Farmers to benefit as state revives cashew nut sector

CHARI SUCHE-KNA

The Government has intensified efforts to revive the cashew nut sub-sector, with a focus on increasing production, enhancing value addition, and improving farmers’ incomes in key growing regions.

Principal Secretary for Agriculture Dr Paul Ronoh speaking during a national cashew conference in Kwale, emphasized that food security remains central to the government’s agenda and is critical to both economic stability and national security.

“Food security is a serious security issue. If there is no food, there is no peace. That is why this administration has placed agriculture at the center of its priorities,” said Dr Ronoh.

He noted that the cashew nut sub-sector, once a strong performer in the 1970s, has declined sharply, with production now standing at about 9,000 metric tons annually despite supporting more than one million households across 15 counties. 

“We are not here for theories. We are here for action and what works. The recommendations from this conference must translate into real change for farmers on the ground,” he added.

As part of the recovery plan, the government through the Agriculture and Food Authority (AFA) will distribute two million improved cashew seedlings across coastal, Eastern, and Western regions, targeting production of over one million metric tons within five years, an intervention expected to grow the sector’s value from Sh520 million to about Sh60 billion.

Dr Ronoh also urged farmers to adopt early-maturing varieties.

“Why invest in trees that take five to six years to mature and give low yields, when new varieties can produce within two years? We must move to what works,” he said.