Govt. upset with rubber traders
The government has hit out at the rubber industry sharply criticizing its members for not doing enough to curtail the growing downward trend of its production levels that have fallen. Plantation Minister Lakshman Kiriella addressing the Colombo Rubber Traders Association (CRTA) AGM in Colombo last week said the future of the rubber industry was dependent on the people growing rubber.
In the recent past there have been instances when large rubber plantations were used to grow other crops. The minister queried from the industry what they had done to quell this situation and asked if it was fair to always depend on the smallholders to grow rubber.
He left it to the industry to find their markets, adding that the sector needed to look to China as well for trade.The government was only capable of providing subsidies something which the minister noted was still being carried out in Sri Lanka. However the Business Times learns that major rubber producing nations like Thailand, Malaysia and India still provide subsidies through their respective governments.
Industry calls for the removal of the export cess for premium grades of rubber was considered to be difficult to implement without a formal discussion on the matter, the minister said. Ceylon Rubber Traders Association Chairman M.S. Rahim said that production had dropped significantly last year followed by a “big drop” in prices. He noted that the new government had provided the rubber subsidy for the smallholders leaving out the plantation companies and large estate owners despite their producing high quality RSS1-3 rubber.
He pointed out that the export of premium grade rubber to niche markets was charged a cess as a result of which the industry noted it led Sri Lankan prices to become unattractive in the global market. In this respect, Mr. Rahim asked the government to remove the cess and grant relief to exporters when world markets were facing difficulties due to slow demand.
Mr. Rahim was re-elected as Chairman of the CRTA for another year as well.