42
Sílvio Ávila
Inpursuit
of
recovery
Badweatherconditions
overthepastfive
yearsadverselyaffect
cashewnutproduction
andproductivity,
nowengagedin
surmountingthe
difficulties
T
he cashew supply chain is seen
as one of the most relevant for
the agribusiness related econo-
mies in the states of Rio Grande
do Norte, Piauí and Ceará, due
to its economic, social and environmental
importance. Cashew farming is also one of
thefewdrylandagriculturalactivitieswhose
production takes place at off-season time
and counts on a vast area suitable for its
expansion. Despite all the positive factors,
over the past years the sector has suffered
steep production declines, brought about
by adverseweather conditions.
In 2009, the area devoted to cashew
nuts in Brazil amounted to 775,225 hect-
ares, while in 2016 it was reduced to
594,936 hectares, down almost 24%. In
the State of Ceará, biggest producer in the
Country, production was down about 4%,
but in Piauí it was down almost 55%. Re-
searcher José Ismar Girão Parente, who
has retired from Embrapa, president of the
Cashew Nut Sectoral Chamber of Ceará,
recalls that the Brazilian production of ca-
shew nuts was equally adversely affected
in the period from2012 to 2016.
In 2011, a year characterized by timely
rainfalls in the Northeastern cashew pro-
ducing states, total production in Brazil
reached 230,785 tons. In 2016, total har-
vest amounted to 79,765 tons only, down
65%. “Production in Ceará suffered an
even more serious decline if we compare
the volume produced in 2011, of 111,718
tons, to the volume in 2016, when only
TERRADECAJU
Cashew land
Área plantada de cajueiro no Brasil (hectares)
Anos
Brasil Ceará RioGrandedoNorte Piauí
Outros
2006
710.404 371.032
114.754
159.389 65.229
2007
731.818 376.141
116.483
172.712 66.482
2008
748.448 386.757
116.685
179.395 65.611
2009
775.225 396.538
129.227
184.145 65.315
2010
760.110 401.527
121.552
171.420 65.611
2011
764.475 411.670
126.208
171.525 55.072
2012
765.030 413.035
129.507
180.569 41.919
2013
708.808 411.598
122.354
141.041 33.815
2014
656.463 410.066
115.467
101.225 29.705
2015
619.196 389.358
96.120
87.474 46.244
2016
594.936 384.905
80.798
82.108 47.125
Fonte:IBGE.
