Faculty of Agriculture, University of Peradeniya provides leadership to the food flow mapping in Sri Lanka with the support of FAO and IWMI

The Faculty of Agriculture of the University of Peradeniya has completed a comprehensive mapping of the food flow of seven commodities, namely, paddy/rice, maize, potato, beans, banana, chicken meat and marine fish across 25 districts of the country. Of this, the attached Technical Report provides the summary of the food flow to the Colombo City Region Food System. The outcome presented in the attached report will no doubt support the policy makers to take informed decisions in providing food of high quality at affordable prices to the consumers, while reducing food miles and food losses. The report also deals with the changes in the food flow in two scenarios, i.e. COVID-19 pandemic and the changing and variable climate.

Prof. Buddhi Marambe of the Faculty of Agriculture, University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka served as the team leader of this much-needed project in Sri Lanka. The co-authors of this technical report include academia from the Faculties of Agriculture from University of Peradeniya, Wayamba University of Sri Lanka, University of Jaffna, University of Ruhuna, Sabaragamuwa University of Sri Lanka, Rajarata University of Sri Lanka and the Eastern University of Sri Lanka. The co-authors of the report also include scientists from the Department of Agriculture (DOA) of Sri Lanka, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) of Rome, Italy and Colombo, Sri Lanka, and the International Water Management Institute (IWMI) of Colombo, Sri Lanka.

Data collection, descriptive analysis, food flow analysis, estimation of food miles, food losses and change in food prices at different nodal points were financially supported by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations under the “City Region Food Systems Programme” and by the International Water Management Institute (IWMI) under the project “Data Analysis and Food Flow Mapping of Seven Commodities Across 25 Administrative Districts of Sri Lanka.” The detail report covering the food flow of the seven commodities in all districts of Sri Lanka is in preparation.