By Chatura Rodrigo
Research Economist, IPS
Research Economist, IPS
Developing the organic rice farming sector and ensuring that it
makes a significant contribution towards the rice consumption in Sri Lanka is a
necessity today. However, for the past decade, the spread of organic rice production
in the country was limited to marginalized lands. Many farmers cultivate for their
own consumption; while only a portion of rice is sent to urban markets. This
too targets a selected segment of consumers, mostly the upper middle income and
high income groups. While many argue that the slow growth in the sector is due
to the difficulties in production, one cannot ignore that the high price of
organic rice has a possible impact on the reduction in the demand for
consumption.