Sri Lanka loses fruits and vegetables worth nearly Rs. 180 billion every year — enough to feed the entire nation for two to four months, according to a new study carried out by the Department of Agriculture and several other institutions.
The research has found that more than 500,000 metric tons of produce goes to waste annually during transportation alone.
Of this, around 200,000 metric tons are vegetables and 300,000 metric tons fruits.
Between 30% and 40% of harvests are lost in transit, with the heaviest damage occurring between farms and retail markets.
Experts add that household-level waste also contributes to the losses.
The study further revealed that transportation-related wastage, which makes up about 10% of the Rs. 180 billion annual loss, could be cut down, delivering a 60% boost to both the national and farming economies.
If recommended practices were followed, wastage could be reduced to as little as 5.7%.
However, the findings note that farmers, intermediaries, and retailers are failing to adopt the guidelines and measures introduced to curb losses, undermining efforts to save billions worth of produce.
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