6:05 AM
Movement for National Land and Agricultural Reform,
(June 17, 2010) The Department of Agriculture of Sri Lanka produced seed potatoes on five government farms earlier but they are not functioning now.
The Minister of Agriculture of the Central Provincial Council of Sri Lanka Nimal Piyatissa described lengthily about the decline of potato production in the central hills of Sri Lanka. He pointed out low quality of imported seed paddy as one reason for the drop of production.
Addressing the meeting, the Minister of Agriculture Mahinda Yapa Abewardhana said that seed farms would be established in each administrative division of Sri Lanka in the future.
Burning straw by farmers and land filling was also taken into consideration of the Agricultural Ministers and a decision was taken not to give the fertilizer subsidy to the farmers that burn straw.
The successful cultivation of potatoes was first recorded in Sri Lanka in 1812, when it was introduced in Morawak Korale. Others like Abeyaratna (1985) contend that the potatoes were, probably, introduced by the Dutch who ruled the coastal areas from 1656 to 1792. Attempts at growing potatoes in the center of the present potato producing area were done by Samuel Baker around 1850. However, it was only in 1909 that the local potatoes of Uruguay origin were grown at Hakgala Gardens. Later some British planters in the country at the time cultivated potatoes in their home gardens for their own use. Meanwhile the Department of Agriculture was concerned with potato cultivation for a considerable period (Mahakumbura, 1980).
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