Cashew (Anacardium occidentale) is an important industrial and export crop whose potential is yet to be fully exploited in Nigeria. Cashew has for many years been used for food and income generation. The trees are usually grown for their kernels which when roasted have a very pleasant taste. Cashew is the common name for a tropical and subtropical evergreen tree, Anacardium occidentale L., in the flowering plant family Anacardiaceae.

It is also the name for the commercially important kidney-shaped, nut like seed of this plant, which is edible when roasted or cooked (New World Encyclopaedia, 2008). The plant is a native of Tropical Central and South America, notably North Eastern Brazil, from where the Portuguese explorers introduced it into Nigeria in the 15th/16th century.

Nigeria, having a total area of 100,000ha cashew plantation and an average annual production of 80,000MT contributes almost 16% of the total production of the agro-ecological zone. Its production is 5% of the global situation. During the last three years, Nigeria has been one of the leading suppliers of raw cashew nuts exported to India. Nearly 18,000 to 23,000MT of raw nuts per annum have been exported earning about N 23 billion annually.

The cashew apple, also called cashew fruit, is the fleshy part of the cashew fruit that is attached to the cashew nut. The top end of the cashew apple is attached to the stem that comes off the tree. The bottom end of the cashew apple attaches to the cashew nut, which is encased in a shell. In botanical terms, the cashew apple is an accessory fruit that grows on the cashew seed (which is the nut).

The cashew apple is a soft fruit, rich in nutrients, and contains five times more vitamin C than an orange. It is eaten fresh, cooked in curries, or fermented into vinegar, as well as an alcoholic drink. It is also used to make preserves, chutneys, and jams in some countries such as India and Brazil.

The fruit juice segment is of great importance and the cashew apple juice presents a great potential for both national and international juice market.

Available statistics in Nigeria indicates that the cashew apple fruit is not fully utilized.

For a long time it has been disposed of and left to rot or fed to livestock after harvesting the cashew nut although recent developments have captured its utilization in the manufacture of juice and drinks.

The cashew apple ‘fruit’ is highly perishable. Various species of yeast and fungi cause spoilage after the first day at room temperature.

The fruit has a high content of ascorbic acid which justifies its nutritive value.

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RAW CASHEW NUTS EXPORT IN NIGERIA; THE FEASIBILITY REPORT.
CASHEW KERNEL PRODUCTION AND EXPORT IN NIGERIA; THE FEASIBILITY REPORT.

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