ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka has earned a record 834 million US dollars from export of coconuts and related products last year with a strong 26 percent annual growth, the government data showed.
The island nation earned 834 million US dollars last year from the export of coconut products such as kernel, fibre, and shell, compared to 661 million in 2020, the latest Customs data showed on Wednesday (02).
“There is a huge demand in the world for local coconut based products,” the Plantation Minister Ramesh Pathirana was quoted in a statement.
Export of kernel jumped 37 percent last year compared to 2020, fibre products rose 9 percent, and shell products gained 42 percent.
Pathirana inaugurated a Hybrid Seed Coconut Production Center at Tangalle with an aim to produce two million high-yielding hybrid coconut seedlings by 2023.
Sri Lanka produces three billion coconuts annually, but two billion nuts are consumed locally.
Coconut is one of the top agricultural crops after tea in Sri Lanka.
“If we increase the coconut production and export more coconuts, we can earn around US $ 2 billion,” the Plantation Minister said.
With a view to increase the production, the government is in the process of providing two coconut seedlings to every household in the country under the concept of ‘coconut home garden’.
