Prices of cashew kernels are soaring in wholesale and retail markets.

Crop failure and trade embargoes in cashew-producing countries have deepened the crisis in the cashew sector as many processing units in Kerala are facing an acute shortage of raw material. While Ivory Coast, which contributes a major share of raw cashew nut (RCN), banned the export to promote domestic processing, countries like Benin too imposed restrictions on shipping RCN overseas. As a result, the prices of cashew kernels are soaring in wholesale and retail markets, generating uncertainty in the sector.