STANDARDISATION OF RAW CASHEW NUT QUALITY UCP IN

STANDARDISATION OF RAW CASHEW NUT QUALITY UCP IN RCN TRADE- PHASE II Dr. R. K. BHOODES Chief Executive- Trades Prasanthi Cashew Company of Indian. Kollam Industry (FICI) Chairman Federation Cashew

UCP through phases……. . q Defining the terms in Rcn trade ü General terms ü Quality terms ü Trade Terms q Setting of quality / trade Norms for RCN Trade ü Standardization ( Quality & Trade Norms) ü Sampling techniques and procedures ü Inspection procedures q Standard Contract form ü Unique contract form with well defined terms and conditions ü Brings in more transparency in trade and reduces disputes q Norms for settlements ü Addressing variations from contracted terms ü Well defined procedures for settlements q Arbitration clause and procedures ü Addressing Disputes

Terms defined…. • Standardisation : Formulation, Publication and implementation of guidelines, rules and specification for common and repeated use. - The business dictionary – Would lead to making mutually consistent decisions. • Quality : A characteristic or feature that someone or something has : something that can be noticed as a part of a person or thing. - Merriam Webster

Trade Norms…… Terms Definition Norms Price: the quantity of payment or compensation as agreed mutually between the seller and buyer and to to be paid by the seller to the buyer in return of goods Price has to quoted per Metric Ton Currency : Domestic (For domestic Trade) and International currencies ($, Euro, GBP etc) Quantity The numerical value assigned to the quantum of material (RCN) by weight transacted and should be expressed in Metric Tons. 5% by Weight tolerance Shipment Period : The time interval expressed with reference 15 days – Forward to Julian Calendar within which the shipment 7 days- Prompt has to be effected and evidenced by the entry in the bill of lading.

Terms Definition Norms Payment terms Time and intervals at which the payments Advance- max 50% are to be effected by the buyer to the Part Payment – max. 95% seller Full Payment- After Quality & Quantity inspection Commercial Terms and conditions on which price and All inco terms associated shipments/ deliveries are fixed Buyer/Seller nomination of Vessel Packing refers to both primary as well as secondary packing of the consignment. 80 Kg (+/- 5 Kg) in Jute/ sizal Bags. I FCL – 220 bags max. Referal Point (inspection point) Refers to the point where the quality/ quantity are applied / inspected Shp. Qty & Quality Lan. Qty & Quality Shp. Qty & lan. Quality Lan. Qty & Shp. Quantity

Standardisation of RCN Quality …. q Out turn: Out turn refers to the minimum guaranteed quantity of good cashew kernels (with skin) derived from the cutting test. Ø For the purpose of calculating the out turn, single spotted nuts should be considered for 50% of the weight. Nuts with multiple spots , immature nuts and nuts with all other type of defects are to be discarded while calculating the out turn. Ø Norms: Out turn should be expressed as either LBS per Bag or Kgs per Bag. A tolerance of 0. 5% for variation in the minimum guaranteed out turn should be allowed in case the quality testing is conducted at the destination.

q. Count : Count of RCN is defined as the maximum number of raw cashew nuts in shell of the desired moisture level per Kg. Ø Norms: A tolerance level of 2 Nos. on the count should be allowed in case the testing is conducted at the destination points. However no tolerance should be allowed if the terms are on shipped quality.

q Moisture : The level of dryness of the RCN and is measured as the percentage of water contents in the raw nut. Ø The test result of the sample collected and sealed in air tight container/ pouch conducted in the approved laboratory (using toluene test) within three days of sampling should be taken for arriving at results. Ø In case of moisture testing using moisture meter, if so agreed between the buyer and the seller, the average reading obtained in 5 consecutive tests should be obtained to arrive at the moisture level of the RCN. Nail marking tests and rattling sound tests can not be considered for arriving at the moisture levels. Ø Norms: The maximum moisture level at the designated point should not exceed 8% by weight.

q. Foreign Matter : All materials other than raw cashew nut in shell in the consignment is considered as foreign matter. Even the residues of the cashew apple in the shell is to be considered as foreign matter. ØForeign matter includes stones , dirt, glass , metal, straw, sticks , plastic, hair, paper, and threads etc. They are separated and the % is calculated. Ø Norms : Foreign matter should not exceed 2 % by weight of the total consignment.

Defective Nuts …… • Rotten cashew- Any decayed or rot spotted cashews. • Voids- Cashew nuts without kernel (empty side). • Immature- Kernels which are under developed and do not have the characteristic shape of a cashew kernel. • Insect infested- Cashew nut kernels visibly damaged from live or dead insect, mites in any stage of development , insect excrete or fragments , boring, cast larval casings etc. • Shriveled- Shriveled is complete withering of the kernels that distorts its characteristic shape. Such kernels are separated by visual evaluation • Spotted- Dry the cashew kernels at 1050 C for 2 hours and remove testa. Black and brown spotted kernels are separated by visual evaluation • Oil stained- Oil stained kernels. The % by weight is calculated For all calculations , the % by weight is taken to arrive at results.

q. Total Defects: Total defects refers to the percentage of all defective materials in the raw nuts supplied (foreign matter, void nuts, rotten nuts etc. . ) by weight present in the sample drawn. The weight of foreign matter is also to be included while calculating the total defects. Ø Norms : Total defects should not exceed 5% by weight.

Sampling…. • Sample Size : Less Than 15 Bags- full 101 – 200 bags – 20% 16 -50 bags -40% 201 -500 bags – 15% 51 -100 bags – 30% Above 501 Bags – 10% • Method : Ø Lot to be segregated into sound bags, wet/damaged bags and scooping seperately. Ø Samples to be taken from all three lots on the basis of sample size mentioned here above. Ø In case of discharge from the container, sequential random sampling method to be adopted. Ø In case of bulk lot Sampling can be done by adopting the distribution pattern for the selection of bags from the lot using the English alphabetic letters such as ‘W’, ‘N’, and ‘H’ , which will cover the representative portion of the sample bags. Ø In case of bulk lot, the maximum size of a lot should not exceed 100 M. Tons.

• Procedure : Ø The quantity of nuts taken in the entire batch is scraped upon a flat area, considering as mother sample. Then samples are prepared by quarter method and subjected to analysis. Ø A 5 kg sample is drawn from the above. This is thoroughly mixed , packed and sealed in 5 packets of 1 kg each. Ø One packet each for buyer and seller and three packets for Analysis. The average out turn and count of the three values are taken. Ø In case of variation (between the high and low values) of Out turn of 3 packets by more than 2% of the lower value, the buyer’s and sellers sample is also tested and the average out turn and count is taken for the total 5 samples. If the variation between the high and low values of the five samples analysed are more than 3% of the low value , the samples are to be discarded and fresh sampling to be done.

Limitations…. • The specifications and norms mentioned here are the extracts of the draft formed after preliminary discussions and study. • This has to be further circulated to all members, other cashew related associations and organisations across the world. • After critical analysis and discussions with all experts in the cashew field, the specifications and norms are to be finalised. • Further criteria if any has also to be included.

Appeal …. This draft is submitted to this august gathering here for further discussions and critical analysis. Together, let us streamline the World RCN Trade for the benefit of the Industry.