy yield loss. Tea mosquito bug (TMB) is aserious pest of cashew which can be controlled by spraying Cyhalothrin, Imidachlorpid, Prophenphos, and Triazophos. No pesticide should be continuously sprayed otherwise pest resistance will be developed. We can spray before flowering i.e. flushing and fruit development stage. Bhaskara variety is less affected by TMB. Cashew stem and root borer (CSRB) is another important pest causing significant loss of cashew plantations. Regular monitoring is required, we have to remove the borer from affected portion and destroy. Swabbing of the infected portion and drenching the root zone with Chloropyriphos 0.2% minimizes the problem of CSRB. Anthracnose, dieback, damping off, inflorescence blight etc. are major diseases of cashew should also be taken care of. Weed management is also important in cashew cultivation which can be done either manually or using chemicals.
India is the first country to have commercialised post-harvest processing with lot of automation at different stages of processing, thereby reduces women drudgery which are involved in kernel extraction. Now, many private players are coming in cashew nut processing industry. Besides cashew kernel, several value added products can be made from cashew nut. Not only the nut, but the cashew apple can be used to prepare many products like, RTS, jam, blended syrup etc. Feni is the commercial product of cashew apple and very popular in Goa. With technology, policy issues, crop insurance policy, and organic certification are areas where the government, farmers, and industries have to take initiatives. The import policy has changed a lot in cashew scenario and now more funds are allotted. By 2030, we should be self-sufficient in cashew production using innovative production technologies, automation in cashew nut processing and high price realization using market intelligence.
Are there any innovative practices in cashew farming to address climate challenges in India?
Comparatively cashew is less affected with climatic aberrations than various commercial horticultural crops like mango, guava, grapes, litchi, citrus etc. Cashew is a crop that can face the uncertainty of climatic conditions as it is very hardy to various abiotic stresses. Moreover, moisture stress during flushing, flowering and fruit development stage has resulted poor production. Besides, cyclonic rains during flowering also damage crop to a significant level. Therefore, to mitigate ill impact of climate change not only development of climate resilient varieties are required but also proper moisture management by using suitable land configurations, use of mulching, canopy architecture management, cover cropping and other agronomic practices are also advocated.
What challenges and opportunities are emerging in the Indian cashew industry, and how is research addressing them?
Though we are producing about 8 million tons of raw cashew nut but some other players in the world are producing more than us. The processing strength of Indian industries are more, hence we are importing raw nut from other countries. So we have to minimize this gap between production and processing requirement. In this direction, there is direct role of government institutions to address the researchable issues. Though, government policies are supporting to Indian industries but concerted efforts are required by cashew growers also by adopting high density orcharding and good horticultural practices to become self sufficient in cashew nut production. We have to go for newer challenges. Complete automation in processing industry is very much needed. We have to diversify our products and also focus on utilization of cashew apple. We can involve nutritionists, horticulturists, community science personnel and engineers in the process of automation, grading, packaging, product diversification and marketing where government support is also required.
How is sustainable and eco-friendly agriculture being incorporated in cashew farming in India?
With lot of practical issues, sustainability is a concern. Farmers of other crops like banana, grape, or mango follow package of practices to get productivity and profitability throughout the year. But we do not adopt modern cultivation practices for cashew. We have to educate the farmers on capacity building program, and institutions have to come forward for this with research and technology. Strong linkage among line departments is needed to maintain the productivity and profitability of cashew orchards. There should be minimum use of systematic insecticide and use of biological control practices is suggested so as to produce safe cashew kernel.
Are there any research efforts focused on improving the livelihood of cashew farmers in India?
