Discussions on introducing first-ever guaranteed price for maize

Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, Land and Irrigation K. D. Lalkantha stated that the government will consider farmers’ proposals on introducing a guaranteed price for maize based on production costs, government intervention in purchasing harvests and establishing an appropriate mechanism for the process.

The Minister made these remarks during a meeting held this morning (26) at the Presidential Secretariat with a group of maize farmers, the President’s Media Division (PMD) said in a statement.

He further noted that attention is being paid to purchasing maize at a minimum of Rs. 140 per kilogram in line with production costs, while also creating an environment that reduces costs and ensures greater profitability for farmers.

Minister Lalkantha pointed out that reducing the guaranteed price below the current production cost of Rs. 135–140 per kilogram would place farmers at a disadvantage, while increasing it too much could negatively impact livestock producers and consumers.

Attention was also drawn to reducing production costs and the Minister stated that the government is considering providing fertilizer subsidies to assist farmers, the statement said.

Farmers, however, emphasized that they do not require subsidies, as such support can sometimes lead to irregularities and hinder their independence. Instead, they requested a mechanism to allow them to purchase fertilizer at concessionary prices from the open market.

Farmers also highlighted several measures that could lower production costs, including introducing modern machinery that reduces manual labour, providing high-quality and high-yield seed varieties, improving access roads for farmers cultivating government land and supplying tractors and other equipment through the Department of Agrarian Development to prepare fields.

Dr. Buddhika Nishantha Abeysinghe, Crop Leader (Maize) Department of Agriculture, explained that the high-quality seeds produced by the Mahailluppallama Agricultural Research Institute now enable farmers to achieve yields comparable to imported maize seeds, the PMD stated. 

Farmers pointed out that imported seeds often incur higher production costs due to susceptibility to diseases and the need for increased agricultural inputs. Although yields from locally produced seeds may be slightly lower, their lower production cost makes them a more sustainable and economical option, they noted.

Minister Lalkantha said the government will assess the proposals presented and take the necessary steps to expand maize cultivation while providing the required assistance to farmers, it added.

Minister of Trade, Commerce, Food Security and Cooperative Development Wasantha Samarasinghe, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Livestock Namal Karunaratne, Ministry Secretary D. P. Wickramasinghe, Director General of Department of Agriculture Dr. W. A. R. Thushara Wickramaarachchi, senior ministry officials and a group of maize farmers participated in the discussion.

-- PMD--