The story
Cashew came to the Konkan with the Portuguese and grows well on the laterite hills of Sindhudurg with little irrigation. The Regional Fruit Research Station at Vengurla developed the 'Vengurla' cashew varieties that are now planted across India. Small processing units in Vengurla, Sawantwadi and Kudal roast, shell, peel and grade the nuts for local and outside markets.
In numbers
The Sindhudurg Cashew Cluster had 40 functional units, a turnover of Rs 80 crore and employment of 1,800; Coir and Kokum clusters were also under consideration.
Brief Industrial Profile of Sindhudurg District, MSME-DI (Ministry of MSME) · 2012
Ways in for a newcomer
- Mechanised shelling and peeling units to cut labour cost
- Flavoured and roasted cashew snacks for retail
- Cashew apple juice, feni and syrup
- CNSL extraction for paints and resins
Problems the cluster faces
- Dependence on imported raw nuts when local crop is short
- Competition from Kerala, Goa and imported kernels
- Seasonal labour
- Wild animal and weather damage to orchards
Businesses to start here
Cashew Nut Processing →Cashew Nut Shell Liquid (CNSL) →Cashew Apple Syrup →