Many programs are being organised by Directorate of Cashew Research Puttur, Karnataka to address the high productivity of cashew crop. Technology modules were prepared and taught to farmers to make cashew a profitable crop. Government has started giving subsidy to cashew farmers. We are suggesting for new recommended varieties which give higher productivity to increase income. Capacity building program for total package of practices are being worked out and trainings are being imparted to farmers of different states. Cashew should be graded and sorted to bigger nuts and smaller nuts to get better price. Farmers are encouraged to set up their own units, and government is offering subsidy for setting up primary processing units. Several initiatives are being taken to improve the profitability and livelihood security of farmers involved in cashew cultivation.
Prof. (Dr.) Pyare Lal Saroj
Email: plsaroj@yahoo.co.in
Phone: 09483509653
The cashew, an exotic wonderful crop, is often grown on poorest land and eaten by the richest people in the country. Cashew kernel is very delicious crispy and milky taste. It is grown all along the coastal areas of the country and was introduced in India by the 16th century as a forest crop for soil conservation in the coastal belt. So the plantation was not planned properly. Later on, people realised that it is a wonderful crop and has all the nutritional benefits like the other nuts. It has least saturated fatty acid, and so its attributes are similar to other nuts like almond or walnut. It can manage weight loss with the omega fatty acid present in it; prevent cancer with the flavonoids and antioxidants, and other health issues. Later on it was classified as a dry fruit, as an important horticultural crop. It is grown in more than 65 countries as an important crop.
India is the leader in promoting crop with various government and non-government organisations supporting the cultivation. ICAR-Directorate of Cashew Research was established in Puttur, Dakshin Kannada in Karnataka and Directorate of Cashew and Cocoa Development in Kerala under the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare, Govt. Of India are looking after the research and development of cashew in the country. Government is taking lot of initiatives to promote the crop. In India, it is grown in more than 0.7 million hectare land with production at 0.8 million tons. The productivity per hectare is 762 kg. It earns a huge amount of foreign exchange too. The advantage of this crop is it requires less input for cultivation. Though our country has huge potential to produce raw cashews, what we are producing is not enough.
Global production of cashew nut is fluctuating. Cote d’ Ivoire is the largest producer of raw nut with 20% contribution, followed by India,. Cote d’ Ivoire, India, and Burundi contribute more than 50% of the total raw cashew nut production, followed by Vietnam, Philippines, Tanzania, Mali, Guinea Bissau, and Brazil. Vietnam is the highest producer of cashew kernel. Besides, its own production, substantial amount of raw nut is being imported by the Vietnam for further processing. India comes second, Cote, d’ Ivoire third, and Philippines 4th. India is 4th in productivity though we have better average productivity among the world countries. In India, Maharashtra produces 1378 kg per ha, West Bengal 1140 kg and Gujarat 900 kg. There is plenty of scope in production of cashew in different states, and we need to harness it so that we can produce more as we have the potential.
The concern is productivity and profitability is very low as cashew is grown on rainfed, degraded land under neglected conditions. Poor land is given for cultivation. Cashew is not irrigated but rainfed. We do not use the new varieties, and the old ones are senile. Non- adoption of recommended package of practices is the main reason of poor orchard efficiency. Rejuvenation technology for old orchard is also not adopted. Poor marketing system and lack of growers’ organisation like other fruits owing to poor economic realization. To improve these conditions, we have to strategically adopt the innovations, technology, and replace the old plantation. New plantation with high yielding variety with quality planting material is needed. We have to do them in gradual pace, go for grafts with high yielding variety, remove the old unproductive trees and plant new ones. Limb Pruning Technique has to be followed to improve the profitability and productivity. For replanting program, we have to go for quality planting material, good variety propagated by appropriate technique, and plants as per standard. We have to follow soft wood grafting technique. Indian scientists are making a good dent in this area. Old orchard rejuvenation is important, and we have to cut the branches in the months of May and June, and in July we have to go for grafting with improved variety. In this operation, there may be problem of stem and root borer which has to be managed with recommended management practices.
