The Kerala State Cashew Development Corporation Limited or KSCDC is a model employer in the field of cashew industry mainly to protect the interest of workers and to provide maximum employment to its workers and to give statutory benefits like minimum wages, bonus, etc. prevailing in the cashew industry. It is headquartered in

Kollam Kollam (), also known by its former name Quilon , is an ancient seaport and city on the Malabar Coast of India bordering the Laccadive Sea, which is a part of the Arabian Sea. It is north of the state capital Thiruvananthapuram. The city i ...

city, called "Cashew Capital of the World". The head office is situated at Cashew House,

Mundakkal Mundakkal, also spelled Mundackal, is an important residential area and industrial hub situated in the city of Kollam, Kerala, India. The place is considered as the capital of India's cashew processing activities. Kerala State Cashew Developme ...

City,

Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...

. KSCDC was incorporated in July 1969 and started Commercial activities in the year 1971 as a company fully owned by the

Government of Kerala Government of Kerala is the subnational government of the Indian state of Kerala. The government is led by a chief minister, who selects all the other ministers. The chief minister and their most senior ministers belong to the supreme decision ...

. Corporation has now more than a turn over of Rs. 2.50 billion. A Central Export Promotion Council for Cashew, Cashew Export Promotion Council of India (CEPCI) is situated at

city.

KSCDC Headquarters in Kollam(Cashew House), May 2015

Cashew Business in Kollam

The industry provides livelihood for about 6–700,000 of employees and farmers, the cashew industry has national importance. In

Kollam district Kollam district (), (formerly Quilon district) is one of 14 districts of the state of Kerala, India. The district has a cross-section of Kerala's natural attributes; it is endowed with a long coastline, a major Laccadive Sea seaport and an in ...

alone there are more than 250,000 employees directly involved in the industry, which comes about 10 per cent of the population of the

district A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...

, out of which 95 per cent are women workers.

is very famous for its traditional Cashew business. More than 600 Cashew Processing Units are there in

. About 800,000 tonnes of raw cashews are imported to

for processing every year. An average of 130,000 tonnes of processed cashews are exported from

to various countries like United States,

UAE The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (The Middle East). It is located at th ...

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

, Japan,

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...

, Spain, Germany, Belgium, Singapore, Italy, Greece, Australia,

Kuwait Kuwait (; ar, الكويت ', or ), officially the State of Kuwait ( ar, دولة الكويت '), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated in the northern edge of Eastern Arabia at the tip of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to the nort ...

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

Jordan Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Rive ...

, Canada,

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...

, Russia, Norway,

Syria Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...

, and Hong Kong every year. That is why

is known as the Cashew Capital of the World. CEPCI is expecting a rise in export, i.e. 275,000 tonnes by 2020, a growth of 120 per cent over the present exports.

Influence of KSCDC over Kerala's Cashew Business

To increase the production of indigenous raw nuts, Kerala State Cashew Development Corporation has started Cashew plantations in the State. Corporation has also introduced four value added cashew products in the market. They are regularly signing consignments for more than 6,000 tonnes of raw cashew nut from

Guinea Guinea ( ),, fuf, 𞤘𞤭𞤲𞤫, italic=no, Gine, wo, Gine, nqo, ߖߌ߬ߣߍ߫, bm, Gine officially the Republic of Guinea (french: République de Guinée), is a coastal country in West Africa. It borders the Atlantic Ocean to the we ...

Bissau Bissau () is the capital, and largest city of Guinea-Bissau. Bissau had a population of 492,004. Bissau is located on the Geba River estuary, off the Atlantic Ocean, and is Guinea-Bissau's largest city, major port, and its administrative and m ...

etc. They are running more than 30 Cashew Processing Factories in

state.

has chartered a vessel between Vallarpadam Terminal and

Kollam Port Kollam Port is one of the historic ports situated away from Downtown Kollam (formerly Quilon),14 km north of Paravur and 24 km north of Varkala Town It is the second largest port in Kerala by volume of cargo handled and facilities. ...

by signing into an agreement with Indian Rare Earths Limited (IREL), Kerala State Cashew Development Corporation, Kerala Minerals and Metals Ltd and various other cashew importers and business giants based out of

city for moving their cargo.
Kerala to charter first vessel for Coastal Shipping by month-end

References

{{authority control Government-owned companies of Kerala Companies based in Kollam Cashew production in India Commodity markets in Kerala 1969 establishments in Kerala Agriculture companies established in 1969 Indian companies established in 1969