What’s the Story Behind the Photo?
This popular food may look different to you in its natural state...
Do you recognize this common snack?
In this photo, cashew apples hang from a tree in West Africa. At the bottom are the cashew seeds — which contain the popular nut enjoyed in a variety of dishes and snacks.
The cashew nut must be extracted carefully from its shell, which contains a harsh toxin. Then the nuts are roasted or boiled, packaged, and shipped around the world.
For West Africa, cashews are critical for exports and jobs. But the sector has enormous potential to spur even more economic development. For instance, while the region produces 45% of the world’s raw cashews, it processes — and captures the value of — only 10% of them.
With a long history of strengthening cashew value chains around the world, TechnoServe is now leading a major new initiative to develop the cashew sector across West Africa.
