<p>AN OLD adage, ‘once beaten, twice shy’, seems to be ringing loud in the minds of the old- timers in the cashew nut industry in Western Province. The seasoned cashew nut growers who include Gorebrown Kashumba and Kopano Maswenyeho, both octogenarians, do not want to leave any stone unturned, especially with the support from Government through the US$55.4 million Cashew Infrastructure Development Project (CIDP) in the offing. </p><p>The duo, who planted close to 10,000 cashew nut trees apiece in the 1980s, own huge commercial plantations across Mongu. However, this time they want to do things differently to avoid a repeat of the 1990s scenario when the cashew nut industry collapsed after the Zambia Cashew Company (ZCC) withdrew support to the farmers.</p> With past experiences still lingering in their minds, the duo, who are members of the Cashew Growers Association of Zambia (CGAZ), have been advocating for the formation of a cashew nut cooperative movement that will spearhead the smooth running of the industry after the CIDP comes to a close in 2020. <br><p></p>