Photograph — Walnuts, whole and shelled (representative photograph). Source image unavailable; caption preserved.
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Spices, Aromatics & Dried Foods · Jammu & Kashmir
Kashmir Walnut Kernels
Kashmir produces the bulk of India's walnuts, grown across the valley's orchards and processed into export-grade kernels through a huge, mostly home-based hand-cracking industry.
GI status: GI-recognised Kashmir horticultural product
Shelf life: 9–12 months dried kernels, cool storage
Women-led sector
| Category | Spices, Aromatics & Dried Foods |
|---|---|
| Region | Jammu & Kashmir |
| GI status | GI-recognised Kashmir horticultural product |
| Typical shelf life | 9–12 months dried kernels, cool storage |
| Women's role in production | Cracking the hard shell and hand-picking whole, unbroken kernels — the step that determines export grade — is a large home-based cottage industry carried out almost entirely by Kashmiri women. |
Why this fits a low-wastage SHG model: Dried kernels store for the better part of a year in cool conditions, and shell-cracking is exactly the kind of value-adding step an SHG collective can scale without spoilage risk.
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