Agriculture Sector Modernization Project Earned USD 36 Million From Export Of Its Products Last Year
Shakila Ifham
June 21, 2023
The Agriculture Sector Modernization Project has earned USD 36 million from the export of its products in 2022. A senior Agriculture Ministry official said yesterday that a large number of crops produced under schemes initiated by the Agriculture Sector Modernization Project are exported.
The Agriculture Sector Modernization Project provides the necessary financial and technical facilities and technical training to farmers to embark on new cultivations. Among them are Green Cucumber, Sour banana, Mango, Pineapple, Papaya, Moringa leaves, jumbo peanuts etc.
Agriculture Minister Mahinda Amaraweera has requested a report on the foreign exchange earned by these projects in 2022 and according to the report; the Agriculture Sector Modernization Project earned 36 million dollars through such crop exports last year.
Among these export crops, the most popular ones are Sour Bananas in Rajanganaya and Jaffna and Green Cucumber grown in Wakare, Batticaloa.
The entire crop of green cucumbers is exported to Japan, and the most used green cucumbers for burgers in Japan are grown in Wakare, according to the Agriculture Sector Modernization Project.
Apart from Dubai, there is a huge demand for sour bananas from many other countries, but according to the international standard, sour bananas are cultivated only in Rajangana and Jaffna sour banana cultivation zones, the official added. “Therefore, the production of our country is still not enough for the demand of other countries,” he added.
Plans are underway to start two cultivation areas and a banana processing centre of 400 acres of sour bananas and Cavendish bananas in Embilipitiya and Sevanagala areas at a cost of 150 million rupees.
Amaraweera has instructed the Agricultural Sector Modernization Project to plan to grow all the products of these banana growing areas according to proper standards so that they can be exported.
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