<p></p><p>There is an indication that Nigerian cashew exporters would lose N44.3 billion ($122million) this year from its projected N196.38 billion ($542.5 million) in the Asian market if the outbreak of coronavirus is not contained. Nigeria had projected producing 350,000 metric tonnes of the nuts in 2020 season but finding revealed that the price of the nuts has dropped from $1,550 per tonne to $1,200 per tonne in the last few weeks. Nigeria, a member of the International Consultative Cashew Council (ICCC), is the fourth largest producer of cashew in the world and its major trading partners are the African Cashew Alliance (ACA), Vietnam Cashew Association and Cashew Export Promotion Council of India (CEPCI). However, Vietnam has reduced processing capacity following the coronavirus outbreak in China, which has led to its absence from Ivory Coast, Benin, Nigeria and Ghana rawcashew nuts markets. The President of the Karnataka Cashew Manufacturers’ Association, Subraya Pai, said that with Vietnam bringing down prices, there was larger disparity in the internationalmarket. In 2017, the National Cashew Association of Nigeria (NCAN) said that farmers in the country earned N123 billion ($402 million) from the export of the nut.</p> <p>It added that between 2015 and 2017, exporters in the country earned N284.5billion ($813.05million) in foreign exchange from the exportation of cashew. This year, farmers in the country has expressed optimism that cashew production wouldbe about 350,000tonnes before the outbreak of the disease. According to the Chief Executive Officer, Seacos Nigeria Limited, Ojo Ajanaku, “We expect a favourable price this year and we are optimistic that farmers will earn morefrom cashew this year.” He explained that farmers were very optimistic that 2020 crop production would surpass that of this year as many new trees would start producing coupled with the early fruiting of most trees in key producing states. In 2019,the delay in cargoes processing affected exporters’ 260,000 tonnes of cashew at the nation seaports.</p> <p>It was gathered that the shipments of 50,000 tonnes of the processed nuts for Vietnamese markets were trapped at Lagos Port due to inefficiency in April, 2019 as some containerised nuts, which arrived the seaports for export in the first quarter of the year, were delayed by Nigeria Customs Service (NSC) and other security agencies. Other challenges facing the exporters include lack of machine and equipment, poor handling, pilferage and defective packaging of the nuts.</p> <p>It was learnt that poor and defective export packaging processes made the country to belosing N177billion ($491.6million) annually. Worried by the challenges, the President of Nigeria Cashew Exporters Association (NCEA), Mr. Tola Fasheru, explained that the roads to Lagos ports were partly responsible for the challenges faced by exporters in early part of 2019.He noted that stifling red tape, lack of synergy among the port operators and corruptionn hampered export processes. Fasheru lamented that some cashew exporters had defaulted to supply foreign buyers because of the challenges. He said: “They are no longer willing to give us fresh contracts. The delay is likely to affect the output target of 260,000 tonnes for the current season.”</p><br><p></p>