Govt. should allow oil plantations to continue

While the coconut growers lament about ban on the expansion of oil palm cultivation in Sri Lanka, at the 166th AGM of the Planters Association of Ceylon (PA) held at the BMICH, last week, its outgoing Chairman, Sunil Poholiyadde indicated that despite the ban, oil palm cultivation should be continued to the extent that was agreed upon earlier.

He said that going on the agreed basis some plantation companies have heavily invested on crop diversification to oil palm and already incurred a massive sum of Rs. 300 million in importing oil palm seedlings.

He said the government has chosen oil palm as a third mainstream plantation crop. “At least it would be prudent at this juncture to take a decision to allow the companies to at least plant what is already in the nurseries so as to recover even a fraction of the investments made into this crop,” he said.

The oil palm industry which commenced 50 years ago in this country, on the basis of approval companies successfully started diversifying into oil palm and though the envisaged extent has been 20,000 hectares. The industry is on the verge of collapse as the present extent of cultivation of 11,000 hectares has come to a standstill with the ban.

The ban would have been, Mr. Poholiyadde said, due to numerous misconceptions regarding environmental hazards and said that needs evidence to be produced to prove such claims based on science and no such evidence are forthcoming as yet. Further, he said it is worthwhile considering the fact that due to climate change most of the rubber growing areas are inundated with high levels of rainfall, which resulted in a drastic reduction in the number of tapping days possible for rubber.

Thus he pointed out that rubber growing areas are much suited for oil palm cultivation and labour requirements of oil palm is 50 per cent less than the needs of the rubber plantation.

With regard to tea industry, he said that there is a price dip that commenced with the glyphosate issued in 2015. With other countries becoming increasingly stringent on certain environmental issues, Sri Lanka has - to a great extent - lost ground in strong and valuable markets, especially in Japan, which in turn has had a negative impact at the auctions.

A major obstacle is labour that has now reduced by 50 per cent due to younger generation not wanting to become workers on a plantation. Therefore, Mr Poholiyadde said it was necessary to pursue a mechanisation process.

Endorsing the debacles faced with the plantation industry indicated by the outgoing Chairman, the newly elected Chairman, Bathiya Bulumulla said that they are facing ahead a very challenging future and over the short-term their most pressing concerns are on the impending salary revision of the plantation workers early next year and with regard to the temporary ban imposed on oil palm cultivation.