Kitul to go international

By Shane Seneviratne

The Kitul jaggery industry in Sri Lanka is to get a boost via a broad based programme sponsored by the German Sri Lanka Economic Co-op project, according to its Central Province Director M.K. Attanayake.

He said that already there were about 20,000 families who were indirectly involved in this industry, while families directly engaged in the jaggery industry numbered some 8,000. These two groups are to benefit from the new project.

The industry is far-fetched in the Asian region. This will be the first time however, that the local industry would get a facelift through the new project with Kandy district becoming its base.

Kandy has already commenced planting over two million Kitul plants. The new project would bring economic benefits hitherto unavailable to Kitul growers or those engaged in the local industry. The project will also generate more employment.

The project aims to introduce new methods of tapping as against the conventional methods now employed by locals. The Director said that new societies would be formed to supervise the growth of the industry under the new project, so as to introduce the local market to the international market.

The new project would provide several services the lack of which has to date stalled its development. Foreign exchange earnings is the target of the new project.