Currently, cashew is the most important cash crop in Guinea-Bissau. It accounts for more than 90% of all exports. It is also the main source of income in rural areas. More than half the population of Guinea-Bissau is estimated to work in cashew nut farming.
The economy of Guinea-Bissau relies heavily on cashew nut production. Exports of cashew nuts contribute about a quarter of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP). Selling of high-quality cashew nuts to processors, who are beyond the borders of the country, supports livelihoods of much of the population in Guinea-Bissau.
Harvesting cashew nuts is a crucial economic activity in Guinea-Bissau. Only a small amount of cashew is processed mainly for domestic consumption. The cashew apple is used to make juice or wine while the nut is roasted and de-shelled.
Guinea-Bissau Cashew
People in Guinea-Bissau who trade in cashew first buy the produce from farmers. They then sell it to exporters who ship raw cashew kernel to other countries for processing. Finally, cashew nuts grown in Guinea-Bissau can be found on supermarket shelves of countries of the West.
Cashew buyers in Guinea-Bissau can either be freelance or employed by a company. Actually, some of the freelance buyers act on behalf of buyers in urban areas. Unlike in the past where cashew was exchanged for rice in a barter system, the cashew nut market in Guinea-Bissau now depends more on currency.
Cashew nut farmers in Guinea-Bissau deliver their produce to a collection center near them. At the collection center, the raw cashew is weighed and stored and the farmers get paid. Afterwards, the crop is transported to a warehouse. At the warehouse, the raw cashew nuts are dried further, repackaged into newly bought sacks and loaded onto a truck for transportation to the port.
Cashew Price in Guinea-Bissau
Exports of cashew nuts from Guinea-Bissau were valued at just above 200 million US Dollars in 2022. Compared to the previous year, it is an increase of 42%. The sharpest climb was from 2021 to 2022 when the export value rose from about 150 million US Dollars to around 210 million US Dollars.
Here are the total values in export of cashew nuts from Guinea-Bissau between 2013 and 2022
Cashew Price per kg in Guinea-Bissau
The cost of a kilo of raw cashew nuts in Guinea-Bissau can be between 900 CFA Francs (US1.50 Dollars) and 1,200 CFA Francs (US2 Dollars). This is based on the average export price per kg. This wholesale price has gone as low as 600 CFA Francs (US1 Dollars).
Just like other countries, the WITS software records the Freight On Board (FOB) price of cashew nuts exports from Guinea-Bissau. Certainly, FOB price is different from farmgate price. FOB price includes:
- Basic price or value of commodity
- Transportation costs to the port of shipment
- Costs of loading onto ship or aircraft
- Export fees or taxes
- Intermediaries’ fees (if any)
Contrarily, farmgate price is the price paid directly to a farmer. Typically, it should cover the farmer’s costs and earn them profit. The farmgate price for cashew nuts in Guinea-Bissau is currently between 250 CFA Francs and 350 CFA Francs. It is meant to compensate farmers for:
- Planting
- Pruning
- Thinning
- Picking
- Denutting
- Drying
- Bagging
Guinea-Bissau Cashew Nuts
International buyers of Guinea-Bissau cashew nuts always do a quality test before paying up. At least 30% of the consignment is sampled for analysis. Thereafter, a sample size of 1kg is selected randomly.
Cashew nuts grown in Guinea-Bissau that are meant for overseas markets must be thoroughly dry. After harvesting, they are put out to dry in the sun for 2-3 days. Sun-drying brings down their moisture level to less than 10%. The two methods to test moisture level are:
- The inspector presses the nut between their index finger and thumb. If there is a liquid substance left on their finger or thumb, moisture content is still more than 10%. But if not, it is good enough for storage and export.
- The inspector can use a moisture detector device for precision.
Guinea-Bissau cashews meant for export must be free from extraneous matter such as stones, sticks and stalks. Total impurities should not exceed 0.5% of 1kg sample. Too many impurities indicate that the number of cashews is too little to be exported.
Cashews from Guinea-Bissau that are to be shipped out must have a nut count of between 170 and 210 per kg. With such a count, grading ranges from middle to excellent. But there are some foreign buyers of raw cashew nuts who don’t accept nut count above 200 per kg.
Guinea-Bissau cashew nuts bound for foreign markets must have a kernel outturn ratio (KOR) of between 20kg and 25kg per 80kg sack. KOR is the quality of good nuts from 80kg of raw cashew nuts. The higher the number of usable kernels after de-shelling the nuts, the higher the KOR.
Here is how a KOR test is done:
- The inspector cuts through all nuts in a 1kg sample to expose the kernel
- They scoop out the kernels with their skin and separate them into 4 categories
- Only the good, spotted and premature kernels are used for KOR test while the bad ones are set aside. They weigh the good ones and record the result and then weigh the other two types separately, divide the result by 2 and record for each type.
- They add the weight of the good ones to the results of the other two types. Then they multiply the answer by 176.
- The inspector compares the KOR to the international standard
Finally, raw cashew nut suppliers in Guinea-Bissau test for defects. Defects include bad/rotten nuts, empty nuts, premature nuts, spotted nuts and insect-damaged nuts. The acceptable defective rate should be between 0%-24% whereby 0%-15% is a standard grade and 16%-24% is under grade.
Here is how a defective rate test is done:
- The inspector adds the weight of the spotted and premature kernels together then divides the result by 2
- They then add the above answer to the weight of bad and empty kernels
- They then divide the above answer by 10
- The inspector compares the defective rate to the international standard