<p></p><p>As part of efforts to transform and empower the older generation of cash crop farmers and attract the youth, a capacity building workshop for about 50 cashew growers and processors drawn from 10 states was conducted by Kabba College of Agriculture, Kabba, Kogi State, in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Agriculture from April 22 to 24.</p> <p><b>ADVERTISEMENT</b> </p><p>According to the provost of the college, Dr Akin Oloniruha, participants were exposed to theoretical and practical knowledge in cashew production and processing, with emphasis on skills acquisition. Participants were expected at the end of the workshop to be able to do better what they had been doing before and at the same time share their knowledge with their colleagues who were not privileged to be at the workshop. </p><p>The Minister of Agriculture, Dr Akinwumi Adesina, represented at the workshop by the Director of Agriculture in the ministry, Dr T.J. Odeyemi, said the programme was organised under the Agricultural Transformation Agenda (ATA) by the Cashew Value Chain unit of the Federal Department of Agriculture. The training was borne out of the need for the government to create awareness and improve the technical know-how of cashew farmers, processors and marketers on good agricultural practices to increase productivity and ensure quality of products for local and international markets. </p><p>Mrs Omolola Etukudo, a resource person at the training, while delivering a lecture on ‘Harvest and post-harvest handling of raw cashew nuts,’ said consuming 30 grammes of cashew nuts per day can improve longevity, “as it reduces the risk of heart disease and heart attack, the risk of stroke, the risk of diabetes and the risk of muscle degeneration.” </p><p>She told the participants that before harvesting cashew nuts, “it is important to weed the area under the trees ahead of harvesting. This would facilitate the picking of fruits (apples and nuts),” saying that farmers should allow fruits to drop to the ground before picking. “Collect fruits at least every three days. In hotter areas (northern parts) of the country, collect fruits daily,” she added. </p><p>Grading for exports required nut count and out-turn tests, she informed, saying in the nut count test, “nuts are selected randomly from the bags and are placed on a scale until the scale reads 1 kilogramme (KG). Then the number of nuts is counted. With smaller nuts, it will take more nuts to add up to a kilogramme. The larger the nuts, the fewer the nuts it takes to make 1 KG. The out-turn test describes how much of the kernel inside of the shell is good quality. The procedure for the out-turn test requires that the nuts be cut, open, and the inside kernel analysed.” </p><p>Processors and participants were trained to store well-dried nuts in jute sacks, stitch the sacks tightly to avoid spillage, place the jute sacks on wooden pallets in a dry, well-ventilated leak-proof room, and leave a clearance of at least 0.5m between the packed jute sacks and the roof, as well as between sacks and walls of the storage room to allow air to circulate freely. They were also trained to sell nuts within the same year of harvest to prevent loss in quality and quantity. </p><p>Ocholi Ogbadu of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), while speaking on ‘Acceptable standards on processing of cashew into juice, jam and edible alcohol,’ said a manufacturer who intended to register a food or related product in Nigeria would first have the factory inspected by the Establishment Inspection Directorate of NAFDAC and be assigned a Certificate of Recognition as a manufacturer before an application to register the product could be made. </p><p>“This is very crucial to the success of the business. It is necessary to invite NAFDAC officials for special inspection (formerly Advisory Inspection). Their input will assist you in setting up proper production flow, factory layout size, etc. Inspection is necessary before installation to avoid reversing already installed system,” Ogbadu said. </p><p>Participants were trained on how cashew fruit could be made suitable for consumption by removing the undesirable tannins and processing the apples into value-added products, such as juice, syrups, canned fruits, pickles, jams, chutneys, candy and toffee. The recommended methods for removing the astringent properties of the cashew apple include steaming the fruit for five minutes before washing it in cold water, boiling the fruit in salt water for five minutes, or adding gelatin solution to the expressed juice. </p><p> </p><br><p></p><br>