Crysbro lauds govt.’s initiative to strengthen local maize cultivation

Crysbro’s state-of-the-art feed production facility in Kurunegala 

• Says savings from buying maize locally can be passed down to poultry consumers
• Currently, out of 450,000 MT annual maize requirement, 225,000 MT imported
• Crysbro spends Rs.1bn per annum to purchase maize from local farmers

Poultry company Crysbro has commended the government’s initiative to revive and reinforce Sri Lanka’s maize cultivation industry, in a bid to bolster the country’s food security agenda. 

Spearheaded by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and implemented by the Agriculture Ministry of Sri Lanka, the initiative is the first step towards making the country self-sufficient in maize, as well as a step towards eradicating poverty in the rural areas of Sri Lanka by empowering the poultry and animal husbandry industries. 

The new initiative activated by the Agriculture Ministry’s minor crop cultivation unit, reintroduced maize cultivation to the Polonnaruwa district in a larger scale, in March 2019. Under this project, the Agriculture Ministry supports maize farmers in this region with the much-needed access to post-harvest management technology and knowledge, seeds, cultivation technology and other lucrative market opportunities, to find financial prosperity in their work.

 “Sri Lanka’s annual demand for maize to be used in poultry feed stands at approx. 450,000 metric tonnes and currently only about 225,000 metric tonnes are supplied from within the country to fulfil this need. The rest of the 225,000 metric tonnes have to be imported, at the cost of a massive amount of foreign exchange and Rs.10 in taxes for every kilogramme of maize. 

An increase in maize cultivation would garner massive savings and reduce tax spend, which is an advantage that can be passed down to poultry consumers in the country. It is also a step towards boosting the country’s rural economy, by directing money into the hands of the farming community. Therefore, the strong efforts made by the government to revive maize cultivation are very timely,” said Crysbro Senior Marketing Manager Amores Sellar. 

With maize being a primary raw material used in the production of poultry feed, Crysbro spends a billion rupees annually to purchase maize from farmers. This magnanimous initiative secures the income of the local maize farmers and saves the significant amount of foreign exchange spent on its import. Under this programme, maize is purchased from more than 2000 farmers in the suburbs of Moneragala, Mahiyanganaya and Anuradhapura. 

Crysbro is also equipped with state-of-the-art storage facilities to house the maize purchased from the farmers and maintains a storage complex with a capacity of 16,000 metric tonnes in Siyambalanduwa. 

As the company buys maize directly from farmers, without any intermediaries, Crysbro also provides farmers with the highest amount of money paid by a local company for maize. Through this, the company aims to reduce rural poverty. The income from maize provided to the farmers is credited to their accounts on the day of the harvest and sale.