Action to provide new composition for fertilizer

Parliament corrs

Action has been taken to provide a new composition for fertilizer as per the recommendation of the Tea Research Institute taking into consideration the views of the Tea Small Holder Sector, Plantations Industries Deputy Minister Earl Gunasekera said in Parliament yesterday. He said that measures are being taken to provide samples of fertilizer suitable for this purpose.

Responding to a question raised by UNP MP Buddhika Pathirana, the Deputy Minister noted that the root cause for the reduction of the tea harvest in the year 2009 is the decline in the price of tea due to the economic crisis in the world.

He also mentioned that it was projected that harvests would be increased by the end of year 2010 over the harvest yielded in other years. "Eventhough a certain reduction of harvests from the tea estates in the Southern Province in year 2009 as against year 2008 showed there is no trend towards reduction of harvests during the period from 2006-2010," he observed.

He also said that steps have been taken to test the quality of the chemical fertilizers used in tea cultivation with the support of the National Fertilizer Secretariat, Tea Research Institute and Tea Small Holdings Development Authority.

Quality testing activities are carried out during importation and after formulation of the fertilizer mixtures by the companies. Moreover, 25 samples of fertilizer are tested each month covering areas where tea small holders are scattered, he added.