Which tree produces the cashew nut?

Which tree produces the cashew nut? The answer is Anacardium occidentale, the tropical cashew tree. It belongs to the Anacardiaceae family, alongside mangoes, pistachios, and poison ivy relatives.

The cashew is unusual because the familiar “nut” develops outside the fleshy cashew apple. Botanically, it is a seed inside a hard-shelled drupe, while the cashew apple is an enlarged part of the flower stalk. The shell contains caustic compounds, so raw cashews require careful processing before they are safe to eat.

Anacardium occidentale is native to tropical South America, especially Brazil. Portuguese traders spread it to India in the sixteenth century, after which cultivation expanded across Southeast Asia and Africa. Today, both the kernel and cashew apple are used: the kernel is eaten or processed into butter and cheese, while the apple can become juice, fermented drinks, or spirits.

A common mix-up is mango, which is also in the same botanical family but does not produce cashews. The species name occidentale means “western” or “of the Western world.”