• NAU Prez claims the horse has bolted from the stables

Against the backdrop of the Government’s decision to increase import taxes on big onions and potatoes, farmers’ groups have expressed concerns that the move appears to favor importers while adversely affecting local farmers.

Noting this, National Agrarian Unity (NAU) President Anuradha Thennakoon claimed that although the Government increased these taxes targeting the harvesting period to support local farmers, importers had already imported big onions and potatoes in large quantities. He told The Daily Morning that in this context, the Government’s move seems to be counterproductive.

“There is no point in imposing the tax now. This is like closing the stable door after the horse has bolted. Big onion importers have already brought in their stocks,” he said, adding that the timing of the tax imposition was not practically beneficial at all, and that the importers are making undue profits.

Thenankoon raised similar concerns regarding potatoes as well, adding that most of the potato stocks in the market are imported. Noting that the potato-harvesting season is approaching, he said that it would be difficult to sell locally grown potatoes at a reasonable price due to imported potatoes. He explained that the recently increased taxes have increased the price difference between locally grown potatoes and imported potatoes, which he opined would negatively impact potato sales.

According to Thennakoon, Sri Lanka’s annual big-onion requirement is around 280,000 metric tonnes, while the potato requirement is around 250,000 metric tonnes.