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Pear growers in Sri Lanka's Badulla district are reporting lower returns as reduced harvests and low farmgate prices affect profitability.
The Agriculture Department introduced pears to the area about 50 years ago under the name "Rahangala Pears." Production is concentrated in Welimada, Boralanda, Rahangala, Uva Paranagama and Luckyland Gommalikanda, while cultivation is also expanding in Ragala in the Nuwara Eliya district.
Grower W.A. Sangadasa said two pear varieties are cultivated, including a local variety and a grafted variety developed by the Rahangala Agriculture Research Institute. He said the local variety sells for about Rs 600 per kilogram (US$2.00), while the grafted variety receives around Rs 800 per kilogram (US$2.67).
"The local variety is bought from us at the wholesale price of Rs 600 a kilo, while the grafted variety is bought at Rs 800 per kilo. This earning is insufficient, as we can harvest only once a year and the money is not enough to maintain the trees," he said.
Growers said heavy rainfall reduced this season's harvest by causing flowers to drop before fruit set.
Other producers said pears have become an additional crop for many tea smallholders in the area, but rising production costs, including fertiliser, pest management and limited market access, continue to affect returns. They also called for new high-yielding varieties and measures to improve marketing, saying traders purchase pears for Rs 600 to Rs 700 per kilogram (US$2.00 to US$2.34) while roadside retail prices exceed Rs 2,000 per kilogram (US$6.67).
Frontpage photo: © Nikolay Dimitrov | Dreamstime
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