Local agri production has to be increased

To meet tourist influx needs:

Indunil HEWAGE

Local agricultural production will have to be increased by 20 percent to meet the needs of expected 2.5 million tourist arrivals to Sri Lanka by 2016.

Processed Food Development Initiative Chairman Mario De Alwis said "Sri Lanka imports 60 percent of food items per annum and will have to face the biggest challenge of sustaining food security in the future since many food exporting countries are banning or limiting product exports in the face of adverse weather impacts."

Agriculture Ministry Additional Secretary DBT Wijeratne said more emphasis will be given by the Agricultural Ministry for development activities and plans are on to improve productivity of commodities like green gram, peanuts and rice. The government has allocated Rs 750 million for the agricultural industry to achieve these targets.

Commenting on the government initiative of promoting the use of plastic containers to pack vegetables and fruits, Wijeratne said the country produces 1.3 million metric tonnes of vegetables and fruits out of which 0.3 metric tonnes of crops are wasted due to unhealthy packaging methods and improper transport. It is estimated about 30% and 35% of vegetables and fruits respectively are wasted due to improper transport and packaging systems. It is expected to reduce the post harvest loses up to 10 percent in Sri Lanka. However, promoting the use of plastic containers to pack vegetables and fruits would not be an achievable target if the proper infrastructure are not in place, he said.