Agro-Economic body warns of importing organic fertilizer

COLOMBO (News 1st); The Sri Lanka Agricultural Economics Association has warned that there is a grave risk in using imported organic fertilizers which are likely to have seeds of weeds, pathogenic bacteria, fungi, nematodes, etc.

Such organisms could cause disease outbreaks in crops, livestock, and human society, leading to heavy economic losses, it said in a letter addressed to the President.

"Imported organic fertilizers also pose a high risk of contaminating our soils and water resources. Once the pollutants enter into our eco-system and destroy it, it is not easy to recover from the damage," the statement added.

Sri Lanka Agricultural Economics Association predicts massive economic losses due to potential yield losses, in the absence of proper substitutes for chemical fertilizers and pesticides, with the implementation of the import ban on fertilizers and pesticides.

They further went on to note that the immediate adverse impacts on food security, farm incomes, foreign exchange earnings, and rural poverty can be detrimental.