Tamil Nadu’s cashew farmers on cloud nine

In celebration of World Cashew Day on November 23, Emirates revealed how its banking on India’s $900 mn cashew export industry to deliver the perfect inflight snack, and the economic potential for producers and suppliers of Indian cashew.

According to the Cashew Export Promotion Council of India’s (CEPCI), 63rd annual report 2017, in Tamil Nadu, total area under cashew cultivation was 1,41,580 hectares with an annual production of 71,030 tonnes. Perambalur district occupies the highest area under cashew followed by Cuddalore and Pudukkottai districts. These three districts account for 63% of the total area under cashew in Tamil Nadu.

A statement issued by Emirates, the airline prepares masala cashews (sourced from Tamil Nadu) in an Indian style. The snack for the first class and business class passengers needs to be non-greasy and non-sticky. Annually, Emirates serves around 33 tonnes of masala cashews around its global network, and 125 tonnes mixed nuts of which cashew is a key ingredient, besides almonds, pistachios and macadamia. This is excluding the cashews the airline buys to include in its regional and international dishes – like Pongal, Shahi Paneer, Butter Chicken, Kaju Badam Diya Macher, Murgh Korma.

As the largest cashew producer in the world India exports over 80,000 tonnes of cashew kernels, valued at more than $900 mn annually. Around 22% of this revenue comes from cashew exports to the UAE, where Emirates is based. In 2017-18, UAE imported 21% of India’s total cashew exports and became the largest importer of the nut.