Toscad News A cashew nut processing expert, Mr Pankaj Chawla, says aging trees remain the major challenge to cashew nut business, both for local consumption and export purposes in Nigeria.
Chawla, who is the Country Representative of Valency International Agro Limited, said this on Wednesday at a training for Wild Organic Cashew Nuts Farmers/Producers and Marketers for Export Intentions, in Enugu State, said that, most cashew trees in the country are between 30 and 40 years old, adding that most of them had been caught up with aging attributes and signs.
According to him, the yield of the cashew tree keeps decreasing today and that the quality and size of fruits and nuts keeps shrinking, adding that pests easily attack them due to aging attributes.
Chawla also stressed the need for cashew farming to be done in an organic form, devoid of chemicals, additive and impurity inputs, as this, would make for cashew produce (nut, apple and other extractive) to be fit for human consumption and get international trade certification easily.
The country representative said that, the company was in Nigeria to ensure continuous training for farmers to get the right planting system and right international result and certification.
Newsmen reports that, the two-day training has cashew farmers and those intending to go into cashew farming in the state.
Source:nannews.ng
Edited by: Ngozi Anna Akunne.
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