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Don’t import rice, ample stocks, says farmer association
View(s):The country has sufficient stocks of rice until the beginning of next year and there was no necessity to import, a farmers association said.
All Island Farmers’ Federation, national organiser Namal Karunaratne said thousands of acres of paddy-cultivated lands in Anuradhapura, Polonnaruwa, Ampara and Kilinochchi are ready for harvesting this Yala season and farmers would be forced to sell their paddy at a low price if the Government imports rice.
Imported rice at a wholesale store
More than 18,000 of acres of paddyland in Kaudulla, Polonnaruwa and more than 150,000 acres in Ampara are ready for harvesting, he said. “I assure you that we have more than 26 million metric tonnes of rice which would be sufficient to meet the country’s monthly rice consumption of 200,000 metric tonnes until January, even without taking into account the next Yala harvest,” he added.
He claimed that the rice now being sold in the market was from the paddy bought from farmers at a price between Rs 28 to Rs 35 in 2016 and 2015 and now being sold at high prices by large scale millers who are making huge profits.
“According to the price formula the wholesale price of a kilo of rice could be maintained below Rs 64 while the retail price could be Rs 68 after keeping a profit,” he claimed.
Mr. Karunaratne said although the drought affected the Maha season harvest, it didn’t have a negative impact on the Yala season, and in fact was favourable for paddy cultivation.
However, Industry and Commerce Ministry Secretary Chinthaka Lokuhetti said by December this year nearly 350,000 MT of rice would be imported.
He said the first consignment of 25,000 metric tonnes would arrive from Thailand by the second or third week of August, while another 30,000 is due from Myanmar and Pakistan. Mr. Lokuhetti said since the local yield will also reach the market, the amount that needed to be imported would change according to the demand.
