Onion cultivation: A dying industry in Jaffna

Sundaram Divakalal and his wife have a daily routine; they make breakfast in the morning for their two sons and daughter, and go to their onion farm in the outskirts of Jaffna Town before 8.30am. At the farm, they prepare the land for new seeds, plant those seeds and harvest the matured plants before coming home to their kids who are back from school in the afternoon. The couple has had a simple, routine life for over 17 years.

However, things are changing drastically for Divakalal's family and several other onion farmers like them in Jaffna district. The current economic recession and soaring commodity prices have left families like Divakalal's in a very difficult state. With the income they receive from onion cultivation, they can barely afford the necessities such as food and utilities - let alone spend any money on expanding their business. Like many onion farmers in Jaffna, Divakalal might have to change his daily routine soon.

"My family has been cultivating onions for years, but we might soon have to move to another business like cultivating a crop such as paddy. The profit that we get from onion cultivation wouldn't allow us to continue with the business anymore," the 53-year-old farmer said, through a translator.

Sri Lanka's 26-year long civil war has always been blamed for the dwindling economy of the country. The island nation's economy suffered major setbacks during the war, including the bankruptcy in 2001 and the high inflation rate that had persisted over the years. The economy has undoubtedly recovered over the past couple of years, but the progress has not been enough to help farmers to continue with their work.

With the end of the war in May 2009, onion cultivators in Jaffna and other northern and eastern provinces returned to their farms in the hope of rebuilding their lives and expanding their business. The increased availability of homegrown vegetables such as red onion in the market is just one of the many dividends of peace being reaped in post-war Sri Lanka. However, this trend might not continue for long, as several farmers in Jaffna are considering giving up onion cultivation.

'No subsidies'

Last year, the Sri Lankan government spent about 50 billion rupees on agriculture subsidies. Official figures reveal that 18 billion rupees were distributed to fertiliser importers across the country as subsidy, which allowed farmers to purchase fertiliser at a subsidised rate of 350 rupees per 50kg. However, many onion farmers say that they do not receive any subsidies provided by the government for agricultural purposes.

"The subsidies are being provided to farmers who cultivate paddy and spices such as cinnamon, pepper, cloves, cardamoms, nutmeg and mace. We have to buy seeds and fertilisers at the normal, unsubsidised rate," said Vasanthan Ruthrakumar, who has been cultivating onions for four years.

Niroshan Ravichnadran, who has been in the business for about six years, also shared similar concerns. He says that the soaring prices of seeds and fertilisers are hurting their business like never before.

"The government says that they spend this and that much for subsidies to farmers. But we're left in the dark because those subsidies are being given to paddy cultivators. And the prices of fertilisers and other necessary agricultural items are going up day by day," he said.

Independent research organisations have also raised concerns over the discriminations in providing subsidies to farmers in rural areas. According to the Institute of Policy Studies, a local think tank specialising in economic policy research and analysis, the government should divert funds from agriculture subsidies to improving market linkages of farmers in rural communities.

"Increasing competitiveness and strengthening their linkages with agri-business firms which ultimately improve the capacity for participating in modern supply mechanisms will be useful in creating a conducive production environment for small farmers," an IPS report on the state of the economy read.

Dr Saman Kelegama, an economist at the institute, said a targeted subsidy like the one given to fertiliser importers would not have much of an impact on improving the business of farmers because fertiliser might not be the major cost in their business.

"When the cost of production goes up, subsidies can assist in the agriculture sector. Subsidies – whether given for fertiliser or seeds or tractor or whatever – can make farmers produce items at a reduced price when other input costs are escalating," he said. "But, sometimes a targeted subsidy, if it doesn't improve the competitiveness of the product significantly is called a 'bad' subsidy."

Many onion farmers have also stopped sending their harvest to markets out of Jaffna district. They claim that they are not getting a competitive price that will allow them to cover transport and other expenses.

"I'm selling onions only in Jaffna now because I can't afford to send my harvest to Pettah and other markets out of our district. Since imported onions are sold for a much cheaper price across the country, the local produce doesn't have any value in the market. People always go for the cheaper items," Divakalal said.

Lack of cooperation

The government, however, believes that onion farmers in Jaffna are not cooperating enough with the authorities to improve their business and increase the profits. Relevant authorities say that they are trying their best to assist farmers in their business.

"We offer a variety of opportunities for onion farmers to improve their business, including loans, seeds and storage facilities. We also organise various awareness campaigns from time to time in order to make sure that the farmers are well versed in latest technology and pesticides. But a lot of them aren't willing to fully cooperate with us," said Sri Palasudaram, Deputy Secretary at the Department of Agriculture's office in Jaffna.

According to the department, 1.5kgs of big onion seeds were distributed to two farmers under a programme implemented by the department last year. The farmers cultivated the seeds in 0.5 acres of land and received an average yield of 2,000kg/acre, which earned them an income of 60,000 rupees.

The department also carried out another programme last year under which five onion cultivators were provided with assistance to construct storage facilities for red onions. Officials of the department said that the storage structures helped the farmers to increase their income by controlling the market fluctuation for red onion during the peak season.

In addition, the agriculture department implemented a separate programme last year to introduce the cultivation of red onion in new areas and off-season. Under the programme, 100kg of onion seeds, 17kg of inorganic fertiliser, two bottles of weedicide and two bottles of pesticide were distributed among two farmers. The cultivators were also given 2,000 rupees to prepare the 0.125 acres of land where the seeds were planted. An average yield of 6,000kg/acre was produced under the programme.

The closed economic policies propagated by the government in the 1970s led to a major agricultural boom in cash crops such as red chillies, onions and tobacco. This trend continued throughout the 80s and 90s – in 1990, 57 percent of red onions produced in the entire country came from Jaffna. However, the escalated fighting between government forces and separatist Tamil Tiger rebels in the late 90s led to a significant decline in onion production in Jaffna. In 2009, Jaffna contributed only 10.4 percent to the production of red onion nationwide.

The agriculture department expects onion farmers in Jaffna to produce 60,800 metric tons of red onion this year compared to the 39,150 metric tons cultivated last year.

“While the national requirement of red onions will reach 115,600 metric tons this year, our estimates show that only 32,400 metric tons of red onion will be cultivated by farmers in other areas of the country. So we're providing financial assistance to farmers in Jaffna on request. Many programmes are also being conducted by the department to help them find storage spaces and cost-efficient ways to sell their harvest outside Jaffna," Palasudaram said.

After years of war and conflict, the restaurants in Jaffna are reopened for tourists and new hotels are under construction to cope with the influx of tourists. The current influx of both domestic and foreign tourists to Jaffna following the end of the war has brought about a boom in the tourism industry. However, the broken roads and buildings are still there. The people of Jaffna are still uncertain about what happened in their past and their own futures.

"We have to think about our future and that of our children. But we don't think we can achieve anything more by cultivating onions," Divakalal said. Like many onion farmers in Jaffna, he and his family are waiting for the current situation to change. If not, they would not have any other choice but to abandon the occupation they had come to love