Vietnam - Ivory Coast boosts trade in cashews and rice

At the invitation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ivory Coast (IVC), from 16 to 19/4/2017, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of Vietnam by Vo Hong Nam and Deputy Minister Tran Thanh Nam led. The first visit was made and official visit to the authorities of Ivory Coast. According to the program, the delegation paid tribute to the President of the National Assembly and Vice President Ivory Coast. The delegation has worked with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Industry and Trade, Ministry of Agriculture, Cotton and Ivory Coast Committee, Craft Association of Ivory Coast.

During the working sessions, the Vietnamese delegation is committed to sharing experience in intensive farming, increasing cashew yield, as well as rice cultivation techniques for you. The Vietnamese side also expressed willingness to cooperate in economic, trade and long-term business in Ivory Coast for industries in which Vietnam has strengths when conditions permit. The program "change the rice to get things."

Your side welcomes the cooperation proposal of the Vietnamese side and asked the Vietnamese side to help improve cashew yield and gradually transfer technology processing for you. At the Vietnam Business Forum - IVC held on 19/4/2017 at the International Conference Center of the Chamber of Commerce and Small Industry Industry, Ivory Coast presented the preferential investment policies, some Ambitious national program. It focuses on boosting the private sector and sees it as a lever to boost the economy and maintain a growth rate of about 9% per year in the coming years. By 2020, Ivory Coast will have 1 million tons of raw cashew nuts and on-the-spot processing for export. IVC leaders are also proud of being in the top 10 emerging economies in Africa according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

The Vietnamese side said that the issue of processing technology transfer is a very complex issue, must be gradually have a roadmap and agreed by enterprises of the two countries, should not be impatient, avoid paying expensive as Vietnam South before. A group of Vietnamese enterprises participating in this forum pledged to finalize the project "Survey, propose solutions to improve or plant new cashew orchards for Ivory Coast" and will send to the Cotton & Craft Board Ivory Coast in November this year when the General Director of the Council came to Vietnam to attend the annual articles of association of the Vietnam Cashew Association.

At this forum, the business community of Vietnam is doing business and living in Ivory Coast also suggested the Government of Vietnam soon set up diplomatic missions in Ivory Coast to help her children peace of mind to do business . It is proposed that the Government instructs the State Bank to create conditions for commercial banks to set up branches in Ivory Coast. Vietnamese enterprises also request the Ivory Coast Government to invest in infrastructure (roads, Warehouses, ports, loading and unloading capacity, transportation, etc.) in order to create more favorable conditions for the businesses of the two countries.

Mr. Nguyen Duc Thanh - Chairman of Vietnam Cashew Association:

As a person with nearly 20 years of doing business in Africa, attending almost full of events during the visit and work of the Vietnamese delegation, we believe that strengthening the cooperation between Vietnam and Côte d'Ivoire. This time has created a very good conditions for businesses of the two countries. Speaking as Vice Minister Tran Thanh Nam, the trip was a great success, "the leaders and business community of Ivory Coast began to consider Vietnamese businesses as reliable partners that they can match. Long acting ".

Source: translate.googleusercontent.com

Ivory Coast: Ivorian officials, seductive fashion at the Ivorian cashew-Vietnamese Economic Forum on the cashew sector

The Ivorian-Vietnamese Cooperation, mà reinforced with Political and Diplomatic Measures, như the abolition of visas for holders of Diplomatic passports and service, and the Strengthening of Parliamentary ties, has cũng extended in terms  Economic Search Economic  through a  forum Search Forum  Economic Between Countries, opened yesterday in Abidjan. Ivory Coast: Ivorian officials, seductive fashion at the Ivorian cashew-Vietnamese Economic Forum on the cashew sector The Ivory Coast is the world's first producer of cashew nuts with a harvest of 725,000 tons in the early 2016 campaign, wants to Maintain or Improve its performance even level through international partnerships.

It is rightly là Ivorian Leaders of the  sector Search cashew, headed by the Director General of the Cotton Cashew Board, Dr. Adama Coulibaly, took Advantage of this  forum Search forum  for presenting the Ivory Coast to Their Investment opportunities News hosts.

For the Director General of the Cotton Cashew Board, Dr. Adama Coulibaly, through an incentive Investment in Particular for potencial code of cashew processing units Settlements; given the Possibility to buy local processors field edge (Optimization of collection Costs); Grant to local industry worth 400 CFA per kilogram of Cashews Produced; and the ESTABLISHMENT of the International Exhibition of Equipment and the Cashew Processing Technology (SIETTA) to present innovations and Promote những, Incentives and Measures are Among other Beneficial to invest in the cashew sector in Côte d'Ivoire. These Measures put in place for Certain in 2014, says the director, have resulted in "a better control of production and consequently improved the productivity of orchards systems."

Source:http://vinacas.blogspot.in

Cashew sector: Côte d'Ivoire control the market price but lack of banking and institutional support

With the falling price of cocoa field edge, the Ivory Coast could she rely on cashews costing kilogram grows to pull its economy? The alternative may think are we in the cashew sector. But in time. "Do not judge quickly. It is true that the Ivorian cashew nuts is much demand in the world, and that makes her attractive price, but it is still too early to tell. Let us two or three years to see, "informed Politikafrique.info N'Guettia Assouman, the vice president of the Association of Cashew exporters Coast Ivory (Aec-Ci). "

This Saturday, April 22, 2017, during a visit to his warehouse located at the port of Abidjan, the actor cashew sector gives news of this economic activity. According to him, "the sector is doing well." "We now have devices that allow us to control the humidity, which is a very important factor in quality. This makes the products meet quality standards. Therefore, the right price follows. Producers well aware that only quality products are well paid. Also they dry out the products they sort out foreign bodies and bad nuts, "he said before revealing that" The quality of cashew nuts from Ivory Coast who was 46 between 2011 and 2012, is increased to 48 from 2014 to 2015 and is best appreciated on the international market. "

Anything that supports the vice president of Aec-Ci, results in increased revenue for producers, but also a growing interest vis-à-vis people cashew resulting increased Sir plantations nationwide. "The production increased from 350,000 tons to over 715,000 tons in 2016". A dynamic that he continues, is still running and which allows the country to take first place in the world podium. "The Ivory Coast is now placed second producing country to the rank of first. Indirectly, Ivory Coast sets the price of cashew nuts today, because due to product quality, everyone buys in Ivory Coast. "

For the 2017 campaign, the farmgate price of the kilogram of cashew nuts is set at 440 F / kg. A few years back, it was at its lowest level. The kilogram was directly purchased from farmers within 300 FCFA. For N'Guettia Assouman, if good price is encouraging, much remains to be done in the sector.

"We the national players, are not supported by the government .. The cashew is still unknown banks. Banking institutions are careful therefore to invest, despite the different fairs and conferences we organize to explain. Today, it is the foreign capital that turn the sector as they please. We have no national protection of our rulers. We suffer, "regrets there. Yet according to the president of the Aec-Ci, domestic exporters are actors able to boost this sector by integrating processing are supported by the government.

Source: http://news.abidjan.net/h/613800.html

2016 Financial Report of DONAFOODS

2016 Final Financial Report of DONAFOODS: read this liink:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B8k0W56L1bdETDRGZUdZdVVFblhfY0VraGZqVmhfS3ZVVWdJ/view

Donafoods

1st Quarter 2017 Financial Report of DONAFOODS

Read link:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B8k0W56L1bdELWtLSTBkT1NHdkxjNmlxeDNKS2pVLVlkNWNj/view

High processing cost pricing out India cashew

Cashew exports fell 18 per cent in 2016-17. Total shipments in the year stood at 80,033 tonnes valued at 5,009.30 crore, against 96,346 tonnes valued at 4,952.12 crore in the previous fiscal.

Total revenue realisation showed an increase, albeit marginal, due to a 22 per cent rise in the unit value. Average unit value realised in 2016-17 went up to 625.90 a kg from 513.99 in 2015-16, said S Kannan, Executive Director and Secretary, Cashew Export Promotion Council of India (CEPCI). CEPCI Chairman Sundaram Prabha attributed the fall in exports mainly to non-receipt of parity price for kernel.

“A sharp rise in raw cashewnut (RCN) price, which has gone up to around $2,250-$2,300 a tonne, coupled with high processing costs here, has made the Indian product non-competitive in the world market,” he told BusinessLine.

The unit value for RCN increased by over 29 per cent to 115.57 a kg last fiscal from 89.33 a kg in 2015-16 , he said. The landed cost of imported RCN thus comes to around 150 a kg, he added.

Indigenously produced RCN also costs around 140 a kg, he added. Sundaran said only 40 per cent of the factories are running at present in Kerala because of the high processing costs there, and competition from other States. With a processing capacity of 20 lakh tonnes of raw nuts, the industry is perpetually dependent on imports for over 50 per cent of its annual requirement.

The indigenous production of raw nuts hovers at around 7 lakh tonnes, he added. In 2016-17, RCN imports fell 21 per cent following the closure of factories.

The CEPCI Chairman said the industry is facing a grim situation, as there is no level playing field for the processors due to various reasons. These include high cost of production; inadequate support/incentives from the State and Central governments; high cost of funds; stagnant overseas markets due to recession; and competition from Vietnam and other processing countries which were traditionally suppliers of RCN to India. The processing cost in Kerala comes to around 3,500 for an 80-kg bag, against 1,000-1,350 in other processing States.

Source:http://www.thehindubusinessline.com

Cashew farmers make strong case for govt’s support

The President of the Ghana Cashew Co-operative Association, Mr Anthony Kwaku Adu, made the call when the agribusiness members of the Association of Ghana Industries (AGI) called on the sector minister, Dr Owusu Afriyie Akoto, in Accra on April 7. He said for instance that the programme could see the establishment of nurseries in all cashew producing areas to produce about 3.6 million grafted seedlings, which are early bearing, high yielding and disease-tolerant, for all cashew farmers for subsequent plantation. “These grafted seedlings should be distributed for free to plan 36,000 hectares annually up to 2020. This will help facilitate the expansion of raw cashew nut processing from 5,596 metric tonnes (about 11 per cent of local production) to 200,000 metric tonnes by 2027,” he said.

He stated that the expansion drive in the country’s production of raw cashew nuts must also be supported with a financial scheme in order to speed up the development of the sub-sector. “Over the years the traditional commercial banks have been reluctant to extend credit for agricultural activity because of the long period it takes to recoup their investments; the high risk of production failure and perceived low rates of recovery is also another factor. However the Cashew Development Project (2002-2010) achieved a loan recovery rate of over 95 per cent, which is a high rate by all industry standards and this means that loan recovery rate within the cashew sector is very high,” he said.

Controlling diseases

Mr Adu said the use of pesticides to control disease had been recognised as necessary to mprove cashew tree productivity or yield. “Ghana’s cashew yield of 500 kilogram per hectare was far short of international standard of 1,200 kilogramme per hectare. Although there are many reasons that could account for this, it has been recognised that Ghanaian plantation farms do not usually apply insecticides to their plantations,” he said.

Mr Adu added that evidence from farms in the Brong Ahafo Region has shown that the use of pesticides to control insects and disease have led to improved yield and farm sustainability. He explained that the proper use of chemicals could lead to a 30 per cent increase in farm productivity within the shortest possible period of time, adding that pesticide use, however, does not come without consequences and therefore, their systematic and professional use must be highly recommended.

“Despite the high potential of the industry in contributing towards the growth of the economy, the cashew industry in Ghana has no apex body to administer activities in the industry while there is also the unavailability of regulation for the industry”, he said.  Mr Adu further expressed concern that there are no approved standards in cashew trading while fluctuating and uncontrolled raw cashew nut prices coupled with the of lack of finance/credit assistance to support farmers continues to remain a bane,” he stated.

Cashew through the lense

The importance of cashew is appreciated within the National Export Development Programme, where it was identified as a priority export product. The cashew sector has benefits for the environment because it can stem desertification, and provide employment particularly for women.

Additionally, cashew production and processing represents considerable opportunity for economic value, providing a secure long-term market for local producers, facilitating farmer linkages, and providing a fiscal contribution to Ghana’s economy.

Call for paper

For his part, the sector minister, Dr Akoto asked the members of the association to put forward their case by developing a paper for government consideration.

“We will attend to every request because we are determined to have the sector reform to ensure food security and provide jobs for the masses”, he said.

Source:http://www.graphic.com.gh

Cashew Exports Fall 16%

Cashew nut export volumes are steadily declining even as domestic consumption is witnessing a consistent growth.

Cashew export has dropped for second successive year in 2016-17.It fell by 16% to 81,110 tons. In the year before it had declined by 19% to 96,346 tons. At the same time, domestic consumption has touched 3 lakh tons and is growing at 5-6% annually.

According to the provincial data by The Cashew Export Promotion Council of India (CEPCI), the export value has risen marginally by 3% for 2016-17 reaching . 5,077 crore because of the better  prices fetched by the cashew kernels towards the end of the year.

CEPCI secretary S Kannan attributed the fall in quantity to limited availability of imported raw nuts due to imposition of 9.36% duty from last year, high price of raw nuts and poor production in India. The duty was imposed to prevent local traders from misusing free import norms. But it has become an impediment for the exporters. Retail cashew prices was  ` 800 to 1,000kg while export price was $4.64.9 per pound, (about `. 700 per kg) last year.

Source: Economictimes.Indiatimes.com

South African Macadamia Growers' Association signs MOU with Chinese nut industry

Mr. Walter Giuricich, Chairman of the South African Macadamia Growers' Association (SAMAC) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Madam Weng Yangyang, the senior Vice President of the Specialized Committee for Nuts and Roasted Seeds of the China National Industry Association (CSNC), aiming at enhancing the cooperation for nuts and roaster industry between the two countries. The signing ceremony took place at the opening of the China Nuts and Roasted Seed Industry’s Annual Conference and the 11th China Nuts and Roasted Seed Exhibition. The board members of CSNC, Mr. Mashudu Silimela, Agricultural Counsellor from the South African Embassy, and honoured guests witnessed the event along with over one thousand Chinese nut industry leaders.

At the opening, Madam Weng stated that China is now the No. 1 nut market in the world. As per the figure released by CSNC at the event, the total sales of China nuts and roasted seeds have reached to RMB 132.7 Billion (around USD19.5 billion) in 2016, up 10% compared with the years before. It demonstrated the healthy growth of the industry, part of which shall contribute to CSNC’s effort to promote their members’ products, summarized in the slogan “eating a handful of nuts and roasted nuts a day will keep you healthy”. Giuricich echoed in his opening remarks to the audience that: “Many nut industries in the world have supplied more than 30% of their crop to China.“

When referring specifically to South African macadamias, China purchased approximately 40%, or 18,200 tons, in 2015 and 36%, or 13,680 tons, of the crop in 2016. The figure has dropped in 2016 as South Africa experienced its worst drought recorded in history.

“Looking forward from 2017 onwards the global macadamia industry is expected to be back at full capacity by 2018 and doubling in size by 2020. This massive growth will result in an industry which represents less than 2% of the international nut market to grow to 4% in the next 3 to 4 years,“ said Giuricich.

No doubt China has played a key role in the future market growth for macadamia nuts. That’s why SAMAC is seeking the partnership with CSNC. The signed MOU will allow the two parties to enhance cooperation by exchanging industry information, jointly promoting their products, and through being deeply involved with both association's events. As Giuricich put it: “The proverb from Nigeria goes 'a man cannot sit down alone to plan for prosperity'. Relationships, teamwork and trust though all levels of business and trade is important for success.” 

Source: www.freshplaza.com

Benin: new clampdown on the export of cashew nuts

Benin has just strengthen the marketing device of cashews. On 6 April, the Cabinet has announced the introduction of an additional levy of 50 CFA per kilogram of raw cashew nuts exported. This, regardless of the fee of 10 FCFA provided by law 2017 managing finances. This levy is liquidated at customs before export, said an official statement. Moreover, he says, "the export of raw cashew nuts by land [is] prohibited"

For the authorities, it is to correct an "excess" of competitiveness of the Beninese cashew nuts, lightly taxed export conversely, the statement of the Cabinet, Africa competing products of West, including the Ivory Coast, Ghana and Nigeria. "This competitiveness had become an obstacle to development of the cashew processing industry in Africa in general and Benin in particular, because of the strong pressure of the international application", says the statement said Council of Ministers.

This decision, which the government aims to reduce the pressure of demand and the strong speculation, is not to the liking of the opinion that denounces an unconstitutional decision. Traders brought an action to invalidate an extent contrary to the provisions of Beninese law and Community agreements.

Indeed, under Articles 96 and 98 of the Beninese Constitution of 11 December 1990, the prerogative to set taxes or customs levy remains the exclusive competence of the National Assembly. "The base, rates and charges for covering the terms of any kind," says the text.

Moreover, overland export ban announced by Cotonou is contrary to the spirit of the Economic and Monetary Union of West Africa (UEMOA), the Treaty in Article 4, said that the organization aims creating between member states, "a common market based on the free movement of persons, goods, services, capital and the right of establishment of self-employed persons and employed, as well as a common external tariff and a common trade policy. "

This is in addition to a system in place since the beginning of the year to organize and control the sector of cashew, second cash crop after cotton. Indeed, a joint decree of the Minister of Industry, Trade and Handicrafts and the Ministry of Agriculture Livestock and Fisheries fixed bank deposits of 5 million FCFA for domestic marketing of nuts cashew and 20 million for export of the product.

To these drastic measures, adds this new tax intended for export to officially encourage local processing (which has drawn a premium tax of 10 CFA francs per kilo) but which may have important implications this marketing cashew campaign which started on March 3 and end on October 31 with a buy floor producer price fixed at FCFA 500 per kg against 300 CFA per kg in the previous campaign. This sensible price increase production of 120 000 to 300 000 tonnes within 5 years is more competitive than FCFA 440 per kilo set by Ivory Coast.

Cashew nuts from Benin and Ghana traded at $ 2,000 a tonne in Asian markets such as Vietnam, the world's Transformer product ahead of India and Brazil.

West Africa produces 1 700,000 tons divided between the Ivory Coast, the largest producer with 750 000 tonnes in 2016, or 47%), Guinea Bissau (225 000 tonnes, 14%), Nigeria (160 000 tonnes, 10% of production) and Benin (125 0000 tons, 8% of production). To note a lack of consultation between most African countries do not apply the same charges and the same floor price and the same standards. A third of the crops would be fed by underground networks and through neighboring countries, which represents a huge loss to the state.

The main consumers of cashew nuts (not to be confused with the processors) are India (200,000 t), the US (150,000 t), the European Union (110,000 t), China (50,000 t) the United Arab Emirates (15,000 tons) and Australia (15,000 t).

Source:http://www.financialafrik.com/2017/04/16/benin-nouveau-tour-de-vis-sur-lexportation-de-la-noix-de-cajou/

Binh Phuoc farmers save cashew orchards after crop failure

Currently, many households are running, pouring all spraying force of insecticides in cashew gardens in Bu Dang district, Bu Gia Map district. According to the record at the family garden of Mr. Dieu Luong, in Thac Dai village, Phu Van commune, Bu Gia Map district, although in the season to exploit the end of the crop, but also cashew orchard disease due to worm attack day The heavier the family should quickly spray the disease early. According to Luong, it is estimated that this year the family collected only over 3 tons out of a total of 8 hectares. Contrary to the same period last year, the family collected about 15 tons.

Mr. Dieu Luong said: "This year my family is heavy season. Due to the influence of weather and anthracnose disease, bugs make the plants dry both cotton and branches. I have never seen a year like this disease epidemic spread, causing the whole orchid fiber dried. Up to this point, the end of the season is still foam, mushroom spread the whole region. Quitting salvation will also affect the latter, "- Dieu Luong farmer shared his experience.

Dieu Keng farm, Son Trung hamlet, Duc Hanh commune, Bu Gia Map district has over 5 ha of mosquito bugs attacking mosquitoes. Facing with the above situation, many cashew growers are worried about disease. Many gardeners have actively sprayed plant protection chemicals to save cashew orchards waiting to wait for the morning season.

According to Binh Phuoc Plant Protection Department, this year the yield has decreased by nearly 50% due to weather and pest infestation, especially mosquito bite attack. The most serious damage is Bu Dang district with the largest area of ??about 60,000 ha, 45% of the province. The lower districts are Bu Gia Map, Phu Rieng and Bu Dop. The highest point is in area 134, in Hai An village, Phu Nghia commune, Bu Gia Map district. Cultivated cashewnut crops suffer from 70 to 90% yield.

Deputy Director of the Plant Protection Department of Binh Phuoc province Nguyen Dinh Ha said: "In the recent past, the weather has changed abnormally so there have been unseasonal rains affecting flowering, The fruit of the cashew tree has resulted in productivity gains. In addition, rain also causes high air temperature and humidity, thus facilitating the development of pests, especially mosquito bugs and anthracnose. In part, the subjective nature of the pests has not been tested regularly in the garden. When the disease is detected, the majority is in the period of heavy, high pest density, coincides with the flowering cashew orchard, resulting in low prevention effect.

Before the disease affected the "capital" thing, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Binh Phuoc directs the professional agencies to issue guidelines on the prevention of pests on plants for people. People, intensify the training class instructed farmers how to prevent pests on cashew.

Binh Phuoc Department of Plant Protection - Plant Protection predicts that in the coming time, unfavorable weather and pests may continue to develop, possibly with the risk of outbreaks. Therefore, after harvesting, people need to take measures such as: regularly visit the garden to detect the disease in time, clean the garden, cut leaves, diseased branches and inefficient branches to open the orchard. At the same time, fertilizing balanced and reasonable, so that plants grow well; Copper Hydroxide (Kocide 53.8DF, Champion 77WP), Copper Oxychloride (Coc 85WP) ... to limit infectious diseases.

In addition, when the owner of the garden to find the disease with low rate of harm, can use some medicines to prevent such as Carbendazim 125g / l + Hexaconazole 30 g / l (Hexado 300SC), Hexaconazole 50 g / l ( Anvil 5SC), Azoxystrobin 50g / l + Hexaconazole 100 g / l (Camilo 150SC) spray 1 to 2 times 7 to 10 days apart.

In addition, people need manual methods of deep damage to the body shell, can use the drug has the ability to steam steaming steam such as Regent 800WG, Vibasudin 50ND, Viphensa 50ND, Bini 58 40ND Blend according to drug labeling instructions, using syringes to inject drug solution into the tunnel. After pumping drugs use clay or cotton swab hole to chisel to kill young insects inside.

Source: Vietnam + / VNA

The financing needs of Ivorian SMEs valued at over CFAF 3500 billion

The financing needs of Ivorian small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are estimated at CFAF 3574 billion, or 21% of Côte d'Ivoire's gross domestic product (GDP), Eric Kacou, Co- Founder and CEO of Entrepreneurial solutions partners (ESPatners).

Mr. Kacou, speaking to the press, relied on the study "Data for growth" carried out by his firm to fill a vacuum, in the absence of reliable and recent data on Measurement and identification of SME financing needs ''.

According to him, these data present seven perspectives which made it possible to set up the "PACTE" (Prioritizing, increasing, targeting, transforming and evaluating), a roadmap for better financing of SMEs.

"The estimated needs of SMEs in Côte d'Ivoire are CFAF 3574 billion, or 21% of the country's GDP," he said, adding that of this amount, SMEs want to invest 2058 billion FCFA In their companies (factories, vehicles, etc.), while they foresee CFAF 1100 billion as working capital. Seed financing requirements are estimated at CFAF 257 billion, compared to CFAF 122 billion for financial guarantees.

The statistics also indicate that 50% of SMEs request from banks is favorable, but only one third of companies have taken the step. In addition, 75% of SMEs wish to receive technical assistance, but one third have received it within the last three years.

Côte d'Ivoire has more than 150,000 SMEs. According to the definition of the National Institute of Statistics of Côte d'Ivoire (INS), small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are defined as all enterprises with an annual turnover of less than CFAF 1 billion.

On 24 November 2016, the ESPatners organized, in collaboration with the General Confederation of Enterprises of Côte d'Ivoire (CGECI, Ivorian Employers) and the African Development Bank (AfDB), the first edition of the initiative, La Finance engages ''. In this edition, the commitment made by credit institutions (banks and microfinance) to finance SMEs amounted to 1276 billion FCFA.

Source:fr.africatime.com

California pistachio exports: An overview

Pistachios generally rank in the top-five agricultural exports from California while often ranking in the top-three agricultural exports of Kern County. Pistachios grown in California make up 100 percent of U.S. pistachio exports.

Even though pistachios make up a small percentage of total U.S. exports, they are very important in both Kern County and California. Although Iran has long dominated the pistachio export market, the United States (thus California) has steadily increased its market share since the 1980s. These changes have resulted from a variety of factors, including California production, safety concerns with Iranian pistachios, and political issues and trade policies.

This article will look at a brief history of these issues, the current primary export markets for California and Iranian pistachios, and challenges in maintaining current export markets and expanding into future markets.

A majority of California pistachios are exported — 67 percent in 2014 and 90 percent in 2015. The top-three destinations for California pistachios have been the European Union, China/Hong Kong and Canada. However, as domestic production decreased by roughly 47 percent between 2014 and 2015, exports correspondingly decreased by approximately 25 percent, though this decrease was not evenly spread among the top-three destinations.

The EU imported 4.3 percent fewer pistachios, while China imported 51 percent fewer in 2015 compared to 2014. During this period, the U.S. dollar appreciated by 19.5 percent and 1.5 percent against the euro and the yuan, respectively, thus increasing costs to buyers in those regions. At the same time, Chinese pistachio production and yields have been steadily rising, replacing the need for exports, which fell from about 30 percent of consumption to approximately 16 percent.

On average, U.S. exports accounted for 37 percent of world pistachio exports, while Iran contributed 40 percent of the same over the last five years. Iranian exports decreased by 25 percent between 2012 and 2013 due to a self-imposed ban on pistachio exports over the first half of 2013. This ban was imposed by the Iranian government to reduce the domestic price of pistachios.

Since 1997, the EU has banned the importation of Iranian pistachios due to their high levels of aflatoxin, a carcinogen produced by a fungus due to improper drying of pistachios. As a result, Iran has since focused its export efforts toward Asian and Middle Eastern countries, including China, the United Arab Emirates and Vietnam.

More recently, Iran has been experimenting with methods to reduce aflatoxin levels, potentially opening up access to the EU market, thus posing a threat to U.S. exports.

Over the last decade, pistachio imports by the EU have grown by less than 5 percent, while imports by China and Vietnam have increased by more than 200 percent and more than 1,000 percent, respectively. In order to expand the U.S. pistachio export market, producers need to focus on these regions. The Trans-Pacific Partnership would have eliminated the current 25 percent import tax on pistachios in Vietnam. Iran was not a signatory to this agreement. In lieu of this agreement, the U.S. would need to negotiate a reduction in taxes through a bilateral treaty instead.

While the upside for U.S. pistachio exporters is limited, there are some potential downsides. First, the U.S. could lose some of its market share in the EU if Iran is able to meet the European aflatoxin standards, thus enabling them to export to EU countries. Second, there is limited growth potential in new markets. Any political discord between the U.S. and China could further limit market access to these regions. Given the importance of pistachios to Kern County, producers would benefit from more intensively exploring opportunities in Asian markets.

Source:http://www.bakersfield.com

Exports of Q1 / 2017 declined in volume but increased in value

The average cashew export price in the first two months of 2017 reached $ 9,090 per tonne, up 20.7 per cent over the same period in 2016. The United States, China and the Netherlands still maintain the top 3 cashew import markets. Vietnam accounts for 33.2%, 18.1% and 12.9% of total cashew exports, respectively. In the first two months of 2017, the markets for cashew nut exports increased sharply (47.1%), United States (30.1%), Australia (25.6%), United Arab Emirates The most (25.6%) and Thailand (12.8%).

Meanwhile, the amount of cashew nuts imported in March 2017 is estimated at 44 thousand tons with the value of 88 million USD, bringing the volume and value of importing the first 3 months of 2017 reached 145 thousand tons and 303 million USD Up 35.3% in volume and 79.4% in value over the same period in 2016.

In the domestic market, in March 2017, the harvest time adjustment is starting. The price of fresh cashew is being sold at an average price of 46,000 VND / kg, while the price of raw cashew is 60,000 VND / kg, the highest ever. Specifically, in Binh Thuan, the price of cashew nuts this year is high, ranging from 40,000-45,000 VND / kg, but cashew production in this locality has significantly reduced due to the influence of weather, deep sick. In Dong Nai, the fresh cashew price from the beginning to the middle of the crop is always between 47,000-50,000 VND / kg, a record high compared to every year. In Binh Phuoc, the first fresh season is being purchased by traders at high prices ranging from 43,000 to 45,000 VND / kg, even, when the price of fresh cash is up to 47,000 VND / kg.

Looking back the first 3 months, the market fresh thing is not very exciting due to the new harvest time in mid-March 2017. However, the market dried up on the upswing due to limited supplies due to unfavorable weather conditions.

Source: dangcongsan.vn

Industry sector is facing difficulties because of rising raw material prices - Vietnam

In mid-2016, the price of cashew nuts is only 37,000 VND / kg but up to 50,000 VND / kg. Compared with the current time, each ton has increased about 13 million. The price of raw materials is too high so the small establishments do not dare to "hug" the goods, to buy to buy there, sometimes not buy.

Not only is the cashew processing plants in Trang Bom, Dong Nai but also many others in the "dilemma". The owner of a large cashew processing enterprise in Xuan Loc district also said that from January 2017, his company had reduced production by 30% because of limited supply. According to him, at the time of source is difficult as today, enterprises are easy to "hug" the imported goods of poor quality and when the processing is very vulnerable to losses. To avoid risks, enterprises must be cautious.

When raw material prices increase rapidly, the risk in production is very high. In fact, manufacturers will be very pressured when the price of raw materials increases sharply, because export orders are often locked in front of the price.

The price of 50,000 VND / kg of raw cashew nuts is now considered the highest in many years. In my opinion, the cause of the cashew price increase is due to weather conditions cause crop failure in the 2016-2017 seasons. The last thing, the output of the country only reached nearly 400,000 tons, down about 30% compared With the previous article. Meanwhile, the processing needs of the export business are about 1.3 million tons. Not only that, imported goods from African countries, India this year is also more difficult. In India, processors are also pushing up prices to buy new products for processing. In Ivory Coast alone, up to 40% of cashew nut production for Vietnamese processing enterprises has also reduced production by about 100,000 tons.

Due to the status of goods, many importers are "distorted" because partners do not deliver on time, affecting production. There are companies that accept an additional $ 100 per tonne of goods. In the early process, there are many costs, if the cost of inputs and outputs can not be balanced; the possibility of losses is very high.

Nguyen Duc Thanh - Chairman of Vietnam Cashew Association

Source: Business Forum Newspaper (column: Cafe Entrepreneur

Cashew Exports can generate good FOREX for Nigeria – NEPC

Federal government’s efforts to improve earnings from commodity exports received a boost as the Executive Director of Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) Olusegun Awolowo charged Valency Cashew Processing Limited to sustain its production capacity and focus more on value-addition for the product. This advice,a statement obtained from NEPC said was given on Monday when the Management team of NEPC led by Awolowo, paid the company a facility visit with the aim to identify areas of intervention on ways to develop and promote cashew – a major export product of the Commodity Export Company located at Ibafo, Ogun State.

Awolowo urged the Management of Valency Limited to, amongst other things, support the growth of commodity exports by ramping up production of cashew. “In view of the urgent need to scale up both production and processing of cashew for exports in order to earn more foreign exchange for the country, I implore you (Valency Cashew Processing Limited) to pay attention to quality standard and value-addition of cashew for exports,because the commodity commands a global export value of over $4.5billion annually, which Nigeria should aim to grab a fair market share.

As at 2015, Nigeria produced a mere 160, 000MT of cashew worth $253million for exports. And currently the larger quantity of the said production capacity is Raw Cashew Nuts (RCN) whereas processing even 50% of same volume will create about 9, 000 jobs plus a chain of economic multiplier effects”.

Awolowo explained that cashew is one of the 13 National Strategic Export Products chosen by Federal Government under Category B of Zero Oil Plan – one of the strategies highlighted in the recently launched Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP) to emancipate Nigeria from dependence on single commodity (oil) for survival. The NEPC boss promised to continue to support cashew processors under National Cashew Association of Nigeria (NCAN) in creating enabling environment for the product to thrive. This will be achieved through embarking of programmes to develop and increase productive capacities of stakeholders.

One of such hand-holding engagement is the NEPC/USAID-NEXTT capacity building project to improve competitiveness in the cashew value chain. Also, NEPC the statement explained would lead Cashew Processors to World Cashew Convention in Singapore later this year to expose stakeholders to new technologies which would result in increased value addition, inclusive growth and job creation. He expressed confidence that some degree of palliation will come the way of exporters when implementation of the new Export Expansion Grant scheme commences.

Meanwhile,Basba-Nand Balodi,the Managing Director of Valency Cashew Processing Limited while thanking NEPC for the visit lamented lack of funds for acquisition of modern processing machines, inadequate export incentives and the dearth of infrastructure particularly power and roads which ultimately increases cost of doing business, making their product less competitive.

The MD acknowledged NEPC’s role in bolstering the non-oil export economic sector through continuous engagements and interventions on proactive programmes that will usher best practices and promote the ease of doing business. Balodi called for the creation of a Governing Council for Cashew sector under the Federal Ministry of Agriculture.

Source:https://www.businessdayonline.com

FG to pay backlog of EEG to exporters- Awolowo

The Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) says the Federal Government has agreed to pay the arrears of Export Expansion Grant (EEG) owed manufacturing exporters, to encourage non-oil export activities. Segun Awolowo, Chief Executive Officer, NEPC, disclosed this on Monday during a factory tour of Valency Cashew Processing Ltd at Ibafo in Ogun.

“We are negotiating with the Debt Management Office; we also want to have a forensic audit to ascertain these claims properly, because they run into billions of dollars.

“Government has agreed to pay off, treat it as a national debt and appropriately spread it into promissory note over a period,’’ he said.

According to him, NEPC has commenced gradual implementation of the revised Export Expansion Grant (EEG) to assist manufacturing exporters, and to reduce the cost of doing business. Awolowo said the visit to Valency was necessitated due to the urgent need to scale up production and processing of cashew for exports, to earn more foreign exchange for the country.

“I implore Valency Ltd to pay attention to quality standard and value-addition of cashew for exports.

“The commodity commands a global export value of over 4.5 dollars billion annually, which Nigeria should aim to grab a fair market share,” he said.

Awolowo said that Nigeria currently exports raw cashew nuts in large quantities, adding that 50 per cent processing of the volume would create about 9,000 jobs with a chain of economic multiplier effects. According to him, Nigeria has produced 160,000 metric tons of cashew worth $253 million for exports in 2015.

He said the commodity was one of the 13 National Strategic Export Products of the government’s Zero Oil Plan. Awolowo also described the Zero Oil Plan as a strategy of the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan, to liberate Nigeria from dependence on oil for survival. The NEPC boss pledged the council’s continued support to create an enabling environment for cashew processors to thrive.

Mr Basab Balodi, Managing Director, Valency Ltd, commended the council’s role in bolstering the non-oil export sector, through continuous engagement and intervention that would promote ease of doing business. He urged government to intervene in provision of electricity, financing, creation of competitive environment, recognition and policy support to cashew industries.

Source: www.businessdayonline.com

Dong Nai: Cashew nut imports increased nearly 4 times

April 09, 2017

In the first quarter of 2017, enterprises in the province spent nearly US $ 31.4 million to import more than 14.1 thousand tons of raw cashew nuts for processing and export, 4 times in volume, nearly 5 times in price over the same period last year.

Cause the number of cashew nuts imported increased due to the domestic crop failure. Therefore, in order to meet export orders, enterprises have to import raw materials. Import price of raw cashew nuts is quite high, about 2220 USD / ton, approximately 50 thousand VND / kg. In the domestic market, the price of raw cashew nuts farmers sold over 50 thousand VND / kg. Many cashew processing enterprises said that they are willing to buy raw cashew nuts at prices higher than the import price of 2-3,000 VND / kg, as the quality of cashew nuts in Vietnam is much better than imported ones. The shortfall in processing is also lower.

Source:  Dong Nai Newspaper

Australia's macadamia growers remain optimistic about harvest after Debbie

Excessive flooding in macadamia growing regions in Queensland and New South Wales from ex-Cyclone Debbie is not expected to have a detrimental effect on Australia's macadamia crop this year, according to local growers.

The macadamia industry has had to revise its 2017 crop forecast due to damage caused by the wild weather from 54,000 tons to around 52,000 tons after Debbie washed some of the early crop away. Sunshine Coast grower Brett Newell said macadamias were resilient to extreme weather and he did not expect the season to be at risk.

"We won't know how severe those effects will be because we have just starting harvesting," said Jolyon Burnett from the Australian Macadamia Society. Thankfully, many growers are only in the early stages of harvest, and most of their crop is still in the tree."

Despite this setback growers are optimistic about the future as the production of macadamias in Australia has been growing consecutively by 4 to 5 per cent for the past few years. Driven by a huge demand from China, prices for growers are also skyrocketing, and many are racing to plant more trees to keep up with demand.

Mr Burnett said a kilogram of macadamias went from being $1.20 a kilogram a decade ago, to now over $5 per kilogram and rising. In the past four years, 600,000 new trees have gone into the ground and now there are about 5.3 million of them in Australia.

Source: abc.net.au

Benin Government Bans the export of RCN by Road

After the price of cashew – 500 F/kg was fixed, during the cashew marketing campaign, – President Patrice Talon and his government has adopted new measures in the marketing of cashew nuts. At a press briefing on Wednesday, April 6, 2017, the Minister of State, Secretary General of the Presidency of the Republic, Pascal Irénée Koupaki said ‘the government has banned the export of raw cashew nut by land’.

In addition to this measure, a levy of 50 FCFA /kg will be charged on raw cashew nuts exported irrespective of the 10FCFA introduced by the Finance Law, Management 2017.

The Minister of State and Secretary General of the Presidency of the Republic, Pascal Irénée Koupaki, informed that this levy is deducted at the customs before any export is done.

ACA will hold talks with the Benin government, to review impact on its members, especially after Cote d’Ivoire reforms its policy on RCN exports by road. The upcoming ACA conference in Benin (September 18 – 22) will be a perfect platform for deliberations on such regulations.

Source:http://www.africancashewalliance.com

Côte d'Ivoire: 20 000 tonnes of cashew nuts will be processed by nationals in 2017 (Government)

Nearly 20 000 tonnes of cashew nuts will be processed in 2017 by the nationals in Côte d'Ivoire, the Ivorian government announced on Wednesday, which has adopted a mechanism to support these national processors in order to facilitate their access to Financing through the banking sector.

According to the Ivorian government spokesman Bruno Nabagné Koné, who was speaking on Wednesday at the end of a ministerial council chaired by the head of state Alassane Ouattara, a "mechanism to support domestic processors The cashew '' was adopted.

"A total of almost 20,000 tonnes of raw nuts could be processed during the 2017 crop year, compared with 3,550 tonnes in 2016," said Bruno Nabagné Koné, stressing that " To make it possible to substantially increase the production and processing of cashew nuts in our country during this year 2017 ''.

The objective is to facilitate access to raw materials (cashew nuts) to domestic processors, in particular through financing involving the banking sector as part of the government's efforts to accelerate the processing of cashew nuts.

"This mechanism consists mainly of mobilizing part of the resources of the Cotton and Cashew Council Council in the form of an advance for the acquisition of an initial cashew stock for the benefit of local processors during the campaign 2017, "explained Mr Koné, also Minister of Communication, Digital Economy and Post.

It 'provides a guarantee mechanism for stock of raw nuts purchased through this mechanism. This is to ensure that the advances made by the Cotton and Cashew Council are secured, "the minister added.

This mechanism will allow beneficiary processors to build up a sufficient cashew nut stock to operate their plants throughout the year on the understanding that the entire campaign is relatively short (three to four months).

Côte d'Ivoire has become the world's largest producer of cashews before India in 2015 with more than 700,000 tons compared to 564,780 tons in 2014. The cashew nut sector has 250,000 producers in Côte d'Ivoire and employs more than one million Of people.

Source:fr.africatime.com

Almond board to spend $4.7 million for grower efficiency

The Almond Board of California is continuing an effort to show that growers are good environmental stewards by setting aside $4.7 million for research into irrigation efficiency, dust reduction and other innovations.

The board plans to fund 82 independently conducted studies into such ideas as improved irrigation systems and catch basins for harvest to reduce dust, said Bob Curtis, the board’s director of agricultural affairs.

Many of the grants will go to University of California scientists, who will research such topics as whole-orchard recycling, groundwater recharge in almond orchards and leaf monitoring to assess water stress.

“We’re upping our game, so to speak,” Curtis told the Capital Press. One key area is investment in irrigation efficiency, he said. About $1.3 million is going into irrigation management research.

“There’s a lot of new technology coming on line and we want to vet those and get them out to growers,” he said, adding that the new machinery would make growers more efficient while being easier to use.

The initiative is the latest effort at outreach by the increasingly image-conscious almond industry, which has sought in recent years to push back against criticism that growers use too much water and that California’s massive crop places too much stress on honeybee populations.

In late 2014, the board and bee experts developed a best-practices checklist for growers and beekeepers during bloom so that bees avoid contact with pesticides, and last summer the board hosted a workshop and released a video advising growers how to reduce dust during harvest.

The board has also been funding research into the concept of grinding up whole orchards and putting the biomass material back into the ground to improve the soil.

In 2015, the board set aside $2.5 million for research into water efficiency, honeybee health and best practices. Growers’ current efforts at water use efficiency were credited for a large crop last summer during a fifth straight year of drought.

Curtis said the “orchard of the future” could involve dropping almonds onto tarps during harvest, as is done with pistachios and prunes, thereby eliminating the need for sweepers that generate dust.

“There’s a lot of pieces to this puzzle, though,” Curtis said. “We’d have to develop the right tree canopy to do this. Obviously the very large trees that we have now are not amenable to having catch frames.”

Source:http://www.capitalpress.com

American pistachio industry on record-setting pace

The last two years was a tale of extremes for the American pistachio industry. What was by most accounts a “crop failure” in 2015 was followed in 2016 by production more than three times the amount and nearly twice the previous all-time record. Perhaps such a record – over 903 million pounds of pistachios were harvested in California, Arizona and New Mexico in late 2016 – is fitting for an industry organization celebrating its 10th anniversary, though it wasn’t just total production the American Pistachio Growers (APG) had cause to celebrate at its annual conference held in February in Palm Desert, Calif. While pistachio acreage is not reported in Arizona and New Mexico it's reported in California. Bearing acreage in California reached an all-time high in 2016 at more than 239,000 acres. Non-bearing acreage continues to range between 50,000 and 100,000 for the ninth consecutive year, a testament to the popularity of new plantings over the past decade.

New pistachio plantings in California have ebbed and flowed since 1997, according to APG records. California growers planted nearly 25,000 acres of pistachios in 2007 and again in 2013. Those 2007 plantings are now considered “bearing,” while the estimated 90,000 acres planted since 2010 remained “unbearing” as harvest got under way last September. Richard Matoian, executive director of the volunteer trade association, reported some other high-points at the industry’s annual convention. The estimated 250,000 bearing acres of pistachios across the three-state region is expected to rise well above 300,000 by 2021. By then, the industry expects its first-ever billion-pound harvest, which according to Matoian could come as early as 2018. Because of the alternate-bearing nature of pistachios, Matoian says the industry does not expect the 2017 harvest to come in as high as last year’s production, but should rebound the following year.

California pistachio growers also saw another high in 2016 as average yields exceeded 3,500 pounds per acre. This compares to about 1,000 pounds per acre growers averaged the previous year when total production failed to reach 300 million pounds. The phenomenal rise in pistachio production is being met with increased demand and a positive trend in grower prices. Pistachio shipments in the first five months of the marketing year, which begins Sept. 1 each year, climbed to over 80 million pounds domestically, while more than 230 million pounds were exported during the same period. At this rate, Matoian believes total shipments – domestic and international – could eclipse previous records, especially since the highest year on record for exports came in short of 300 million pounds in the 2012/2013 marketing year. Matoian believes total domestic shipments this year could top 170 million pounds seen in the 2012/2013 marketing year. On the international side, shipments to Hong Kong and China were already at 140 million pounds within the first five months of the marketing year.

“I know we will break records in total shipments this year,” Matoian says. Other records set this year includes total conference attendance, at just under 900 people. Matoian and board members were also boasting how the conference has been self-funded for two years running, meaning no grower assessment dollars paid for the conference. All conference activities were funded through registrations and corporate sponsorships. “Without our sponsors, we wouldn’t be able to put on the quality conference that we have,” Matoian says. “Being totally self-funded is an incredible achievement.”

Marketing

APG conducts non-branded marketing, only generic promotions, according to Judy Hirigoyen, vice president of global marketing. The generic marketing aims at convincing consumers to make American pistachios part of their diet regardless of company labels.

APG’s generic promotion activities includes nutrition research, educational programs targeted at health professionals and food professionals, consumer education and product sampling, and public relations.

Each year, the organization targets 75-80 percent of its budget to marketing, Matoian says. The organization also funds a portion of its promotions activities through grants, including Farm Bill Market Access Program funding.

Through the efforts of APG, Hirigoyen says domestic kernel shipments have grown 62 percent since 2010/2011. They now account for about 18 percent of total domestic shipments and more than 10 percent of total shipments.

Kernel shipments to APG target markets in the European Union, China, South Korea and the U.S. have grown 42 percent in the same period, she said. APG continues its ambassador programs that include promotions featuring Miss California and the USA Water Polo team. New this year to the line-up of celebrity ambassadors is Miss Arizona, who was introduced at the recent annual conference.

Nutrition

APG is using partnerships with publications like Men’s Health and nutrition research boasting the health benefits of a diet that includes pistachios to further sales as American farmers produce more pistachios.

Press conferences, events with noted chefs, retail promotions and other activities in China are helping to boost sales, according to Haiying Zhang, APG’s director of Asian markets. Fueling nut purchases in China is the country's growing diabetes crisis.

Press events in Europe have also worked well to market American pistachios, says APG Marketing Manager Rebecca Hall. APG has also leveraged positive press coverage through positive coverage on the CBS program “The Doctors.”

According to Hirigoyen, consumption trends in pistachios are 32 percent higher since 2008; beating almonds, peanuts and walnuts in rate of growth even though almonds and peanuts still have higher actual consumption when surveying U.S. adults.

Reevaluating the industry

Matoian gave conference-goers a brief look back at the first decade for the organization. Since 2008, APG grower membership has grown 97 percent to nearly 700. Budgets have also grown as more members came on board. The 2007 harvest season gave APG a budget of about $1.4 million. Today that budget tops $15 million. “As the industry has grown, so has the organization," Matoian says. In March, the APG board met to update the organization’s strategic plan which could possibly include new goals and vision for the growing trade association.

Source:http://www.westernfarmpress.com

Ivory Coast -cashew

Concrete efforts to professionalize the sector cashew in Ivory Coast

For ten days, the cashew industry players in Ivory Coast have been trained by the Council of cotton and cashew (CCA) to the concept of Farmer Business School (FBS). The training, which was held in Korhogo, in the north, which ended on Friday, hit 25 professional coaching and advice as well as a fifty producers.

Introduced in Ivory Coast in 2010 by the German cooperation, the FBS approach -or Agricole-business school aims to teach farmers in particular to plan their farming activities and expenditures, reports Sap. info .

The CCA intending professionalise the sector by all means and at all levels. Thus, in the Gontougo region northeast of the country,   the regional representative of the CCA, Sory Bamba, on Thursday called on cashew producers to demand receipts buyers after the sale of their products. " This will identify fraudsters to know the tonnage per producer per village, sub-prefecture, department and even by region. Based on these receipts, producers can receive certain benefits to the Council ," he said.

The region of Gontougo recorded a production of 83,000 t of cashews in 2016, reports AIP .

Source: http://www.commodafrica.com/03-04-2017-des-efforts-concrets-de-professionnalisation-de-la-filiere-cajou-en-cote-divoire

Cashew industry needs urgent revival

Cashew, one of the country’s foremost non-traditional exports, is facing plummeting fortunes after suffering long years of neglect, resulting in it recording a negative 17.5 percent growth in 2014.

The cashew industry, the African Cashew Alliance said, requires urgent attention to save it from imminent collapse, which would throw thousands of farmers and others whose livelihoods depends on the crop.

The Alliance, which promotes the production and processing of cashew, noted that the sector is in dire distress due to lack of favourable policies, sound credit rates, and inability of local production to match processing capacity.

“A lot of cashew processing factories have closed down. Out of the ten processing factories that were there up to the beginning of last year, only two of them are still operating,” said Ernest Mintah, interim Managing Director of the ACA.

Mr. Mintah made this appeal in Accra, at a forum for the Africa cashew sector, organised by ACA as part of a series of meetings to discuss issues affecting the sector.

As a result of the situation, thousands of people have also lost their jobs. A cashew processing factory with a 1,000metric ton capacity, typically employs about 300 hands, and it is understood that as many as close to 5,000 Ghanaians have been affected by the closure of the factories.

“So, imagine a factory that has about 30,000 metric tons capacity. A lot of these jobs have gone down the drain. So, the government should see it as an urgent issue,” he said.

Last year, he added, the government started some effort to regularise the industry by introducing policies, but these policies, he added: “were not well formulated.”

“It was also the case that there wasn’t sufficient consultation among the stakeholders of the sector before introducing the policies; and as a result, they had to withdraw this policy from operation.”

The Chief Director of Crop Services at the Ministry of Food and Agriculture, Seth Osei Akoto, who has been championing the course of cashew, also called for more efforts to support the development of the sector.

“There is the need for us, as a country, to do more so that we can have enough raw nuts to feed the processing factories that are collapsing,” he said.

He added: “We need to expand the production base, which of course, we can because we have a comparative advantage; we have mapped about 66 districts we can successfully implement cashew programmes all over. But there is a challenge and the challenge is that we are not putting in a lot of resources into the sector to enable us to expand production base.”

Other challenges facing the cashew industry, he added, include inadequate planting materials and lack of streamlining.

Source: http://www.ghanaweb.com/

Webster Limited expands Australian walnut production with 250ha addition

One of Australia’s biggest walnut producer, Webster Limited, has expanded its nut portfolio with another 250-hectare acquisition in southern NSW.

Webster, which has been beefing up its nut and broadacre irrigation operations in the Riverina for the past few years, paid $10 million cash for the “Motspur Park” orchard, to be topped up with a share allocation to the vendors worth about $13.1m. 

Webster produces about 90 per cent of Australia’s walnut crop from about 2000ha of orchards in Tasmania and NSW, with a further 900ha of young  Riverina plantings set to produce their first harvest next year.

After last financial year’s property expansion push and consolidation, including a writedown of about $96.6m in asset valuations, Webster recently posted a $4.1m after tax statutory net profit for the six months to December 31 –  rebounding from last year’s $97m loss. While sales revenue was down 6pc to $53.2m, the company reported a $5.4m profit from water entitlement sales.

Source: http://www.freshplaza.com

Burkina Faso: AfDB unlock 3.3 billion CFA francs to support the cashew sector

The African Development Bank will release an envelope consisting of a loan and a grant, a total of about 3.3 billion CFA francs to support project financing for the development of cashew in the Comoé Basin as well as reducing emissions from deforestation and forest  degradation (PADA / REDD-plus). The agreement on the financing was signed last Friday by Antoinette Batumubwira, resident representative of ADB, Burkina Faso, and Hadizatou Rosine Coulibaly (pictured), the Burkinabe Minister of Finance. Over a period of 5 years, the project mainly aims to contribute to poverty reduction in rural areas, to reducing greenhouse gas emissions based on carbon storage capacity of cashew . It concerns the Cascades, Hauts-Bassins and South-West of Burkina Faso, located in the basin of the Comoé. Its total cost is about 6.4 billion CFA francs. To recall, the ADB is not his first support Burkinabe cashew sector. The financial institution had already approved in February, a loan and a grant totaling $ 5.4 million under the PADA / REDD-plus.

Source: http://www.agenceecofin.com/aide-au-developpement/2703-46060-burkina-faso-la-bad-debloquera-3-3-milliards-de-fcfa-en-appui-a-la-filiere-anacarde

Cashew farmers target $650m annual income

CASHEW farmers in Nigeria are working on a four-year plan to earn $650 million annual income from export of the commodity. The country earned $253 million income from cashew exports in 2015. In order to achieve their target, the farmers intend to cultivate more land with a view to boosting exports to about 500,000 metric tons a year to raise annual earnings to $650 million.

Tola Faseru, President of the Nigerian Cashew Association, told Bloomberg in an interview, that with about 160,000 hectares (395,000 acres) of land producing about 150,000 tons a year, farmers are seeking to bring an additional 340,000 hectares into cultivation to achieve industry targets. This, according to him, should raise annual export income from the product to at least $650 million from the $253 million earned in 2015.

Nigeria exports more than 80 percent of its cashew output, mostly as raw kernels, with about 60 percent of last year’s shipments going to Vietnam, according to the cashew association. “Virtually all the states in the country have the potential to grow cashew. Our sights are even beyond the 2020 target” as they seek to make cashew one of the country’s biggest exports,” Faseru said. Cashew is among 13 products identified by the Buhari administration under its national strategic plan to expand agricultural export income and end economic woes that made 2016 the first year of growth contraction since 1991 following the collapse of the price of oil, the country’s main export.

Nigeria is Africa’s sixth-biggest producer, ranked behind Ivory Coast, Tanzania, Burkina Faso, Ghana and Mozambique, according to the association. An output of 500,000 tons would make Nigeria Africa’s second-biggest producer. Global demand for cashew nuts has surged 53 percent since 2010, outstripping production in at least four of the past seven years, according to the Reus, Spain-based International Nut and Dried Fruit Council. India is the leading producer with 1.73 million tons of kernels in the 2015-16 season, followed by Ivory Coast with 1.7 million tons and Vietnam with 1.1 million tons as global production rose 3 percent from previous season to 7.4 million tons, according to the council.

Source: http://www.vanguardngr.com

Africa Cashew Alliance says cashew holds Ghana’s future

Mr Sunil Dahiya, Chief Business Officer of the Africa Cashew Alliance (ACA), says Ghana must look into strengthening its cashew industry to replace cocoa as the effects of climate change advances in the future. He said climate effects were so profound such that the planet would not be able to cool off in a few years even if activities that contribute to climate change were stopped. Mr Dahiya said climate change should be a red alert for governments who relied on cocoa production, as it would not be able to thrive in increased temperatures. It is, therefore, important for Ghana, and Africa, to look at alternative crops that would be better able to thrive in the environment that will result from increasing effects of climate change such as cashews and start creating awareness.

Speaking at a Cashew Stakeholders’ Forum organised by the African Cashew Alliance and hosted by the Ministry of Food and Agriculture, Mr Dahiya said the cashew sector held tremendous potential for foreign exchange earnings, as well as job creation for Africa through value addition and needed to be prioritised by governments in Africa, including Ghana. Mr Dahiya noted that a reduction in the export of raw cashew would contribute to reducing the carbon foot-print in Africa by 200 per cent since cashews would no longer have to be sent via air or freight to India or Brazil for processing, causing pollution. He said although Africa currently produced about 55 per cent of the world crop of cashew nuts, with the rest coming from India, Brazil and Vietnam, among others. Ghana’s cashew industry has great demand for raw materials but production was not high enough to meet the growing local and external demand.

Although data on production numbers in Ghana are conflicting, it is currently below 60,000 tonnes per annum. “It is certainly a matter of prioritisation, in terms of what comes first,” he said. Mr Dahiya said although production needed to be increased, value addition was the way to go as export of value added products would earn the country more income than export of raw materials. He said out of the 12 cashew processing factories that were installed in Ghana currently, only two were functioning due to the difficult business environment in the country. “Only the international ones with cheap financing from outside are able to operate to full capacity but the locals are really struggling to continue and if they continue they will make losses so they have decided to put it on hold till the environment improves.”

Mr Dayiha said while previous governments had done well to attract some investment into the sector for the establishment of the factories, it was not enough. There was the need for reasonably priced utilities like electricity, prioritised access to the raw materials by processors and trained personnel for the factories. “There is no one solution, there is a parallel solution to get the ultimate solution. Government first have to start providing attention to the sector, with true political will. The also increase production and find ways of improving value addition,” he stated.

The forum, which included participants involved in production, marketing, processing and export of cashew, was to develop a 10-year vision for the sector covering 2017 to 2027. Key elements for the vision, suggested by the stakeholders included value addition, diversified markets, increased production and processing, government engagement, training, sustainability and improved competitiveness of African Cashews among others.  Mr Ernest Mintah, Managing Director of ACA said the vision, when finalised, would help align stakeholders’ objectives and efforts as well as clarify their roles in the attainment of the vision in order to accelerate the growth of the sector.

Source:http://www.ghananewsagency.org/