Growth prospects in the food processing industry in Sri Lanka

Daily FT - 18/02/2015

The food processing industry in Sri Lanka is one of the emerging and lucrative industries in terms of production, consumption, export and growth prospects

Food processing sector is indispensable for overall development of an economy as it provides a vital linkage and synergy between the agriculture and industry. It helps to diversify and commercialise farming; enhance income of farmers; create markets for export of agro foods as well as generate greater employment opportunities. Through the presence of such industries, a wider range of food products could be sold and distributed to the distant locations.

The term ‘food processing’ is mainly defined as a process of value addition to the agricultural or horticultural produce by various methods like grading, sorting and packaging. In other words, it is a technique of manufacturing and preserving food substances in an effective manner with a view to enhance their shelf life; improve quality as well as make them functionally more useful. It covers spectrum of products from sub-sectors comprising agriculture, horticulture, plantation, animal husbandry and fisheries.

Larger presence of Sri Lankan Exporters at Gulfood 2015 in Dubai

news.lk - 18/02/2015

50 Sri Lankans Companies participated at the Gulfood 2015 in Dubai from 8 – 12 February 2015 displaying food and beverage products such as tea, spices, processed food, soft drinks, biscuits, virgin coconut oil, dried fruit, herbal products etc.  The Sri Lanka Export Development Board (EDB) under the Ministry of Industry & Commerce and the Sri Lanka Tea Board (SLTB) in collaboration with the Consulate General of Sri Lanka in Dubai organized two country pavilions for tea and other food items.  Gulf Food is the fastest growing international trade fair for the food and beverage sector and the biggest in the MENA region.

The five day exhibition attracted 4800 companies from across the world, including Saudi Arabia, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Australia, the UK, the United States, France and Germany among other countries.

SL merchandise exports up 6.7% to US$ 11bn in 2014

The Island - 15/02/2015

Coconut product exports had a decline of eight percent to 40 million dollars while natural rubber declined by 36 percent to 46 million dollars.

Sri Lanka's annual provisional merchandise exports increased by 6.67 percent to 11.079 billion rupees, Export Development board of Sri Lanka (EDB) said in a statement.

These provisional numbers do not yet reflect the service exports values and therefore, actual exports values are expected to be much higher.

'Much potential in leather industry'

Sunday Observer - 08/02/2015
By Sanjeevi Jayasuriya

The footwear and leather industry in Sri Lanka has been identified as a value added manufacturing sector that has taken up the role of generating export revenue and employment opportunities.

“It is necessary to strengthen and sustain the image of the footwear and leather industry as it has the potential to become a vital component in the export revenue basket," said Sri Lanka Export Development Board Chairman Bandula Egodage at the launch of the Footwear and Leather Fair 2015 at the BMICH on Friday.

This is the seventh edition of the fair.

Sri Lanka a haven for medical tourism

Daily News - 07/02/2015

Think Sri Lanka and some of the things that come to mind are Asian elephants and Ceylon tea. Delve deeper and you'll discover a nation of rich heritage and wonders including lush greenery, monasteries, palaces, temples and theatres.

The country is among the beauties of the sub-continent that features a peaceful environment and a hard-working community.

Among ancient cities, a visit to Anuradhapura is a must as it holds the title as a sacred city by Buddhists around the world. Kandy is a scene to behold. With spiralling roads and refreshing environment, Kandy is especially beautiful around the Monsoon season when cool temperatures call to unwind with a warm cup of Ceylon tea.

Sri Lanka’s footwear and leather exports double within a year

Daily FT - 07/02/2015

• EDB’s 7th Footwear & Leather Fair opens in Colombo
• 'F&L exports surge to $ 110 m’-Rishad
• ‘Thanks to new processing zone’-Industry
• ‘Real value addition here is fashion’-EDB Chairman/CEO Egodage

Sri Lanka’s footwear and leather exports have doubled within just one year and posted the highest revenues so far in recent times.

The Ministry of Industry and Commerce said the sector believed the surge was due in large part to the construction of a modern tannery complex.

“Today I am pleased to announce that the $ 51 million export revenue in 2013 from this sector has more than doubled in 2014 to $ 110 million, showing this sector’s strong revenue potential. This performance supports the export promotion efforts of the 100-day program of President Maithripala Sirisena as well,” said Industry and Commerce Minister Rishad Bathiudeen while speaking in Colombo yesterday. Minister Bathiudeen was addressing the seventh edition of the annual Footwear and Leather Fair, organised by EDB and held at the BMICH.

Need to diversify export items and destinations

Sri Lanka, since colonial era, has been playing a significant part in international trade.As a country that is blessed with natural resources, the main reason as to why imperialists came to this tiny island was its export-oriented natural resources such as spices mainly cinnamon. Since then, exports of this nation have been primary and not value-added. It ought to be mentioned here that with the introduction of the open economic policy in 1977, imports began to play an important role in the Sri Lankan economy. However, Sri Lanka has become a country that imports more and exports less, resulting in balance of payment crisis. The country has been exporting to the limited number of markets such as Middle East, USA and EU. It remains important to note here that Sri Lanka has brushed aside some emerging markets like Latin America. Furthermore, some fluctuations can also be seen in Sri Lankan export sector, majority of which have a bad impact on the economy. It was recently reported that European Commission decided to impose a ban fish exports from Sri Lanka to the European Union (EU), as Sri Lanka had not taken effective measures to tackle illegal fishing. The state of affairs is worse, as Sri Lanka is the second largest fish exporter to the EU. What has to be done is that fish exporters have to find out new markets.