Industry Interface Meeting on Value Addition of Cashew Apple Organised at ICAR–DCR, Puttur
Cashew apple is a nutritionally rich, economically valuable, and environmentally important resource. The country produces around 60 lakh tonnes of cashew apple annually, yet only about one percent of the production is utilized for value addition. At present, Goa is the only state in the country that utilizes cashew apple on a commercial scale for the production of feni. Although efforts are underway in different parts of the country to develop beverages and other products from cashew apple, these initiatives remain limited and have not received widespread attention.
Recognising the potential of this underutilised fruit, the ICAR–Directorate of Cashew Research (ICAR-DCR), Puttur has developed several value-added technologies and products from cashew apple. However, the large-scale adoption and commercialisation of these technologies depend greatly on industry participation and market acceptance. In this context, an Industry Interface Meeting on Value Addition of Cashew Apple was organised at ICAR-DCR, Puttur with the objective of creating a platform for meaningful interaction among scientists, industry representatives, entrepreneurs, and other stakeholders in the cashew sector.
The meeting commenced with the welcome address and programme briefing by Dr. Mohana G. S., Principal Scientist (Genetics and Cytogenetics), ICAR-DCR, Puttur. The programme was chaired by Dr. J. Dinakara Adiga, Director, ICAR-DCR, Puttur, in the presence of Dr. Selvarajan, Director, ICAR-National Research Centre for Banana, and Shri Shree Padre, Executive Director, Adike Patrike.
In his inaugural remarks, Dr. Selvarajan appreciated the efforts of the Directorate in promoting the utilisation of this underexploited fruit and shared his experiences on how such interface meetings can help accelerate technology commercialisation and strengthen linkages between research and industry. Shri Shree Padre encouraged industry representatives to actively participate in the organoleptic evaluation and provide constructive feedback to scientists for technology refinement and improved consumer acceptance.
As part of the programme, an organoleptic evaluation of cashew apple-based products was conducted. Five products developed by Dr. Jyoti Nishad, Scientist (Food Technology), ICAR-DCR, Puttur were presented to the participants. These included clarified fresh cashew apple juice, clarified pasteurised cashew apple juice, Zingy Cashlime RTS, Zingy Cashlime Fizz, and cashew apple liquid sweetener. All the products received positive feedback from the participants, with cashew apple liquid sweetener and Cashlime RTS receiving the highest preference.
During the interaction session, participants raised several important points regarding enhancing shelf life of the products, financial support mechanisms for production and marketing, and the need for training programmes for entrepreneurs and industry stakeholders.
The organoleptic evaluation was followed by a technical session on cashew apple utilisation and value addition delivered by Dr. Jyoti Nishad. This was followed by a lecture on the procedure for technology commercialisation by Dr. V. Thondaiman, Scientist-in-charge, Institute Technology Management Unit (ITMU), ICAR-DCR, Puttur.
The interface meeting witnessed enthusiastic participation from 32 industry experts and prospective entrepreneurs from Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, and Kerala, while 22 participants joined the programme online. The programme concluded with a vote of thanks proposed by Dr. Aswathy Chandrakumar, Scientist (Agricultural Extension), ICAR-DCR, Puttur.