USD 40 million project launched in Polonnaruwa to export manioc products

The first ever large scale Green Investment Project to introduce local manioc (cassava) products to the international market through the Foreign Direct Investment worth US Dollar 40 million got underway on Tuesday (8) with President Maithripala Sirisena laying the foundation stone for the industrial complex to be set up in Welikanda, Polonnaruwa.

Marking the dawn of a new era of rural entrepreneurship, Starch Industries (Pvt) Ltd, a Sri Lankan agri-pharma company in collaboration with the Gramashakthi People’s Movement has launched this project with the objective of introducing traditional agro products with a fresh look to the overseas market.

The project, which is a new source of foreign exchange to the country, will involve 37,500 acres of manioc cultivation, 20,000 farmers across the country, a manufacturing plant with state-of-the-art equipment and a market.

Starch Industries (Pvt) Ltd is currently establishing three major business lines – Cultivation and sales of organic cassava in Sri Lanka and exporting to customers in China and West Asia, Refining of organic cassava into tapioca starch to be exported to Europe, USA, China and West Asia, other Asian markets and Processing and packing of cassava leaves to be sold as a vegetable, to be cleaned, crushed and used in herb capsules as nutrition supplement and used as medicine for cancer treatment and in Ayurveda medicine and to be also sold as animal fodder.

The proposed products of this project are organic cassava roots, tapioca starch, cassava leaf extract and potentially also tapioca flour, as well as other crops such as fruits and vegetables grown as rotation crops.

Starch Industries (Pvt) Ltd (STIN) is the Sri Lankan operational company of Starch Industries Global Ltd., (STIG), a British registered company.

Gramashakthi Village Empowerment Movement is a concept of President Maithripala Sirisena.

Governor North Central Province Sarath Ekanayake and Starch Industries (Pvt) Ltd Chairman Andreas Wyk were among the invitees who gathered for the event.

(Source: The Island)