<p></p><p>The cashew industry has expressed displeasure over the Foreign Trade Policy 2015-20, which was announced by the Union Commerce Minister, Nirmala Sitharaman, in New Delhi on Wednesday. <br></p> <p>B Rahul Kamath, President of Karnataka Cashew Manufacturers’ Association (KCMA), said the Government has reduced incentives available to cashew exports under Chapter 3 of FTP from 5 per cent to 2 per cent. This overnight decrease in incentive scheme will affect the entire cashew industry very severely. <br></p> <h1>Export trade commitments</h1> <p>Stating that most of the export trade takes place three to six months in advance, he said: “We would have made export commitments factoring 5 per cent benefits under Chapter 3. Overnight reduction in incentives cannot be factored, and exporters stand to lose heavily on the export commitments made by them.” <br></p> <p>Stating that Vietnam has already cornered a major share in world cashew trade, he said China is also increasing its cashew processing base. The collapse of cashew industry will have a serious effect on the socio-economic condition of rural areas, he said.</p><p>Urging the Government to increase the benefits under MEIS (merchandise export from India scheme) for the export of cashew kernels to 5 per cent from 2 per cent, Kamath said this will go a long way in cherishing the ‘Make in India’ dream. “We will soon regain India’s past glory by being the world’s largest cashew exporter,” he said.<br></p><p></p>