An Economic Analysis of Cost, Returns and Profitability in Production of Cashew Nut in South Goa District of Goa

Cashew is known as ‘Gold mine’ of wasteland because it can give high yield under any climatic conditions and soil condition with little or no maintenance. Due to its high nutritive value cashew is gaining importance among the health-conscious people both in domestic market and international market. Implementation of new technology and optimum utilization of resources will help the farmers to reduce the cost of production and to increase net returns. Cashew nut cultivation plays vital role in Cherishing and sustaining the momentum of rural development in study area. The study was conducted in South Goa district of Goa during the year 2023 and is based on both primary and secondary data collected from 100 cashew nut growers with the help of pretested personal interview scheduled from 5 villages selected randomly and the data was analysed using analytical tools. The results revealed that total establishment cost of cashew of marginal category is Rs 175320.67, small category is Rs 172541.83, semi medium category Rs 171890.83 and medium category is Rs 170401.34. Total annual cost of cultivation (Rs/ha) from 5th year onwards of marginal category was Rs 99512.45, small category was Rs 97091.63, semi medium category was Rs 95443.67 and medium farmer was Rs 93202.29. It Clearly reveals that cost of cultivation (Rs/ha) increases with decrease in farm size. It clearly indicates that in all the size groups average maximum cost was spent on hired human labour around (30.41%) followed by rental value of owned land (20.77%) and miscellaneous cost (20.50%). It shows that net returns were more in medium category (Rs 77072.72) followed by semi medium (Rs 70761.33), small category (Rs 62048.37) and marginal category (Rs 55487.55). Input-output ratio was found to be 1:1.56 for marginal farmers, 1:1.64 for small farmers, 1:1.74 for semi medium farmers and 1:1.83 for medium farmers. It inferred that the cashew nut production is profitable enterprise for medium farmer than semi medium, small and marginal farmers.