Importing organic fertiliser: Focus on quality, procedures, and biodiversity

25 Sep 2021

Importing organic fertiliser: Focus on quality, procedures, and biodiversity

25 Sep 2021

By Maheesha Mudugamuwa The Government called for new fertiliser samples from a Chinese company following allegations of the detection of harmful microorganisms in samples from an organic fertiliser stock that was to be imported, The Sunday Morning learnt. According to the Ministry of Agriculture, the new samples would arrive from Singapore, and once received, it would be directed to several independent laboratories for testing. Based on the results, a decision would be taken by the authorities on whether to proceed with the importation. This decision was reached following reports published last week regarding the detection of harmful bacteria in the samples of a stock of fertiliser that was to be imported from China, during tests conducted on two occasions by foreign and local laboratories. As per the reports, one test was conducted by German lab Schutter Global Inspection and Survey Co. Ltd., which detected Coliform bacteria in the samples from a shipment that was specifically assigned to Sri Lanka. Meanwhile, an earlier test done by the National Plant Quarantine Service of the Department of Agriculture had also detected Erwinia bacteria (a form of Coliform bacteria) in the samples of the same stock. Furthermore, the Analysis Certificate issued by Schutter on 14 September referred to fertiliser stocks from the production line of Qingdao Seawin Biotech Group Co. Ltd., a Chinese company, with the date of sampling stated as 11 September and date of testing issued as 11-14 September on an aseptic sample. These new developments created doubts among Sri Lankan farmers, as they feared this imported organic fertiliser could damage their farmlands. Additionally, environmentalists raised concerns on how imported fertiliser that includes harmful microorganisms could pose a significant threat to Sri Lanka’s biodiversity. Speaking to The Sunday Morning, Environmental Conservation Trust (ECT) Director Sajeewa Chamikara said that organic farming couldn’t be implemented overnight, as it was a system that should be adopted gradually. According to him, if the Government failed to adopt a proper procedure, the entire agriculture sector as well as its biodiversity would be at risk. “Organic fertiliser should be produced within the country, because if we use fertiliser that is produced in a different environment, the microorganisms from that environment could pose a huge threat to local biodiversity, because even though those microorganisms may not be harmful in that country (of production), it could be harmful in Sri Lanka, as there is a possibility of them growing differently when exposed to the different climatic conditions in Sri Lanka,” he stressed. Chamikara added that if the Government did not follow the proper procedures, the country’s flora and fauna would be threatened. “The worst is that we don’t know the impact until the results start showing. If we start using that fertiliser now, the results would be seen in a year or two. We don’t know the effects (of the fertiliser) on agriculture and biodiversity as yet, but if we didn’t follow the (correct) procedures, we can say the results would not be favourable,” Chamikara added. Farmers too fear that this could lead to yet another disaster. They claimed the agriculture sector was turned upside down by the sudden decision taken by the Government to ban chemical fertiliser imports, and now, if it brings down harmful fertilisers, they would not be able to bear the consequences. The government decision to ban the importation of chemical fertilisers was announced on 22 April by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, and was then presented to the Cabinet on 26 April and approved. On 6 May, Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, who was also the Minister of Finance at the time, published a gazette notification enforcing the ban. Speaking to The Sunday Morning, All Island Farmers Federation (AIFF) National Organiser Namal Karunaratne said: “This is a very important field, and the decision should be made wisely by consulting all sectors without taking decisions alone. This is about the country’s food security and sustainability. Shifting to organic methods of farming is the need of the hour, but that is a process and not a decision that can be taken overnight.” Warning that the importation of organic fertiliser would pose a significant threat to the country’s biodiversity, as it could carry unwanted and invasive plants as well as microorganisms, he told The Sunday Morning that one of the main tasks of this type of fertiliser was the activation of microorganisms in the land. “At present, we are using a two-foot-deep soil layer for cultivation, and once we use organic fertiliser, the microorganisms in all soil layers, till the bedrock, will be activated, and it will ultimately soften the soil layers. This can be very dangerous, especially in