Tanzania Agricultural Research Institute - Naliendele Centre (TARI-Naliendele) plans to release a new variety of cashew nut which is resistant to cashew leaf and nut blight disease.

TARI Naliendele Centre Director, Dr Fortunus Kapinga made the revelation here recently saying the new variety will be grown without using chemical pesticides.

"We are at the final stages to release the new variety that can be grown and well managed without using chemical pesticides to control the disease (blight)," he said following farmers' complaints over severe attack of the blight disease on cashew crop causing substantial yield losses.

According to Dr Kapinga, the disease is highly caused by weather variables particularly rainfall and moisture.

He said the disease has recently become a serious destructive compared to the past where it only occurred after rainfall.

"In that past, the disease occurred after rainfall but nowadays it occurs due to moisture causing more destruction on crop yields," he said.

Speaking here recently, cashew farmers said the crop production has been highly affected by various pests and diseases including blight causing crop losses.

An agricultural Consultant in Lindi Region, Ms Khadija Bakiri said the region has been much affected by pests and disease due to climate changes.

"Lindi region has been much affected by pests and diseases especially on cashew crop which is affected by several diseases that constrain production," she said.

Ms Bakiri said the region had expected to harvest over 100,000 tonnes of raw cashewnuts in 2022/2023 season but the goal will not be reached due to pests and diseases that have caused crop losses.

She said in 2021/2022 season, Lindi region harvested over 65,000 tonnes of raw cashews.

"In this 2022/2023 season, we are not expecting to harvests below 65,000 tonnes of raw cashews that we harvested in the last 2021/2022 season," she said.