Cashew Nut Farming and Processing Business Plan

Cashew nut farming and processing is an area of business with huge potentials. Although this is the case, knowing how to start has been a challenge. In a bid to establish your business, several factors need to be considered. Hence for meaningful progress, the business plan is indispensable. As the name suggests, this is the guiding light of your business. It charts the way forward by setting short, medium and long term goals. This significantly enhances the chances for success. This cashew nut farming and processing business plan sample seeks to guide the reader on what a good plan should contain. The basics as provided here cannot be done without.

It is necessary to add that doing a good job on your plan will directly impact on the business. Also, without proper implementation, the business will not be effective. In fact your plan is only as good as how dedicated you are to its implementation.

Executive Summary

Agro Hub is a cashew nut farming and processing business to be located in Jos Plateau State. Our main activities are the commercial cultivation and processing of cashew nuts for the domestic and the international market. Although we have a global perspective, we will act local with the aim of expanding production. We are a business driven by excellence. Hence we are leaving no stone unturned in realizing our objective. And the main objective for our business is client satisfaction. We understand that only the best products will guarantee client satisfaction. Thus it is only logical that we strive towards exceeding our set targets.

There are major cashew brands in Nigeria with huge investments. To compete favorably, it is necessary to think outside the box. Hence we are are prepared to hire the best brains in the industry. These would be made up of people with considerably experience in the industry. Their wealth of experience will be brought to bear on how we do business. Also a significant part of our capital will be channeled towards equipment purchase. These equipment will be used for processing and packaging of our products. Relevant permits and licensing have been obtained as well from regulatory authorities.

Our Products and Services

Our main activities are cashew nut farming and processing. However our other areas of expertise include training workshops. This would be organized for aspiring farmers. In addition to this, we will offer advisory/consultancy services to other farmers. Our customers will be charged for these services. Currently we have a 5 hectare farm. A major part of our nuts will be sourced from here.

However we realize that this is not enough. Therefore while expanding on our farms, we will buy these nuts from other farms. These would supplement or make up for the short-fall in cashew nuts. Within a decade of our operations, we intend to have planted over 30 hectares of cashew trees.

Mission Statement

Our mission at Agro Hub is to build a world class agro business. Based in Nigeria and exporting to the world, we intend to be a success model of what a business should be. Therefore to achieve this, we will be a foreign exchange earner for Nigeria’s economy.

Vision Statement

Branding is an important part of our business. Hence we intend leveraging on this to change the perspective of youths about farming. This is necessary because many see farming as being for the poor. We will change this perception by building a successful business. By so doing, those interested to learn will be trained on high impact driven agriculture.

Capital Requirement

Funding is indispensable to achieving our objective. Hence the entrepreneur Mr. Daniel Peters has set apart a savings of N5,000,000.00. The sum of N15,000,000.00 will be sourced through debt financing.

SWOT Analysis

We have realized that a thorough assessment is necessary to achieving our objectives. Hence we have hired competent hands to carry out a SWOT analysis on our business.

– Strengths: Here we have developed a business model that takes advantage of favorable agro-policies. This has created an incentive for growth. Lately there has been a growing emphasis on agriculture. We have positioned ourselves to take full advantage of these opportunities. Part of these include tax breaks as well as less stringent export requirements.

– Weaknesses: We are currently disadvantaged in comparison to well established cashew brands. This makes them have the financial muscle to dominate the market. However we have found a way around this. This includes taking advantage of their weaknesses. Another includes recruiting the best hands for the job.

– Opportunities: The local and international demand for cashew is on the rise. This is strategic to the success of our business.

-Threats: Unfavorable agricultural policies are possible threats. However this is highly unlikely for the time being. There are also threats posed by our competition.

Competitive Advantage

Our business philosophy is simple; act local and think global. This is the bedrock of our activities. Our workforce are our biggest strength. Therefore to ensure maximum productivity, they would be highly motivated. This will come in the form of attractive wages. Also a conducive work environment will be provided. This will ensure that they put in their best effort. Refresher courses on industry best practices will be held periodically. This will ensure they operate at peak levels. Investments in equipment is yet another area we plan on. We realize that only the best equipment will give the best results. Therefore a substantial part of our funding will go into this area.

A world-class quality control unit has been established. This is a strategy to ensure only the best products reach our target market. A constant innovative approach will be followed. This will ensure that we gain a fair share of the market size.

Target Market

Cashew is widely consumed across the world. This means there is market everywhere. However the domestic market is important to our growth. Before we can go global, the domestic market needs to be conquered. Hence our targets are the domestic and the international market. The domestic market will provide the launching pad. In the Nigerian market, we will target the general population. How can we do this? By raising awareness about the benefits of cashew nuts. The potentials in this sector will also be stressed.

Sales Projection

This is a vital area of the business. We have researched on the viability of the business. This was carried out by experts hired by us. A three-year profit/sales projection was targeted. The results have been impressive. As a matter of fact, a steady growth in revenues has been predicted. However this discounts uncertainties such as sudden disasters, economic recession and others. The figures have been summarized in the table below;

First Year N5,000,000.00
Second Year N10,000,000.00
Third Year N19,000,000.00

This steady growth is very vital to achieving our targets. Therefore with the right attitude, we will achieve our goals.

Pricing Strategy

We need to strike a balance in pricing to achieve a win-win situation. However to do this we need to adopt an effective strategy. This we have done by offering lower prices for our products. This will last for two months, after which prices will be adjusted back to normal. This is a strategy to capture a fair share of the market.