Skip to main navigation menu Skip to main content Skip to site footer
Plant Science Today (PST)

Research Articles

Vol. 12 No. sp4 (2025): Recent Advances in Agriculture by Young Minds - III

An economic analysis of production and marketing of cashew nuts in Kallakurichi district

DOI
https://doi.org/10.14719/pst.9781
Submitted
2 June 2025
Published
31-10-2025

Abstract

India is the second-largest producer of cashew nuts in the world and Tamil Nadu is one of the major producers and exporters of cashew nuts in India. Kallakurichi is one of the districts in Tamil Nadu, where cashew is being cultivated and processed. This study focuses on the production and marketing of cashews in the Kallakurichi district, where no studies have been conducted. For this study, 30 farmers, 5 local traders, 5 processors, 5 wholesalers, 5 retailers and 5 consumers were interviewed. This study involves the estimation of economic aspects of raw cashew nut production by studying the cost and returns from the crop per unit of land. Percentage analysis was carried out to examine the cost that contributes more to the total cost and, therefore, to make suggestions to reduce the cost. Market study involved tracing the marketing channels of cashew nut in the district and estimating the marketing aspects, such as marketing cost, market margin, price spread and marketing costs were computed for each channel to ascertain the channel that involves the least cost in comparison with others. VRI 3 variety is extensively cultivated in the area. The study shows that the annual variable cost is ₹47105.5 per acre in the study area, while net returns over variable costs are ₹15830.58 per acre. Analysis of profitability showed that NPV, BCR and IRR are ₹3542.89, 1.07 and 12.80 % respectively. Sensitivity analysis revealed that cashew cultivation is highly sensitive to fluctuations in costs. There are five marketing channels for marketing raw cashew nuts. Among the channels, Channel III (Farmer-Processor-Consumer) involves minimum cost and maximum efficiency in comparison with other channels. Constraints in production and marketing were also studied. Among the variable costs, the cost of harvesting was higher, which was because harvesting was the most labour-intensive process. The major constraint in production was uncertain weather, which led to fluctuations in yield and price.

