COLOMBO, SRI LANKA, 2009-05-20
Coconut palms epitomise the shoreline and much of the interior lowlands of Sri Lanka, the nuts providing milk, meat and coir fibre, the trunks and leaves essential building and roofing materials. Coir exports alone were valued at just under US$100 million in 2008, making Sri Lanka the second largest exporter. However, India typically generates more revenue from less production by exporting higher value coir products.
TCP, a project funded by USAID, has therefore been working in Sri Lanka since 2001 to improve the quality and efficiency of coir production, as well as preserving the many cottage industries involved by unifying the entire value chain, researching and developing new technologies and providing training.
Click related links to read the full article published in the ‘New Agriculturalist’
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| The global market for coir fibre is well developed and there is good demand, but because the fibre is produced on a small scale, mostly using low-tech methods, there is little control over the quality and quantity of the raw fibre. |
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Coir spinners are a vital link in the value chain credit: USAID
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