Agriculture in Sri Lanka

The primary form of agriculture in Sri Lanka is rice production. Rice is cultivated during Maha and Yala seasons. Tea is cultivated in the central highlands and is a major source of foreign exchange. Vegetables, fruits and oilseed crops are also cultivated in the country. There are two Agriculture Parks abbreviated as A.Parks established by the Department of Agriculture. Out of the total population in Sri Lanka, 31.8% engages in agricultural activities. Agriculture and allied sectors like forestry and fisheries accounted for 18% of the GDP (gross domestic product) in 2014, about 26.4% of the workforce or employment.

Rice is the single most important crop occupying 34 percent (0.77 /million ha) of the total cultivated area in Sri Lanka. On average 560,000 ha are cultivated during Maha and 310,000 ha during Yala making the average annual extent sown with rice to about 870,000 ha. About 1.8 million farm families are engaged in paddy cultivation island-wide. Sri Lanka currently produces 2.7 million tonnes of rough rice annually and satisfies around 95 percent of the domestic requirement. Rice provides 45% total calorie and 40% total protein requirement of an average Sri Lankan.

It is projected that the demand for rice will increase at 1.1% per year and to meet this the rice production should grow at the rate of 2.9% per year. Increasing the cropping intensity and national average yield are the options available to achieve this production targets.

The current cost of production of rough rice is Rs. 8.57 per kg. The cost of labor, farm power and tradable inputs constitutes 55%, 23% and 22% respectively. The labour cost has risen at a higher rate than other costs over the last few years.

While the global demand for rice will increase at 1.95% the production will increase at 1.62% per annum making the tradable rice volume to be doubled in another 20 years time. As a result, the rice price would decline at 0.73% per year. On the other hand, the domestic price of rice on par with Thai A1 super (the cheapest in the world market) would be higher by 50 -70 USD per t than the internationally traded rice.This situation will place Sri Lanka under increase pressure to produce cheaper and high quality rice in the coming years.

As an attempt to recuperate the losses caused by the downfall of Coffee plantation (such as 1869 Hemileia vastatrix disease and the drooping prices of Coffee cultivatable lands during 1847), Tea was planted in Sri Lanka as an experimental crop. Several research groups were sent to Assam to study and identify the necessary prerequisites for the new crop. In between this Tea industry was introduced to the country in 1867 by James Taylor, the British planter who arrived in 1852, in Lool Kandura. It is one of the main sources of foreign exchange for Sri Lanka and accounts for 2% of GDP, generating roughly $700 million annually to the economy of Sri Lanka. It employs, directly or indirectly over 1 million people, and in 1995 directly employed 215,338 on tea plantations and estates. Sri Lanka is the world's fourth largest producer of tea. In 1995, it was the world's leading exporter of tea, (rather than producer) with 23% of the total world export, but it has since been surpassed by Kenya.

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