The Tree Crop Development Authority (TCDA) has announced a new strategy to improve the quality of Ghanaian Raw Cashew Nuts (RCN), which declined in the 2023 cashew season.

According to the TCDA, a five-year strategic framework from 2022 to 2027 would enhance the regulatory and policy settings that allow for the effective use of investments from the public and private sectors to promote equitable and sustainable growth in the tree crop sub-sector.

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Authority, William Agyapong Quaittoo, announced this during the end-of-year meeting of the Cashew Traders and Exporters Association of Techiman in the Bono East region.

He attributed the fall in price of RCNs from Ghana to the low quality of the commodity.

"Ghana's cashew on the international market was downgraded because of your behaviour. I kept coming here to caution you and tell you what to do, but because of your attitude, the price of Ghana's cashew on the international market dropped, so this time, we want to avoid that,"Mr Agyepong Quaittoo lamented.

He appealed to cashew farmers to produce high-quality Raw Cashew Nuts to meet the demands of the global market.

"You farmers must endeavour to dry your RCN under shade to obtain high-quality nuts instead of drying them in the sun and store in jute sacks," Mr Agyepong Quaittoo added.

He stated that experts are visiting cashew farms to teach them how to adapt and produce high-quality cashew seeds so they can reclaim the top rank.

The CEO entreated all players in the cashew value chain to register with TCDA before the 2024 cashew season commences.

 He said, "It is mandatory for all of you cashew people to do the registration so anyone found culpable will face the law.'"

Ghana's RCN exports were valued at just over $300 million during 2022.

The largest growth in export value occurred between 2016 and 2017, when it went from over $230 million to almost $390 million.

In an interview, the Chairman of the Cashew Traders and Exporters Association of Techiman, Mumuni Issah, encouraged all cashew growers to produce high-quality RCNs that would meet international standards.