Farmers say falling farmgate prices are pushing them to quit, while processors struggle to compete with foreign buyers for raw nuts
The President of the Association of Cashew Processors Ghana (ACPG), Mr. Caramelo Raposo, has called on government to show stronger commitment to protecting local processors, as the sector faces falling farmgate prices and a heavy reliance on raw cashew exports.
“The government needs to support the processors and farmers in the value chain with capital and laws which can boost local production and processing,” he told the media.
Ghana produces an estimated 260,000 metric tons of cashew a year, but about 95 percent of the raw nuts are exported. That leaves little for local value addition, and farmers say the returns no longer justify the investment.
Farmers say they are demoralised
From Tuobodom in the Bono East Region to Sampa in the Bono Region, large tracts of land have been converted to cashew cultivation. Many farmers now say they have little motivation to continue.
Agyarko Kofi Hayford, who has grown cashew at Kanapor, near Tuobodom, for over ten years, told this reporter he wants to quit despite his heavy investment.
“If I am analyzing the farmgate price now, then I would say it has dropped drastically compared to last year. Some of the farmers have even stopped harvesting; we are demoralized,” he said. “At first the farmgate price was 20 cedis per kilo, now it is 5 cedis. Some are even going as low as 3 cedis.”
Antwi Joyce, who has been in the business for 11 years, shares his frustration. “This is a family business; we have been cultivating cashew for the past eleven years. This year has been bad. I have no interest in continuing the farm,” she said.
Processors lose out to foreign buyers
Local processors say the trouble runs through the whole chain. Raw cashew is contested between local and foreign buyers, and the foreign buyers have the upper hand.
“The farmers prefer to sell the raw cashew to buyers from neighboring Ivory Coast because they hold the purchasing power. What we get to process is like a surplus,” said Portia, a cashew processor in Sampa.
Stakeholders meet in Accra
These concerns were tabled at a stakeholder roundtable in Accra on the theme “Building a Competitive and Sustainable Cashew Value Chain Together.” It was convened by the ACPG and the Cashew Council Ghana (CCG), with support from GIZ and other European funding partners.
Participants included government institutions, processors, farmers, exporters, development partners, financial institutions and researchers.
The main objective was to address the export of raw cashew without adequate local value addition. Organisers say this limits the industry’s ability to create jobs, raise incomes, promote industrialisation and keep more economic value in Ghana.
Government considers export levy
The Chief Executive Officer of the Tree Crops Development Authority, Dr Andy Osei Okrah, said his office is pushing for policy support for local processors.
“We are pushing for a raw cashew export levy to enable us support local processors and also control the export of raw cashew,” he said.
The roundtable also gave industry players a platform to explore approaches to financing, technology adoption, market access, raw material supply, sustainability and traceability, as well as ways to strengthen Ghana’s position in the global cashew market.
