The government has instructed Lak Pohora and Colombo Commercial Fertilisers Ltd (CCFL) to ensure an efficient fertiliser distribution process during the upcoming Maha season 2019/2020; Agriculture, Rural Economic Affairs, Irrigation and Fisheries, and Aquatic Resources Development Minister P. Harrison said.
The minister told the Daily News that the government also has plans to produce single superphosphate at the Eppawala Rock Phosphate Deposit and Processing Plant for the tea, rubber, and coconut industries. He added that this would be carried out for the first time in the country’s history.
Minister Harrison said that 200,000 metric tonnes of fertiliser is required to cultivate paddy during the upcoming Maha season. He said that the paddy cultivation spans around 800,000 hectares.
The minister said that high-quality fertiliser is currently being imported from Russia, China, and Vietnam. Furthermore, Lak Pohora and Colombo Commercial Fertilisers Ltd have imported 150,000 metric tonnes of urea, 37,000 metric tonnes of triple superphosphate, and 44,000 metric tonnes of muriate of potash, he added.
“For the past 50 years, we have just been producing 50,000 metric tonnes of phosphate annually and selling it to 12 fertiliser companies. But now, we have decided to produce single superphosphate for the tea, rubber, and coconut industries,” Minister Harrison said.
He added that in the future, the government also wishes to produce triple superphosphate. The minister said that the country should make proper use of the 70 million metric tonnes of phosphate found in the country.
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