Agriculture and Plantation Minister Mahinda Amaraweera opened the Rs. 356 million worth dry chilli processing and packaging centre built by the Agriculture Sector Modernisation Project (ASMP) under the Agriculture and Plantation Ministry on Saturday (23).
The necessary financial allocations for this purpose have been provided by the Government, the World Bank and the European Union.
Over 300 farmers in this area grow chillies on 150 acres and the centre processes and packs the dried chillies to suit the local market. The Agriculture and Plantation Industries Minister, Rural Development State Minister Kader Mastan, Agriculture Secretary Janaka Dharmakeerthi and others participated in the event.
Currently, our country’s annual dry chili requirement is 52,500 metric tons. But until the year 2022, the annual dry chilli production in this country was 5,000 metric tons. The remaining 48,500 metric tons were imported.
After many years, in the year 2023, the total dry chili production in Sri Lanka has doubled to 10,000 metric tons.
All the rest of the chillies needed by the country are imported and for that a large amount of foreign exchange has to be spent.
However, due to the double row system, new techniques and methods introduced by the Agriculture Sector Modernisation Project under the high density cultivation system, chilli cultivation is once again becoming popular among the farmers.
Especially due to the high yielding MICH 1 and 2 chilli varieties introduced by the Agriculture Department, the chilli yield per hectare has increased to 65 metric tons.
Minister Amaraweera expressed his views while participating in the opening of this dry chilli processing and packaging centre: “This year we are giving priority to the cultivation of four main crops. In addition to paddy, we are taking measures to expand the cultivation of chillies, maize, red onions or big onions as well as potatoes.
We are taking steps to expand chilli cultivation and increase dry chilli production. Those activities have started now. This dry chilli processing and packaging centre opened in Vavuniya is one step in that programme. Even though we import dried chillies, the imported dried chillies contain a lot of chemicals which are contained in insecticides and herbicides. Therefore, our goal is to produce the things we need in our own country”.