References

  1. 1. Mitchell JD, Mori SA. The cashew and its relatives. New York: New York Botanical Garden. 1987.
  2. 2. Olife I, Jolaoso M, Onwualu A. Cashew processing for economic development in Nigeria. Agric J. 2013;8(1):45–50.
  3. 3. Directorate of cashew and cocoa development (DCCD). Cashew Statistics. Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Government of India. 2025. https://dccd.gov.in
  4. 4. Agricultural and processed food products export development authority (APEDA). Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India. 2024. https://apeda.gov.in/cashew
  5. 5. Department of Economics and Statistics (DES). Season and crop report, 2023–24. Government of Tamil Nadu. 2025. https://www.tn.gov.in/crop/stat.html
  6. 6. Acharya SS. Agricultural marketing in India. New Delhi: Oxford and IBH Publishing. 2004.
  7. 7. Venkattakumar R. Socio-economic impact of cashew cultivation in Cuddalore district of Tamil Nadu-An overview. Indian J Ext Educ. 2010;46(1–2):39–44. https://epubs.icar.org.in/index.php/IJEE/article/view/124499
  8. 8. Paul H, Ushadevi K. The trend in area, production, productivity of cashew nut in India with special reference to Kerala. Asian J Agric Ext Econ Sociol. 2022;40(3):1–8. https://doi.org/10.9734/AJAEES/2022/v40i330852
  9. 9. Sekar C, Karunakaran K. Economic analysis of cashew plantations under agroforestry conditions of central Tamil Nadu. J Trop For Sci. 1994;6(4):523–8.
  10. 10. Karthikeyan R, Sheela K, Kumutha B. Economic analysis of cashew cultivation in Tamil Nadu: A micro-level empirical study. Int J Multidiscip Res. 2023;5(5):1–11. https://doi.org/10.3648/iifjmr.2023.v05i05.7318
  11. 11. Agada M, Sule E, Etemayi M. Cashew nuts production and marketing among farmers in Ugwolawo district, Kogi State, Nigeria. Int J Res Stud Agric Sci. 2020;6(5):1–10. https://doi.org/10.20431/2454-6224.0605001
  12. 12. Rege A, Lee JSH. State-led agricultural subsidies drive monoculture cultivar cashew expansion in northern Western Ghats, India. PLoS One. 2022;17(6):e0269092. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0269092
  13. 13. Danso-Abbeam G, Amin KM, Ogundeji AA. Enhancing household welfare through perennial crop production in northern Ghana. Sustainability. 2022;15(1):451. https://doi.org/10.3390/su15010451
  14. 14. SC MC, Chandran R, Sahib PR, Achuthan K. Sustainable livelihoods through cashew cultivation: Insights from smallholder farmers in the southern region of India. Discov Sustain. 2024;5(1):340. https://doi.org/10.1007/s43621-024-00558-y
  15. 15. Mkubya R, Damas P, Mahoo H. Economic viability of system of rice intensification (SRI) technology in Morogoro region, Tanzania. Tanzan J Agric Sci. 2023;22(1):128–41.
  16. 16. Aryal B, Neupane S, Pandey B, Shah S, Tiwari A. Socio-economic analysis of vegetable seed production in Nepal. Agric Sci Technol. 2022;14(2). https://doi.org/10.15547/ast.2022.02.030
  17. 17. Boa H, Suwannathep S, Gunawan BI, Bunnag B. Assessing the impact of mangroves in traditional shrimp farming in the Mahakam Delta using a cost–benefit analysis. J Sustain Sci Manag. 2023;18(4):44–56. http://doi.org/10.46754/jssm.2023.04.004
  18. 18. Hiremath DB, Rudrapur S, Parmar T. Financial feasibility analysis of drip irrigation technology in banana: A case of south Gujarat. J Farm Sci. 2024;37(3):254–8.
  19. 19. Poudel S, Thapa R, Mishra B. A farmer-centric cost–benefit analysis of climate-smart agriculture in the Gandaki River Basin of Nepal. Climate. 2024;12(9):145. https://doi.org/10.3390/cli12090145
  20. 20. Zagonari F. Combining econometric, cost–benefit and financial methodologies in a framework to increase diffusion and to predict the feasibility and sustainability of irrigation schemes: A case study in Kurdistan, Iraq. Water. 2017;9(11):821. https://doi.org/10.3390/w9110821
  21. 21. Feukeng FT, Otieno DJ, Rajendran S, Demo P, Parker M. Return on investment of the International Potato Center–led seed system interventions in Malawi. Crop Sci. 2024;64(3):1328–39. https://doi.org/10.1002/csc2.21109
  22. 22. Golay S, Singh SB. Production and marketing of organic large cardamom in West district of Sikkim. Indian Res J Ext Educ. 2021;21(1):63–7. https://seea.org.in/irjee/view-content/production-and-marketing-of-organic-large-cardamom-in-west-district-of-sikkim
  23. 23. Parimalarangan R, Padmanaban N, Selvam S, editors. Supply chain analysis of raw cashew nuts in Tamil Nadu. Acta Hortic. 2015;1080:41–8. https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.2015.1080.6
  24. 24. Nag S, Gauraha A, Banafar K, Chandrakar M. Marketing pattern of cashew nut in Bastar district of Chhattisgarh: A case study. Pl Arch. 2018;18:638–40
  25. 25. Kaviraj GD, Kumar S, Kumar A. An economic analysis of cost, returns and profitability in production of cashew nut in South Goa district of Goa. Int J Environ Clim Change. 2023;13(9):2041–8. https://doi.org/10.9734/ijpss/2023/v35i183441
  26. 26. Lakshmi CS, Prema A. Resource-use efficiency in raw cashew nut production in Kerala, India. Asian J Agric Ext Econ Sociol. 2025;43(4):92–8. https://doi.org/10.9734/ajaees/2025/v43i42721
  27. 27. Rajkala A, Jansirani R, Arunachalam R. Study on marketing behaviour of the cashewnut farmers of Tamil Nadu. J Pharmacogn Phytochem. 2020;9(2):168–72. https://doi.org/10.20546/ijcmas.2020.905.288
  28. 28. Vinothkumar S. An economic analysis of production, processing and marketing of cashew in Pudukkottai district of Tamilnadu [thesis]. Coimbatore: Tamil Nadu Agricultural University; 2011. https://krishikosh.egranth.ac.in/server/api/core/bitstreams/a83dc9e7-0ff4-4306-b49e-de67e1cbc4ec/content
  29. 29. Aïhounton DGB, Yabi JA, Bachabi FX, Yegbemey RN, Kindemin AO, Labiyi IA. Socio-economic determinants of the economic profitability of cashew nuts marketing in north-eastern Benin: A case study of Tchaourou municipality. Int J Innov Sci Res. 2016;21(1):212–9.
  30. 30. Adejo P, Otitolaye J, Onuche U. Analysis of marketing channel and pricing system of cashewnuts in the north central of Nigeria. J Agric Sci. 2011;3(3):246. https://doi.org/10.5539/jas.v3n3p246
  31. 31. Mmbughu AE, Katundu MA, Mrimi MT. Leveraging co-operatives for community development: Insights from cashew farmers in Tanzania amid the negative impact of climate change. Discov Sustain. 2025;6(1):18. https://doi.org/10.1007/s43621-025-00962-y
  32. 32. Jagdale SU, Kadam JR, Sasidharan P, Phadte PV. Profile of cashewnut growers in Konkan region. Int J Agric Ext Soc Dev. 2024;7(11S):177–80. https://doi.org/10.33545/26180723.2024.v7.i11Sc.1382
  33. 33. Chandrakumar A, Singh P, Nishad J, Raviprasad T. Is cashewnut a hard nut to crack: Insights from the production scenario of raw cashewnuts in India. Int J Agric Ext Soc Dev. 2024;7(9):1–5. https://doi.org/10.33545/26180723.2024.v7.i9i.1115
  34. 34. Wongnaa CA, Frederick OT, Alhassan H, Akua OAN, Adu CND. The impact of use of climate information services on smallholder welfare: Evidence from the hub of cashew production in Ghana. Clim Serv. 2024;36:100525. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cliser.2024.100525
  35. 35. Dahal BR, Rijal S. Ginger value chain analysis: a case of smallholder ginger production and marketing in hills of central Nepal. Agric Sci Technol. 2020;12(1). https://doi.org/10.15547/ast.2020.01.006
  36. 36. Zalkuwi J. Economics analysis of rice marketing in Mubi North local government area of Adamawa State, Nigeria. Agric Sci Technol. 2019;11(4). https://doi.org/10.15547/ast.2019.04.061

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.