ACA News

Global Cashew Council Identifies Priorities at Steering Council Meeting

At a Steering Committee last October in Paris, the Global Cashew Council (GCC) identified several priorities for the years to come and developed an action plan for key upcoming activities. ACA MD Christian Dahm and former ACA president Carlos Costa attended as representatives of the African region.

The meeting established a five-point program for follow up in 2013: a standard for cashew kernel, a research project, a website, GCC marketing material, and a letter of invitation for participation in the GCC to large companies and organizations involved in the cashew industry....

US Businesses Eye Cashew Opportunities in Africa

The ACA is now viewed as a gateway to doing business in Africa by an increasing number and variety of international businesses! At the annual convention of the Peanut and Treenut Processors Association (PTNPA), numerous cashew buyers met with ACA Managing Director Christian Dahm and ACA Business Advisor Sunil Dahiya to learn about the latest developments in the industry in Africa, newly established processors, and forthcoming investments....

ACA and West Africa Trade Hub rebuild regional Senegalese Cashew Associations

Following an invitation of PADEC, a support development program of the Casamance Region, on December 20-21, 2012, the Trade Hub Dakar Director, Makhtar Thiam represented ACA and the USAID West Africa Trade Hub at a two days workshop in Ziguinchor (Southern Senegal) to create a new interprofessional organization in the cashew sector for the 3 administrative regions of Casamance (Ziguinchor, Sedhiou, Kolda) which provides 80% of the cashew produced in Senegal, as well as to elect a new president for this nascent organization.

...

Mim Cashew officially awarded ACA Quality and Sustainability Seal

On December 14, 2012, Mim Cashew became the second company to be officially certified under the ACA Quality and Sustainability Seal. Mim, located in Ghana’s Brong-Ahafo region, was provisionally approved in October after a visit by ACA Seal Team Advisor Jim Giles. After a final audit was completed, ACA Finance Manager Ernest Dankwa presented to Mr. Lars Wallevik, owner of Mim Cashew, Mr. Joseph Yeung, General Manager and Mr. Kumaris Anil, the factory’s Production Manager, with their official Seal certificate.

“This is not the first certification we have received. We are...

Year in Review – Highlights of 2012

The past year was filled with so many huge moments for ACA, it was hard to pick our favorites! Here’s a selection of some of our most important achievements and milestones from 2012.

February ACA founding member Olam International opens a processing...

Intersnack and ACA Roll out ACA Seal in East Africa

The ACA seal is taking off in Kenya, Tanzania and Mozambique. The food safety, quality and social compliance program was developed by ACA in cooperation with Kraft Foods and Intersnack to improve the competitiveness and market access for the African cashew processing industry.

From December 3-7, an Intersnack quality expert and the recently-appointed new Sourcing Manager – Africa, accompanied by ACA Managing Director Christian Dahm, visited cashew processors in East Africa to introduce the Global Food Safety as well as the Global Social Compliance initiatives and explain how the ACA...

African Cashew Alliance and UNIDO’s 3ADI program promote small scale processing in Tanzania

From 26^th to 30^th November the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) jointly with Sunil Dahia, ACA Business Advisor, conducted a program on capacity-building for small scale farmer & processor groups and government agency representatives on the fundamentals of a competitive Tanzanian cashew industry. UNIDO agreed on this first cooperation with the African Cashew Alliance on 5 November, 2012. ACA and UNIDO aim to collaborate on mutual beneficial activities relating to the Promotion of Cashew Value Chain Development in Tanzania....

ACA plans for an exciting future during Executive Committee meeting and Retreat

From November 27 to 28, the ACA Executive Committee met at the ACA Secretariat offices for an extraordinary meeting, held in addition to the usual semi-annual timetable. The seven EC members travelled from Benin, Nigeria, Tanzania, Kenya, India, and the US. Elected by current ACA members in September at the Conference, this was the first time that all seven EC members have met together.

...

ACA scores with 7th ACA Annual Conference in Cotonou: High Marks recorded on Participant Evaluations

The African Cashew Alliance recently released an evaluation report of the September 17-20, 2012 7th ACA Conference. Participant surveys indicated high levels of satisfaction with the conference program, while the feedback will also guide planning for next year’s conference – the 8^th World Cashew Festival and Expo13, taking place in Lagos, Nigeria in September 2013. The following charts communicate the key conclusions and numbers resulting from the evaluations. For many, the...

ACi launches Cashew Matching Fund

by Ann-Christin Berger, African Cashew Initiative

The African Cashew Initiative has launched a Cashew Matching Fund Grant designed to help accelerate the development of the cashew industry in its five project countries; Ghana, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cote d’Ivoire and Mozambique. As it begins its second phase and builds on lessons learned in its 1st Phase, the Cashew Matching Fund Grant was designed to allow more private sector partners such as retailers, buyers, processors, farmer groups and public research organizations, to design and implement projects regarding farmer linkages...