Mixed views greet govt position on cashew nuts

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Following the announcement made by President John Magufuli on Sunday that is ready to buy all cashew nut if traders will fail to buy at a price of Sh3000, members of the business community and traders have expressed differing views, with the buyers saying the proposed price does not give them value for their money

Dar es Salaam. Members of the business community have received the government’s position on the cashew nuts saga with mixed feelings.

Some said yesterday that the time was ripe for Tanzania to set up factories that would process the nuts locally.

Currently, most of Tanzania’s cashew nuts are exported raw to Asian countries, costing the country millions of dollars each year in missed benefits of value addition.

In the current marketing season, farmers have refused to sell their cashew nuts at prices ranging from Sh1,900 to Sh2,717 per kilogramme, depending on quality. This is a sharp drop from an average of Sh3,600 offered last season.

President John Magufuli on Sunday directed that cashew nuts be bought from farmers at a minimum price of Sh3,000 per kilo.

He said that if buyers think the price is too high, the government will buy all the cashew nuts from farmers and seek a market for the crop.

Speaking to The Citizen in separate interviews yesterday, some members of the business community said the President’s statement reminds them of the need to set up enough processing factories locally to ensure that the bulk of Tanzania’s cashew nuts is processed locally.

Both Tanzania Private Sector Foundation (TPSF) and Confederation of Tanzania Industry (CTI) say the President’s statement is a wake-up call for them to aggressively sell the idea of setting up cashew nut factories to their members.

“We support the President’s view and we will promptly respond by attracting more domestic and foreign investors into the area,” said the TPSF chairman, Mr Salum Shamte, noting that a collaborative approach with Tanzania Investment Centre (TIC) would yield the intended results.

CTI acting policy director Akida Mnyenyelwa said to them, the President’s statement was like an order that begs for a concrete plan that would attract domestic and foreign investors into cashew nut processing.

“This has been our cry for a long time. We lose jobs and income by exporting raw produce. We will now start working towards ensuring that we start processing the products locally and get the benefits that come with such an arrangement,” he said.

However, a buyer who preferred not to be mentioned in the media, said the proposed government price does not give him value for money, insisting that companies will register losses if they are compelled to buy at the minimum of Sh3,000 per kilogram.

“My contract requires me to buy one tonne at $1,500 so if I buy at the government’s preferred price, it will not make any business sense when I take the produce to India and Vietnam,” he said adding that they were waiting see what happens next.