with about 2.32 lakh MT productions in Goa. Significance of cashew apples in Indian Subcontinent In India, total cashew apple production was approximately 56 lakh MT. Countries like India, Nigeria, and Brazil are the most significant producers. The world production of cashew nuts reached 4.89 million tons in 2016, with Vietnam being the largest producer of nuts. 3 The major revenue earner from the cashew faming is cashew nut, as they are majorly exported to United States, Europe, and some Asian countries. However, India, Brazil and a few other East African countries have been identified as the productive regions, where cashew cultivation is a primary occupation for a large section of farmers in the waste land zones. Now, it has spread across all the tropical countries. Significance of cashew apple Significance of cashew apples across the globe Cashew tree, a tropical tree native of Brazil, was later introduced to Asia and Africa by European explorers in the sixteenth century. Table (1): Chemical and nutritional composition of the cashew apple. The detailed chemical and nutritional composition of the cashew apple is presented in Table 1. However, presence of several compounds such as vitamin C, tannin, and polyphenol makes cashew apple rich in antioxidant properties. While cashew nuts have found their way in a number of Indian cuisines, cashew apples are not even in the list of most likeable fruits owing to their readily perishable nature, susceptibility for quick fermentation, and presence of some phenolic compounds that imparts moderate astringency. 1,2 Cashew, an essential commercial cash crop of India, is also considered as ‘Gold mine’ from the wastelands. Several studies reported that cashew apple has three to six folds more Vitamin C than orange and ten times more than that of pineapple. The tree yields a soft fibrous fruit that yields juice, which is highly nutritious and contains an enormous amount of fermentable sugars, minerals, and vitamins. Also, Feni production, which is the mainstay of India’s current cashew processing industry, requires major up-gradation in processing methods to improve its quality, marketability, and export potential.Ĭashew ( Anacardium occidentale L.) tree belongs to the family Anacardiaceae, which is native of Northeastern Brazil. Based on the literature survey and from the gathered knowledge on cashew industries through visits to various cashew farming sites, it is strongly emphasized that a radical improvement in cashew farming is possible only through the adoption of holistic approaches in the cultivation and proper utilization of wastes and its management of cashew apples. Furthermore, a case on the existing Feni-making practices in Goa, India is reviewed, and the need for upgrades in the processing methods for waste mitigation is emphasized. The immense potential of cashew apples and pulp wastes generated after juice-extraction in producing a range of products through the fermentation process such as bioethanol, hydrolytic enzymes, lactic acid, biosurfactants, wine and Feni (an alcoholic beverage) is discussed. The current review highlights the commercial potential of cashew apples by proposing value-addition strategies through microbial fermentation routes that can help garnering additional profit to the growers. Cashew farming- considered as one of the major profit-making agricultural businesses- requires renewed practices in processing its products and by-products for sustained growth.
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