Cashew nuts prices have remained stable at Palasa here despite a steep fall in production.
Attributing this to the availability of imported nuts in plenty, Malla Srinivasa Rao, President, Palasa Cashew Manufacturers Association, said production was hit by bad weather and dropped by more than 50 per cent in the current season.
New crop has started coming to the market from April 1. However, this time the market is seeing just 3-4 bags (each bag contains 80 kg) per acre as against the usual 10-12 bags per acre.
The prices since the beginning of the season remained at around Rs 75 per kg as against the peak of Rs 105 per kg during last season, he added.
Imported nuts, which have arrived here in plenty, are available at less than Rs 60 per kg.
There are about 200 processing units at Pasala and Kasibugga, and these require about 50,000 tonne nuts per year. Last season, processing units imported nearly 1,500 containers (each container carries 17 tonnes) of cashew nuts.
“During last season on some days we imported nuts at $1,300-1,400 per tonne. Now, the prices have plunged to $850-1,000 per tonnes, a reason why in spite of a sharp fall in production, local cashew nuts prices are not picking up,” he stated.