18-20 Feb 2016, Al Bustan Rotana, Dubai Delivered Quality Of Raw Cashew Nut ACA’s Quality Enhancement Initiatives Sunil Dahiya, Business Advisory Manager African Cashew Alliance 18-20th February, 2016

About African Cashew Alliance (ACA) 18-20 Feb 2016, Al Bustan Rotana, Dubai About African Cashew Alliance (ACA) Established in 2006, with the support of founders, i.e. USAID, Development Agencies and Private Sector An association of African and international businesses with an interest in promoting a globally competitive African cashew industry Representing all aspects of the cashew value chain including producers, processors, traders, and international buyers

Mission & Vision Statement 18-20 Feb 2016, Al Bustan Rotana, Dubai Mission & Vision Statement Vision: A globally competitive African cashew industry that benefits the value chain – from farmer to consumer. Mission: Support the African cashew industry by providing technical assistance and facilitating investments promoting market linkages and international standards creating a global platform for sharing information and best practices Objectives: Increase processing Improve competitiveness and sustainability Facilitate public-private cooperation

World Cashew Value-Chain Geography 18-20 Feb 2016, Al Bustan Rotana, Dubai World Cashew Value-Chain Geography Source: ACA Annual Report, 2014

Global Raw Cashew Nut Quality Situation 18-20 Feb 2016, Al Bustan Rotana, Dubai Global Raw Cashew Nut Quality Situation Outturn – lbs Weight Source: Industry Experts and players

Why RCN Quality is So Important? 18-20 Feb 2016, Al Bustan Rotana, Dubai Why RCN Quality is So Important? It is important to remember that the excellence and thoroughness of post harvest handling affects the quality of the product, which in turn affects the country's reputation for those products Product quality influences the demand for those products on the world market, which in turn positively affects the price based on the quality of raw cashew nuts Bottom-line: Better Quality Means “More Money” Source: Industry Experts and players

Markets Requires Quality RCN 18-20 Feb 2016, Al Bustan Rotana, Dubai Markets Requires Quality RCN Dried nuts with 8 – 10% moisture content Better nut-count and kidney shaped (>200 nuts/kg) Shell Color - gray, dark grey, greenish or brownish Healthy nuts - free from mould, etc. Free from foreign materials, i.e. stones, leaves, metal piece, etc. (max tolerance 0.5%) Matured nuts - maximum 15% defective are tolerable Packed and stored in Jute Bags 48 lbs and above Outturn is quality grade while >43 lbs quality is poor grade and usually rejected Source: ECOWAS RCN Specifications & Regulations, 2015

Quality Issues @ Farm Gate - Africa 18-20 Feb 2016, Al Bustan Rotana, Dubai Quality Issues @ Farm Gate - Africa Cashew not yet taken as ‘Transformation Commodity’ rather as a bush-crop Aged trees and seedlings of poor genetics resulting in poor yields (450-550kg/hect/season in Africa as against 1-1.7MT obtained in Vietnam, Brazil and India) Minimal literacy and efforts on quality, organic and advanced farming Less transparent price due to dependency on external final buyers Limited outreach to market information, pricing trends and experts advise Shrinking farmer’s encouragement initiatives; subsidized seedlings, fertilizers, pesticides, equipment and technical assistance Source: ACA Sectorial Assessment and Industry Report, 2015

18-20 Feb 2016, Al Bustan Rotana, Dubai Quality Quick Fixes Analyze and Improve the farm soil Use high yield planting materials Prompt irrigation with fertilizer usage Regular cleaning and pruning Chemical/Organic treatments for diseases Stop bush-firing for cleaning purposes Upgrade old cashew trees via ‘Top-Work’ technique Sun-Dry harvested nuts Practice Outturn testing prior to sales Source: ACA Annual Reports and USAID-TIME Report, 2015

Our RCN Quality Enhancement Initiatives 18-20 Feb 2016, Al Bustan Rotana, Dubai Our RCN Quality Enhancement Initiatives TIME (Towards Inclusive Markets Everywhere) - Donor Supported Project “Industry Alliances Working Together to Empower Poor Rural Women in the Cashew and Shea Sectors” Joint grant awarded to African Cashew Alliance, Global Shea Alliance, and Borderless Alliance Focus on improving product quality, increasing consumer awareness, and fostering market linkages in an effort to link rural women farmers to international value chains Project Life: 2015 – 2017 (3 Yrs.) Countries: Benin, Burkina Faso, Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana and Nigeria Expected Impact: Create 2,000 new jobs; impact 120,000 small-scale cashew and shea farmers; generate $3 million in additional income each year Source: USAID-TIME Report, 2015

Our RCN Quality Enhancement Initiatives 18-20 Feb 2016, Al Bustan Rotana, Dubai Our RCN Quality Enhancement Initiatives Farmers Trainings Initiative - Private Sector Project Project Description: The program seeks to building the capacities of farmers in Ghana and Kenya through trainings on good farming techniques and the facilitation of market linkages with local processors Project Life: 2015 – 2017 (3 Yrs.) Countries: Ghana and Kenya Implementing Partner: Self Help Africa Expected impact: Improved income security of 35,000 smallholder farmers Source: Walmart Farmers Training Annual Report, 2015

Our RCN Quality Enhancement Initiatives 18-20 Feb 2016, Al Bustan Rotana, Dubai Our RCN Quality Enhancement Initiatives 2010, trained national farmers association (1,500+ farmer members) and CNC Field Officers in GAP and PHP 2011-12, trained Gambian and Senegalese farmer association (1,000+ farmer members) via IRD – Gambia & Senegal in “Quality Enhancement Practices & Commercial farming” 2012, TANECU farmer’s union reps (300+ farmer cooperative members) trained in “Outturn Testing” via UNIDO’s 3ADI project in Tanzania 2015, Kogi State’s 20+ farmer groups trained via NCAN initiatives Since 2010 till date, 15+ assisted cashew processing companies Procurement Managers trained in “Procurement Management practices” Since 2011 till date, ACA Seal program supporting processors in quality and traceability practices Source: ACA Field Activities, 2010-2016

ACA’s Proposal to Quality Seekers & Partners 18-20 Feb 2016, Al Bustan Rotana, Dubai ACA’s Proposal to Quality Seekers & Partners Strengthened partnership with VINACAS, CEPCI and EMBRAPA for exporting RCN quality improvement as ‘African Quality facilitator’ Better cooperation with active donor programs across Africa Quality Improvement Advocacy initiatives with local governments ACA’s Seal program extension to African Cashew Farmers Online Assured Quality Market-Place establishment Transparent and accessible market information (prices, trends and news) Source: ACA Sectorial Assessment and Industry Report, 2015

18-20 Feb 2016, Al Bustan Rotana, Dubai THANK YOU! Contact Us: African Cashew Alliance Secretariat Sunil Dahiya sdahiya@africancashewalliance.com Jubilee House, 4th Street, Kuku Hill M +233 544 34 00 40 PMB 35A – Osu F +233 302 78 22 31 Accra, Ghana Find Us Online: www.africancashewalliance.com @AfricanCashew facebook.com/africancashewalliance