Rather than being enclosed in a thick, hard shell, the cashew has a thin exterior shell that seems to descend from what is called the cashew apple — a bright red, fleshy stem that looks ...

The trees are a member of the same family as poison ivy, and like poison ivy, cashew plants contain a toxin called urushiol. It's found in the plant itself and the brown oil inside a nut's shell.

Apeda is looking at other cashew products such as shell cake or deoiled cashew shells, cashew apples and gum. The de-oiled cashew shell is the by-product of extracting cashew nut shell liquid.