A History of Agriculture in India v2.c72.s16: Cashewnut

v2.c72.s16.1

Cashewnut (*Anacardium occidentale*) is a native of Brazil. Its red fruit, the so-called apple, is acrid and to it is appended the nut like a bud. It is certainly a Portuguese introduction into India. Its earliest mention is by Acosta (A.D. 1578), who found it in gardens in the City of Santa Cruz in the kingdom of Cochin. Now it covers over 120,000 hectares in the coastal districts of southern India, with a production of about 6,000 tonnes of nuts, the largest in the world. Production in Brazil, the home of the cashewnut tree, is much smaller.