Baurs facilitates the revisit of Swiss experts to assist the nation’s efforts towards organic agriculture
In its continuous efforts to share scientific and practical solutions in enabling a successful conversion from conventional to organic farming, A. Baur & Co. (Pvt.) Ltd., also known as Baurs, recently facilitated a team of organic agri experts from Switzerland who revisited Sri Lanka during early-February.
The team included Prof. Christoph Studer, Professor of Natural Resources Management at HAFL, Dr. Jacques G Fuchs, Senior Scientist in Plant Pathology and Soil Quality and Mr. Paul van den Berge, Senior Consultant from FiBL.
The revisit marks the second phase of the comprehensive study, and this time around the purpose was to further study the strategically identified potential areas based on the initial findings.
During their 9- day visit, the experts held discussions with officials from the Ministry of Agriculture to comprehend the Government’s current standing on its green agriculture policy and visited key institutions such as RRDI, FCRDI, FMRC, University of Peradeniya Faculty of Agriculture Sub Campus in Mahailluppallama as well as TRI.
This also included discussions with officials at the FCRDI and academia to explore possibilities of intercropping leguminous crops in between two paddy seasons as a sandwich crop. The experts visited the Municipality Council of Nuwara Eliya, the largest vegetables and fruits wholesale market in Dambulla, a leading local dairy producer, a private poultry farm, and composting site in Chilaw. Mr. Jacques Kohli, a graduate from the Bern University of Applied Sciences is working with Baurs as an intern in carrying out a detailed study on the availability of raw materials for organic fertiliser production and their potential uses.
They also met with officials from SLINTEC, ITI and a bio fertiliser manufacturer including discussions with SLSIand National Plant Quarantine Service.Further, they visited Umandawa Global Buddhist Village and farm fields in Dambulla and Nuwara Eliya and the Idalgashinna organic tea garden. The experts conducted training sessions to farmers and a knowledge sharing session for senior managers and marketing team of Baurs.