The agriculture sector is one of the most prominent sectors and the cornerstone in Sri Lanka 's economy with more than 72% of the population living in rural areas depending on agriculture for their livelihoods (Central bank of Sri Lanka, 2012a).
Agriculture sector contributes about 11.1 percent to the national GDP of Sri Lanka. Agriculture sector comprises with general agriculture including plantation and non-plantation crops, livestock, forestry and fisheries sub sectors. The fisheries, livestock, and forestry subsectors account for 1.3%, 0.8% and 0.6% of the national GDP respectively (Central Bank, 2012).
Fruits and vegetables (F & V) are two important sub sectors in the Sri Lankan agricultural economy where about eighty (80) different
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Sri Lanka is a fertile tropical land with full of natural resources that has the potential to cultivation and processing of variety of crops. 65% of the cultivable land (1.9 million ha out of 2.9 million ha) of the country is being used for agriculture. Out of which only 21% is occupied by the field crops, horticultural crops and minor export crops (Sri Lanka Land Reclamation & Development Corporation). The end of the prolonged conflict has released a considerable amount of arable land in Northern and Eastern provinces that can be utilized for productive purposes.
However, the productivity in the agricultural sector has remained relatively stable and low, except for rice which has reached near self-sufficiency in the recent years. Moreover, the growth in the agriculture sector has been sluggish. A rapid increase in both productivity and growth in the agricultural sector is fundamental for reducing poverty in Sri Lanka as nearly 90 per cent of the poor live in the rural agricultural
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At present F&V are mainly grown by the semi commercialized small farmers whose individual extent of land does not exceed a hectare. With a view to enhance F & V production, private sector involvement in commercial cultivation too has been encouraged by the Sri Lankan Government with support from “Contract growing” farmers (Expo Sri Lanka, 2012).
Sri Lanka is being adjusting well to the stringent ISO 9000 series and to the Health and safety regulations stipulated by the European Community. Tropical fruits of Sri Lanka such as Pineapple, Rambutan, Mangosteen, Passion Fruits etc. are very popular among the nations in the world due to their unique characteristics such as flavour, smell, colour and taste.
Further, the F&V sector is an important part of Sri Lankan’s diet. The F&V sector also contributes significantly to rural development and job creation. The demand for F&V in both local and foreign markets has been increasing and thereby providing opportunities for further