Govt.’s change of heart leaves farmers in the lurch
View(s):Sri Lanka’s agriculture sector as a whole is in trouble despite lifting the ban on chemical fertiliser imports and the country is faced with the crisis in the global market where prices have skyrocketed leaving local farmers out in the cold with no subsidies for cover.
There is a natural trend for prices to increase but this year it has been peculiar since China stopped exports and Russia has limited its exports of fertiliser to the rest of the world, Weed Science expert and Peradeniya University Senior Prof. Buddhi Marambe told the Business Times.
The Extra Ordinary Gazette No. 2256/23 dated November 30, 2021 was issued by the Finance Minister allowing the ban on chemical fertilisers to be lifted with effect from November 30, 2021 but banned the import of glyphosate.
He explained that when orders are placed it will take about two months and prices during this period is naturally a high phenomenon that the National Fertiliser Secretariat (NFS) including the two state fertiliser companies and the importers are well aware of. “They know when to purchase but this time we missed the bus since there was a ban.”
This year fertiliser prices globally have skyrocketed due to the unusual increase in freight rates and container space availability. In previous years the trend has been for the fertiliser prices to drop by February but this is yet to be seen.
With no financial incentives the people will try to adapt to the situation when there is a market for their product, he explained.
With the new gazette even weedicides and pesticides are allowed except glyphosate but the farmer is compelled to purchase at very high prices inspite of the fact that even in India the farmers are being increasingly subsidised by their governments. Sri Lanka has adopted the policy of subsidising only organic fertiliser.
“One silver line I always see is that there was a massive effort towards using organic fertiliser and I think that trend should continue even when using synthetic fertilisers,” Prof. Marambe said.
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