Improper transportation leads to 20% of fresh produce destroyed in Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka’s Agriculture Minister Mahinda Amaraweera announced that 19% of vegetables and 21% of fruits in the country are destroyed due to a lack of proper transportation. This amounts to 221,955 tons of vegetables and 290,151 tons of fruit that people cannot eat. The Minister expressed these views while participating in a discussion held with several university professors on food safety.

There were plans set out in 2016 to present a Cabinet Paper on this matter, but as the work has yet to be completed, a new ministerial paper is being prepared. The absence of a well-known food research laboratory in Sri Lanka is viewed as a serious deficiency.

Minister Amaraweera further said that post-harvest damage in Sri Lanka is at a very high level accounting for nearly 40% of the harvest.