The Challenge:
low value creation and high dependencies

Tanzanian cashew trade today:

TANZANIA HAS THE BEST CASHEWS:

• Tanzania is the third largest cashew producer in Africa and eighth largest in the world

• In 2019, 237,000 tonnes of the best cashews were produced in Tanzania

BUT:

• ~90% of cashews are exported unprocessed to Southeast Asia

• About $110 million in value creation or ~60,000 jobs are lost in Tanzania every year

• Cashews cause high HO2 emissions and loose quality due to long trade routes

• High dependencies and low prices for farmers in Tanzania

We could not agree more to what Mrs. Okonjo-Iweala said. That is why we work hard on establishing a locally owned cashew industry that is capable of processing our cashews where they are grown. We mentor local farmer groups in founding their own company and process cashews in high quality. Farmers get fair prices, thousands of jobs are created, and the economy is growing in the region. Together we can end poverty for all!

Our Solution:
local processing companies

We believe in small, local enterprises. Small, locally owned processing companies are able to

• create thousands of new jobs in Tanzania for men and woman alike

• increase value creation in Tanzania and increasing the economic groth and development of the local economy

• ensure a fair farmegate price for farmers and immediate payments instead of long waiting times and low prices

• end poverty of thousands of families in rural areas in Tanzania

• contribute to equality between men and woman (>50% of shareholders are woman)

OUR VISION: Tanzanian cashew trade in the future

Our Success so far

We already mentored 4 farmer groups in founding a company. Today, each of them is already an successfully operating company processing the delicious cashew kernels from the Makonde Plateau and contributing to the creation of value, jobs and income.

TA Cashews Mkonjowano Limited

We are farmers from the Makonde Plateau and had no experience with company founding until now. But we got inspired by the success of Tanzania Delicious Cashews Ltd. and trust them to support us in our dream to become a successful cashew processing company. Luckily, TDC agreed to mentor us and now it feels like a new life started for us now.

We are 5 women and 6 men and we registered our company in May 2024 after long trainings in cashew processing with the help of NMB foundation. We will start processing in the 2024/25 season.

Litehu Cashew Processors Limited

We are 6 women and 2 men, all cashew farmers from Litehu, and we are motivated very much to become processors, because we want to change our direction. Until now, we depend only on selling raw cashewnuts in big auctions and can not influence the prices. Sometimes we also have to wait long until we get the payment.

Processing is something new to us. It is like a miracle to have a processing company, now we can add value to our cashews a. So we founded our company in June 2024 and will start processing in October 2024.

Tulinge Mambamba Cashew Processors Limited

We as a group were already founded in 1994 as a local cashew processing group. At this time we started to process cashews manually. We got support in purchasing some processing machines, but it was very difficult to find customers so there was no growth, no future. We are very happy, that now in a short time we founded a company, started processing and sold our first processed cashews.

We are 11 farmers from Mambamba Village, who are now the shareholders (10 women and 1 man) and we have long experience in manual processing. We registered in July 2024, becasue our dream is to own a very good equipped factory in Mambamba to add value to our cashews.

Liponde Cashew Processors Limited

We are very motivated to process our cashews, becasue we have the best quality of RCN here and we have a lot of practice in growing RCN. But selling them as RCN brings not enough income for us. We want to process our great cashews instead of just selling them. We started already to process our cashews crudly a our homes manually for neighbors and other local customers.

We got trainings in processing cashews and now we are very happy to become more professional. After the training we immediately registered our company in August 2024 and will start operating in October 2024.

How can it be done?

1. Prove your commitment

Founders must “feel the ownership”. That means you must invest your own time and money into the company - even if it is just little - to prove your commitment and seriousness. You from a founding team of 8-12 farmers, get official papers for all your farms, register a company under national law and purchase a plot or building for th eprocessing site on your own. This is absolutely crucial to prove your commitment and form an effective and trustworthy team.

2. Look for support

After proving your commitment, your are ready to look for support by public or private organizations. You can apply for loans and fundings with many different organizations in order to be able to construct and equip a processing site. Introducing the company to stakeholders and joining relevant networks, e.g. CBT and TCCIA, will help you in this task.

3. Gain first experiences

Now you can already process cashews either manually or with machines and sell them to local customers. This is essential to gain first experiences in the market and increase your knowledge. Also you can establish a reliable network of local suppliers of RCN, which can supply you later in your growth. First revenues are also helpful in financing more equipment and prove your abilities and performance.

4. Professionalize yourself and your team

Your first experiences in processing will help you a lot. But that is not enough, you also need to become more professional by trainings, consulting and licences. Trainings and consulting - for example from TARI, SUGECO or MATI - on important tasks like processing and factory management as well as food safety, accounting and others are essential. These trainings are the basis to get adequate licences which will enable you to produce in high quality and find professional customers easier. For some key areas it will also be necessary to get professional staffs, especially director, accountant and factory manager.

5. Professinoalize your setup

With your first experiences, your support from benefactory and a professional team, you can now make the next and biggest step in professionalizing your processing site. This you can't do alone, get as much support from as much stakeholder as possible. Your first successes in processing will make it easier for you. You need to construct a professional processing site and equip it with necessary machinery. Either manual or semi-automated machinery is possible, but it must be a clean environment with high food safety standards.

6. Put effort in sales and marketing

Never forget that you are a company! And a company is only successful when it findes enough customers to create revenue and profit. Once you have a professional setup, the marketing or your products and sales efforts to find new national and international customers is essential for your success. You can use your network, attend trade fairs, cooperate with other processors and much more. Nobody will do this work for you!

It can only be done together! Alone nobody can grow a businees. But together with many other actors in the Tanzanian Cashew industry, supportes and financial institutions we can make it work and ensure a successful growth of young, local cashew processing companies:

Farmers: The success of the young companies depends mostly on the commitment of the founders. The commitment is the key without which everything else will fail.

Mentors: We as the first successful cashew company owned by farmers alone, take the young companies by the hand and guide them through the jungle of bureaucracy, management and stakeholder-management.

Trainers: After proving their commitment, the founders need support and nurturing by public or private organizations in the form of trainings and consulting on important tasks like processing and management, factory design, food safety, accounting, and many more.

Partners: Secondly, they need support in funding by banks or private benefactors in the form of credits with fair conditions to build and equip the processing sites adequately. And thirdly, they need support from networks and agencies to gain access to potential partners, customers or other benefactors.

It can only be done with commitment and a clear plan! We mentor and support small groups of farmers to found new companies and lead them to success. We developed a detailed action plan for the first time and organize support from other organizations to implement it. If you are interested in joining the effort and take your future in your own hands by founding a processing company, the following steps will help you:

If you are interested in our journey or want to join the effort of local cashew processors, contact us. We are happy to help!

“I am grateful because we benefit in many ways, we can support our families, meet our needs, and educate our children. I am proud to work at TDC.”

Mrs. Mwajuma - factory worker at TDC