When cashew factories across the State downed their shutters on March 24, they had inside tonnes of raw material at various stages of processing. Already 18 days into the lockdown with very little time left to salvage the stock, many processors are bracing for yet another downward spiral that will leave the sector in total chaos.
“Each day is costing us lakhs of rupees and if we are not able to reopen soon it will mean the end of the road for many. Unlike other sectors, this is an ailing industry and we have been facing crises after crises for several years. If we manage to solve an issue, another one pops up almost instantly. COVID-19 and lockdown happened at a time when we had regained some hope due to various factors including government intervention and now we are back to square one,” says a processor.
Many processors have heavily invested for the new season, paying huge advance amounts to many African countries for procuring raw cashew nut (RCN). Since the industry has come to a standstill with even the domestic market going through a dull phase, they feel an immediate intervention is essential.
ADVERTISEMENT
Usually a factory will have several tonnes of the product at a time in various sections that include shelling, peeling and grading. It takes eight to 12 days to complete processing and mostly they are released to the market the same week without any delay.
“The workers had to leave them halfway when the lockdown was announced. If we don’t finish processing and packing them in airtight containers, the entire stock will be damaged,” the processor said.
ADVERTISEMENT
Even a slight change in colour will move the nuts to a lower grade and if they are kept half-done for several days chances are higher for them to go stale.
Mould and insects
“Mould will start growing on them or they will get infested with insects. Over 200 factories are currently functioning in Kerala and the loss will be over ₹300 crore. We want to restart operations with at least half our employees to stay afloat,” says Nizamudeen I., president, Federation of Cashew Processors and Exporters.
The cashew sector is also looking forward to a dip in exports due to the imminent economic recession and the processors are also demanding an extension of the moratorium for the repayment of loans for a period of 12 months.