Miguel Braganza
The mercury continues to rise in Goa as a heatwave sweeps across the state, making it feel like summer even before the spring equinox. In the sweltering afternoon, it’s a relief that urrak has arrived. Though the cashew tree originated in Brazil, Goa holds a Geographical Indication (GI) for both cashew feni and Goan cashew nuts. Urrak—the intermediate product of cashew fermentation—is now available early, thanks to the large-scale cultivation of Vengurla-4 grafts. What began as a small effort in 1984 expanded in 1993 when chief minister Wilfred de Souza pushed for mass planting.
Back in the early 1970s, Anand Gajanand Falari planted cashew grafts of the Vengurla series (V-1 to V-4) on the hillsides of Nanoda, near Assonora. These grafts were supplied by the Directorate of Agriculture of Goa, Daman & Diu, which had sourced them from Vengurla. What he did next set him apart from other farmers and transformed Goa’s cashew industry.
In 1983, Falari prepared about a thousand grafts, with five hundred to spare. As a professional grocer with a basic understanding of marketing, he saw an opportunity. He reached out to the Directorate of Agriculture, which was then headed by fellow Mapusa resident Prabhakar G. Navelkar. The project was assigned to horticulture officer Ramesh G. Joshi, at a time when the Directorate had very few senior officials. It was an instant success.The Vengurla-4 cashew, a red apple variety known for its bold nuts and high yield, is ready for harvest between late January and March. It spread rapidly, revolutionising cashew farming. If you’re sipping urrak today, it’s thanks to this early-maturing
variety.
By the mid-1990s, planting cashew grafts became the norm in Goa rather than the exception. Grafts were even exported to Madhya Pradesh and Odisha (then known as Orissa). After the turn of the millennium, Odisha began producing its own grafts, and with Goa’s limited land area, the local cashew nursery business peaked in 2015. Today, farmers in Goa source grafts from Maharashtra.
The ICAR-CCARI in Old Goa has since released Goa Cashew-1, 2, 3, and 4 for specific uses. For optimal growth, a 8 x 8-meter spacing between trees is recommended. The best time to plant is now if irrigation is available or with the first rains in June. Either way, it’s best to buy grafts in advance, as they become scarce by then.
