Although Sri Lanka is dealing with a shortage of fresh coconut, as the production has declined, the coco coir industry is not affected, says Shan Halamba with Riococo. "There is more than enough supply to meet demand," says Shan Halamba with Riococo. "Even with fluctuations in the domestic market for kernel-based products, the substrate sector remains unaffected." An issue the industry is dealing with, are the changes in global logistics, which is why growers are advised to order substrates in time.
Sri Lanka continues to be a key supplier of coco substrate for the global horticulture industry, Shan says. "With an annual production of over 3 billion coconuts, the country has the capacity to meet the demand for processed coco substrates and fiber. The total potential export volume exceeds 50,000 ocean containers per year, though actual exports remain at approximately 16,000 containers."
The production of coco husks and pith is dedicated to the export market. "While the Sri Lankan government occasionally imports coconut kernels to support manufacturers in the food industry, the availability of husks for substrate production is not impacted. Less than 60% of the total available husks from the country's annual 2.6 billion coconuts are currently utilized for the substrate industry", he explains.
The demand for coco substrate continues to grow, which is why Riococo plans to increase their production every year. "We have built new factories and new raw material production plants throughout Sri Lanka to access the unused husks available in some districts in Sri Lanka."
He explains several government initiatives to grow coconut cultivation, which is expected to create additional raw material supply for the coco substrate industry.
The Government of Sri Lanka plans to plant 36,000 acres for new coconut cultivation this year – out of which, 16,000 acres are in the Northern Part of Sri Lanka. Other key budget allocations for this year's coconut sector developments are the fertilizer subsidy for coconut plantation owners with less than five acres, and the plans that are in place to provide nearly 30,000 hectares of underutilized land to grow coconuts, identified by plantation companies. "We believe these developments will help to increase more coconut production in coming years and the majority of those coconut husks will be available for coconut substrate and fiber production."
Changes in global logistics
A key factor the coco industry is currently dealing with, is the global shipping crisis. "The majority of vessels are passing through the Red Sea to Europe and to the east coast of North America. Due to Houthi terrorist activities, this journey now takes an additional 15 days. Red Sea route takes about 25 days, while the Cape of Good Hope route adds an extra 10-15 days, making it a 35-40 day journey", Shan sums up.
As a result, the shipping sector is facing a new crisis. "Customers should place their orders ahead of time to plan for timely shipping in order to avoid extreme delays caused by uncontrollable events. So, to avoid all uncontrollable ocean freight events, customers should place their substrate orders 3-4 months ahead of their planned planting days. "
For more information:
Riococo
info@riococo.com
www.riococo.com