The Hon. R.M. Jayawardhana
R.M. Jayawardhana tabled, on behalf of the relevant Minister, an answer on potato supply, imports, and local production. The answer stated that Sri Lanka’s annual potato requirement is about 210,000 metric tonnes, with roughly 80 per cent met through imports and 20 per cent through domestic production, and provided import, production, and 2025 harvest data in tabled documents. It said a Special Commodity Levy of Rs. 80 per kilogram was imposed in August 2025 to support farm-gate prices during the local harvest, but imports are not suspended because domestic production is insufficient and consumer demand includes both local and imported potatoes. The answer added that longer-term measures to reduce production costs and improve productivity are needed to improve competitiveness.
Verbatim record (translated)
Machine-translated from Sinhala / Tamil / English¶ 01 Hon. Speaker, on behalf of the Minister of Trade, Commerce, Food Security and Co-operative Development, I table the Answer.
¶ 02 - Answer tabled.
¶ 03 (a) (i) Average annual requirement is about 210,000 MT. Quantities imported 2019–2024 are in the table (tabled), alongside domestic production and shares. (ii) A Special Commodity Levy of Rs. 80 per kg was imposed by Gazette No. 2451/10 dated 25.08.2025. (iii) Yes. Monthly expected harvests for 2025 as informed by the District Directors of Agriculture (Nuwara Eliya and Badulla) are tabled. (iv) No.
¶ 04 (b) The annual requirement is about 210,000 MT; around 168,000 MT (about 80%) is met by imports, and only about 20% by domestic production. Therefore, imports are not suspended during the local harvest. Additionally, there are distinct niche market preferences among consumers for both imported and local potatoes; market choice must be accommodated. While the Rs. 80 SCL during the local harvest is a short-term measure to support farm-gate prices, it alone cannot ensure full competitiveness. Long-term measures to reduce production costs and improve productivity are necessary.
Provenance
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- Hansard, Friday, 9 January 2026 ·No. 23149 ·English daily/uncorrected Hansard
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Cite as: The Hon. R.M. Jayawardhana. 10th Parliament, Parliament of Sri Lanka. Hansard, 9 January 2026. No. 23149. Politick, https://staging.politick.io/lk/speeches/1669