We have more than 50 to 60 varieties in India of which 22 are hybrid. Ullal 3, Priyanka, Bhaskara, V 3, V 4, and V 7, Madakathara 3 and BPP 3 are some popular varieties. Some varieties have specific traits like Bhaskara, Indira caju, Priyanka, and Vengurla 8. We have developed H 125, H 126, and H 130 which are jumbo sized varieties, which produces nuts of about 11-12 g. Some of these are very good for high density planting. Each state is recommended to grow specific variety of cashew. If the size is big and productivity is high, the price for the cashew goes up. Some cashew types get pink apple which has colour brown nut. The apple colour is yellow and yellowish pink. There is a purple apple coulour cashew also having all leaf, fruit and nut in colour purple. Nethra Ubhay in Karnataka is the first dual purpose variety, of its kind in the world.
Management of plant canopy architecture is not being focused on and generally we forget after planting cashew plants. Therefore, since beginning, proper training of plants is required. There should have branches on all the four sides and follow modified central leader system of training. Regular pruning of dried branches is needed. We have technology for high density planting. Earlier plantations were established at 7 to 8 metres distance as normal method of planting accommodating 150-200 plants/ha. Now, we accommodate 400-500 plants per hectare which is 4 times more than earlier. With more plants per unit area, productivity is higher. In high density planting, appropriate management skill is required. We have to select the good variety which are prone to pruning and look for the canopy architecture management. In ultra high density planting, 1600 plants can be accommodated in one hectare by planting in 2.5 x 2.5 metre distance. Regular pruning, use of Bordeaux paste, and recommended dose of fertiliser and drip irrigation are to be followed. Karnataka and Maharashtra are following this system for enhancing productivity of cashew nut.
Since cashew is grown on neglected areas having poor fertility status, thus we have to do proper nutrition and water management. We have worked out on how much NPK is required for each plant. We have to apply gradually and after 5th year follow the recommended dose. While applying, we have to mix at least 15 to 20 kg FYM per plant to improve the soil condition and moisture. When we follow closer planting of cashew, the requirement of nutrients is different. In a 500 plant population, if we give 150 g of Nitrogen, 50 g of Phosphorus, and 50 g Potassium, it gives high yield. Lower amount of fertiliser and higher plant number will give good response. We have optimised the limit of fertilisers to 150:50:50 of NPK per plant per year which is sufficient. Method of application is also important as deep application is not good. Giving fertiliser beyond major canopy is not correct. Fertilizers have to be given at a radius of 2 m and top 15 cm of soil depth. Foliar spray urea, H2PO4 and K2O4 gave good response on nut yield. Foliar feeding is important in dryland areas where the soil moisture is less. We can grow plants like Glyricidea and Sesbania for green manuring in cashew plantation. Cashew is a crop that is very much prone for organic management.
Water is the limiting factor in cashew cultivation as most of the cashew plantations are manged as rainfed. To harvest post monsoon rains, we can have modified 3 m crescent bund and 6 meter length 1 metre width and 0.5 m height on the upstream of the plant for maximum yield. We can fill the trenches with biomass to improve productivity. For good yield, cashew should be irrigated regularly, and when we go for drip irrigation and fertigation, we can save fertiliser cost and increase productivity. About 20 litres of water is needed per day per plant. It helps in flowering, fruit setting and nut development. We have to focus on intercropping also to increase the income. We have found that when we grow pineapple as intercrop, we can earn Rs. 1.50 lakh easily, pepper can give Rs. 1.74 lakhs, and they can be intercropped in the cashew orchard to increase productivity and profitability.
Pest and disease management is very important; otherwise there will be heavy yield loss. Tea mosquito bug (TMB) is aserious pest of cashew which can be controlled by spraying Cyhalothrin, Imidachlorpid, Prophenphos, and Triazophos. No pesticide should be continuously sprayed otherwise pest resistance will be developed. We can spray before flowering i.e. flushing and fruit development stage. Bhaskara variety is less affected by TMB. Cashew stem and root borer (CSRB) is another important pest causing significant loss of cashew plantations. Regular monitoring is required, we have to remove the borer from affected portion and destroy. Swabbing of the infected portion and drenching the root zone with Chloropyriphos 0.2% minimizes the problem of CSRB. Anthracnose, dieback, damping off, inflorescence blight etc. are major diseases of cashew should also be taken care of. Weed management is also important in cashew cultivation which can be done either manually or using chemicals.