the Central Province, as most of these areas are facing a huge threat from landslides,” he stressed. Govt. clarifies In such a backdrop, when The Sunday Morning contacted Ministry of Agriculture Secretary Prof. Udith K. Jayasinghe for clarifications on the allegations, he said the Ministry had asked the Chinese fertiliser company to send new samples, which would be tested at independent laboratories before a decision is taken by the Government based on previous test results. However, the Ministry Secretary raised doubts on whether the laboratory that tested the sample and provided questionable results had followed standard procedure and handled the samples as required prior to conducting the tests, as he said that tests conducted by a recognised international laboratory had given positive results for the same samples. “We are investigating, and inquiries will be made. We’re waiting until the President comes to Sri Lanka,” Prof. Jayasinghe said. “This time, we are going to deal with them (samples) a little carefully. We will send the samples to several independent laboratories. If we get good test results, we will bring down the fertiliser; if not, we won’t. We are following rules and regulations,” he stressed. Explaining further, Prof. Jayasinghe said: “We got standard specifications for organic fertiliser from a team of experts and with those specifications, approved by the Sri Lanka Standard Institution (SLSI), we went through a tender procedure and called for applications. Out of those, the Cabinet-appointed tender board and the technical panel selected around two or three bidders based on a transparent procedure. We selected one company, as it fulfilled all our requirements. We presented our conditions to the selected company, which is one of the largest in the world and the biggest organic fertiliser company in China.” According to him, the company supplies organic fertiliser to the US, Canada, Australia, and Japan. “Those countries have the biggest agricultural economies and countries like that are not going to import what is bad for their nations. Therefore, they are also not going to produce anything bad for Sri Lanka, and they are required to maintain their standards,” Prof. Jayasinghe stressed. However, elaborating further, the Ministry Secretary noted that even though the company had a clear profile, the Government decided to test the samples before bringing down the necessary fertiliser stocks. “As scientists and responsible administrators, we won’t allow something bad for the country to enter Sri Lanka. As a government policy, we won’t allow the importation without testing being conducted by reputed labs through established procedures,” he stressed. Highlighting the tests conducted, Prof. Jayasinghe said that the test reports were slightly different from each other, and in one report, it was stated that one harmful bacterium was presented. Doubting the sample collection process of the said laboratory, he said: “Simple contamination could allow harmful bacteria to enter.” The Ministry of Agriculture raised questions on how the reports were released to the media even before the results were officially submitted to the Ministry. “I didn’t even formally get the reports. These were released with some photos,” Prof. Jayasinghe stressed, questioning whether there could be a link between the negative test results and multinational companies that are unhappy with the Government’s decision to shift from chemical fertilisers to organic fertilisers. “We tested the same samples at an international lab and got very good results. The company had informed us that if such contamination had occurred, they would pay us back in full. They want to safeguard their names. Also, since we are in an urgent need of fertiliser, we wanted to bring very high-quality and super-graded organic fertiliser,” the Ministry Secretary added. Highlighting statistics, he said that from 2013 to 2019, different companies brought down around 28,500 MT of organic fertilisers and pesticides to Sri Lanka. “No one had tested or requested a test. There is a force against organic fertiliser, which is trying to change the minds of the people,” he said. According to the National Fertiliser Secretariat (NFS) of the Ministry of Agriculture, the country’s total paddy cultivation extent in both the Yala and Maha seasons in 2020 was 1.3 million hectares, with 97,120 hectares of other field crops. Sri Lanka imported a total of 574,705.9 MT of fertiliser last year at a cost of over Rs. 36 billion. Annually, around 1,260,053 MT of fertiliser is imported to the country by spending over Rs. 56 billion. According to the NFS, the annual fertiliser demand for paddy and other crops was estimated at around 383,000 MT and 877,053.5 MT, respectively, for the same period.

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Importing organic fertiliser: Focus on quality, procedures, and biodiversity

Importing organic fertiliser: Focus on quality, procedures, and biodiversity

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