Looming food crisis

According to the international aid agency Oxfam, about 30 million people are experiencing alarming hunger, severe levels of food insecurity and malnutrition in north-eastern Nigeria, South Sudan, Somalia and Yemen.

One in five people — 21 per cent of the population — faced hunger in Africa in 2020, while 282 million people are undernourished in Africa. That's 46 million more people compared with 2019. These figures would have seen an astronomical rise in 2021 and now 2022 after the COVID-19 pandemic and its resultant shortage of food supply in the world.

So what has famine, poverty and starvation got to do with Sri Lanka, a middle income country? Everything! If you are to go by the media and TV reports from queues at fuel stations, cooking gas and other stores supplying essential needs, often you find a person saying that they have to forego a meal a day or even two.

Famine has come to Sri Lanka’s doorstep, largely because of an irrational decision to ban chemical fertiliser (the President has admitted his mistake and recently reversed the ban), which has led to a food shortage while there is lack of government attention towards an impending food crisis.

Earlier this week, the National Agribusiness Council (NAC), a collective of entities in the national food chain, warned of an impending disruption to the food supply of the country. “After several meetings between the authorities and our member organisations, the council does not see any tangible solutions being offered to ensure the country’s food security in the coming year,” the NAC said in a statement.

The NAC consists of the agribusiness community who are the suppliers of inputs, growers and processors of food and agri produce in Sri Lanka and its members include entities involved in the importation and distribution of agri inputs such as seed material, fertiliser, agrochemicals, animal feed, veterinary medicines and supplements needed to ensure the food security of the nation.

I was examining these issues raised in the statement on food security, when the phone rang at home. Interestingly, it was Pedris Appo (short for Appuhamy), a retired agriculture expert who does farming, and I relished a discussion with him on the food crisis.

“Hi, I wanted to discuss the acute food crisis in the country as we are heading for a disaster and no section in the government is paying any attention,” he said.

Welcoming him, I replied: “What has happened to the food security committee? There was one set up by the government but I don’t think it exists anymore. Then both the Parliamentary Consultative Committee on Internal Trade, Food Security and Consumer Welfare and the Parliamentary Consultative Committee on Food Security also don’t exist anymore.”

“We are heading for a serious food scarcity situation in six months but the government’s attention is diverted mostly towards fuel, LPG and medicine requirements. Food is not on the ‘table’ of urgent attention for the government,” he added, saying this is a serious concern.

According to agriculture experts, a sum of US$1.5 million has to be allocated for the import of seeds, particularly hybrid varieties, and other essential material and no attention is being paid for this while a 25-40 per cent drop in food production is expected in the coming months from the rice seasons and other crops.

Experts say that for the Yala rice season only 30 per cent seeds are available. Input costs have escalated. For instance, urea fertiliser is selling at Rs. 40,000 per 50kg bag compared to Rs. 2,800, some time back. “One of the positives from high prices is that there is less likelihood of any over-application of fertiliser,” one expert said, adding that in his view there would be a general shortage of food in six months.

As I reflected on Sri Lanka’s impending crisis, my attention was drawn to the conversation of the trio under the margosa tree which often provides food for thought on various issues. Today (Thursday morning) it was on prices.

“Me balanna, ada mila ganan. Samba haal kilo ekak rupiyal 205, giya avurudde rupiyal 125; bonchi rupiyal 300, giya avurudde rupiyal 95; parippu rupiyal 500, issalla rupiyal 180 (Look at today’s prices: Samba rice is Rs. 205 per kg compared to Rs.125 a year back ; beans are Rs. 300 compared to Rs. 95; and dhal is Rs. 500 from Rs. 180 earlier),” said Kussi Amma Sera.

“Mata hithaganna be janathawa kohomada kalamana karaganne kiyala, mokada adu padi wedi wela nae-ne (I don’t know how people are able to manage with their measly wages which haven’t gone up),” noted Serapina.

“Harima prashnayak, mokada samahara pavul bada ginne innawa aththe (It is very worrying because some families must be starving),” added Mabel Rasthiyadu.

The NAC statement said that, “While we fully understand and share the frustration of the public with regard to shortages of fuel, gas and electricity, we would like to bring their attention to the matter of food which we feel would be a larger crisis. This would be the plight and the livelihoods of 1.7 million small farmers we are all dependent on, to grow our food. The country decided to modernise its agriculture sector in the 1980s and one of the changes was to go for high-yielding hybrid seeds that need appropriate inputs to support efficient results. Sadly, we have not developed the local capability to supply a majority of the needed seeds and due to this, we totally depend on imports. At the moment the seed stocks are fast running out and the available first-generation seeds are not adequate to meet the requirements of the country.”

Due to issues with the global supply chains, especially with the war in Europe, there is a global shortage in the supply of fertiliser, agriculture inputs and animal feed, the NAC said, warning that if the situation is allowed to deteriorate further, there would be a large-scale food scarcity leading to widespread malnutrition and hunger in Sri Lanka.

As I wound up my column and looked towards the door of the office room and Kussi Amma Sera walked in with my second mug of tea, my thoughts were on the many people queueing for essential goods and their plea that they have to forego a meal a day which necessitates state intervention through a financial handout to the poorest of the poor to tide over high food costs.