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| Wednesday, 21 July 2004 |
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Politics | |
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| Agriculture Minister promises better deal for poultry farmers Agriculture, Livestock, Lands and Irrigation Minister Anura Dissanayake pledged his support to poultry farmers,when he met the members of the All Poultry Farmers Association recently at his Ministry, a press release said. The press release from the Ministry said that the delegates of the Association had come out with a number of issues that affect the industry. They have pointed out that the Value Added Tax (VAT) on the price of chicken has hit the industry and added to that the myths connected with the consumption of chicken has its negative effects. They wanted the Ministry to address these issues. They also wanted the Minister to take steps to bring down the interests rates for the loans, they have taken. Minister Dissanayake told the delegates that his Ministry would provide the necessary assistance to the private sector institutions who produce poultry food and at the same time farmers who grow soya, Iringu and other vegetables necessary for the preparation of the poultry food should act in such a manner to maintain their independence without submitting themselves to the dictates of the companies. While accepting the need to increase the government share in meeting the needs of over 75,000 families involved in the trade, he pointed out that if we produce more of the food items within the country the government could reduce the cost of imports. " At present we import about 90 per cent of the poultry food. We can save that money if we grow what we want", he said. Minister Dissanayake told them that he would take up the issues raised by them with the Finance Minister and the government to bring redress. |
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