India is the first country to have commercialised post-harvest processing with lot of automation at different stages of processing, thereby reduces women drudgery which are involved in kernel extraction. Now, many private players are coming in cashew nut processing industry. Besides cashew kernel, several value added products can be made from cashew nut. Not only the nut, but the cashew apple can be used to prepare many products like, RTS, jam, blended syrup etc. Feni is the commercial product of cashew apple and very popular in Goa. With technology, policy issues, crop insurance policy, and organic certification are areas where the government, farmers, and industries have to take initiatives. The import policy has changed a lot in cashew scenario and now more funds are allotted. By 2030, we should be self-sufficient in cashew production using innovative production technologies, automation in cashew nut processing and high price realization using market intelligence.
Are there any innovative practices in cashew farming to address climate challenges in India?
Comparatively cashew is less affected with climatic aberrations than various commercial horticultural crops like mango, guava, grapes, litchi, citrus etc. Cashew is a crop that can face the uncertainty of climatic conditions as it is very hardy to various abiotic stresses. Moreover, moisture stress during flushing, flowering and fruit development stage has resulted poor production. Besides, cyclonic rains during flowering also damage crop to a significant level. Therefore, to mitigate ill impact of climate change not only development of climate resilient varieties are required but also proper moisture management by using suitable land configurations, use of mulching, canopy architecture management, cover cropping and other agronomic practices are also advocated.
What challenges and opportunities are emerging in the Indian cashew industry, and how is research addressing them?
Though we are producing about 8 million tons of raw cashew nut but some other players in the world are producing more than us. The processing strength of Indian industries are more, hence we are importing raw nut from other countries. So we have to minimize this gap between production and processing requirement. In this direction, there is direct role of government institutions to address the researchable issues. Though, government policies are supporting to Indian industries but concerted efforts are required by cashew growers also by adopting high density orcharding and good horticultural practices to become self sufficient in cashew nut production. We have to go for newer challenges. Complete automation in processing industry is very much needed. We have to diversify our products and also focus on utilization of cashew apple. We can involve nutritionists, horticulturists, community science personnel and engineers in the process of automation, grading, packaging, product diversification and marketing where government support is also required.
How is sustainable and eco-friendly agriculture being incorporated in cashew farming in India?
With lot of practical issues, sustainability is a concern. Farmers of other crops like banana, grape, or mango follow package of practices to get productivity and profitability throughout the year. But we do not adopt modern cultivation practices for cashew. We have to educate the farmers on capacity building program, and institutions have to come forward for this with research and technology. Strong linkage among line departments is needed to maintain the productivity and profitability of cashew orchards. There should be minimum use of systematic insecticide and use of biological control practices is suggested so as to produce safe cashew kernel.
Are there any research efforts focused on improving the livelihood of cashew farmers in India?
Many programs are being organised by Directorate of Cashew Research Puttur, Karnataka to address the high productivity of cashew crop. Technology modules were prepared and taught to farmers to make cashew a profitable crop. Government has started giving subsidy to cashew farmers. We are suggesting for new recommended varieties which give higher productivity to increase income. Capacity building program for total package of practices are being worked out and trainings are being imparted to farmers of different states. Cashew should be graded and sorted to bigger nuts and smaller nuts to get better price. Farmers are encouraged to set up their own units, and government is offering subsidy for setting up primary processing units. Several initiatives are being taken to improve the profitability and livelihood security of farmers involved in cashew cultivation.
Prof. (Dr.) Pyare Lal Saroj
Email: plsaroj@yahoo.co.in
Phone: 09483509653
Last edited: