Srikakulam: Cashew units slip into crisis

Srikakulam: Cashew processing unit are in deep financial crisis due to fall in prices. Around 430 cashew processing units are there in the district. The owners of the units are procuring raw nuts from local cashew farmers.

But, due to adverse climatic conditions yields reduced in the district and to run the units the owners are importing raw nuts from other countries like Ghana, Ivory Coast, Tanzania, Sri Lanka and Nigeria. Before importing the raw nuts, price of cashew was Rs 800 per kg.

In addition, traders from Vietnam country are not procuring cashew from Srikakulam. Previously, huge demand was witnessed from the Vietnam for cashew. In this back drop, owners of the cashew processing units are losing their earning.

"We were expecting good price and sufficient demand from Vietnam for our cashew this year too and imported raw nuts from foreign countries to produce through processing, but market conditions tilted totally and unable to earn even invested," said M Suresh Kumar and M Rameswara Rao owners of cashew manufacturing units at Palasa.