Starch Industries and the Via Agri Group have entered into an agreement to set up a joint venture to grow organic cassava.
They plan to set up plantations and a farmer network with a land area of up to 30,000 acres to grow organic cassava to supply the starch processing factory being set up by Starch Industries and to cultivate organic fruits to be dehydrated for export in a factory jointly owned by the Starch Industries Group and the Via Agri Group.
Starch Industries (Pvt) Ltd is a Sri Lankan agri pharma company based in Colombo, Kurunegala and Welikanda with Scandinavian and Sri Lankan management.
It is the operational company of Starch Industries Global Ltd., a British registered company. Via Group’s mission is “to be Sri Lanka’s fastest growing group of companies, providing quality and value addition support and services to Sri Lankan and global markets, while continually improving its products and services to the global industry,” a company spokesman said.
Through their diversification into agriculture and fruit processing, they plan to expand their business even further.
Tapioca starch is the second most used starch source in the world after corn (maize).
It is also extensively used in the food industry as an additive and a staple food.
The value of the dried fruit market was estimated to be over US$ 43.54 bn in 2018, which is projected to increase at a CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate) of 5.7% during the forecast period (2018-2026). The global market size of organic fruits and vegetables is close to $98 bn and is expected to reach $160 billion by 2023.
The mutual effort aims at creating thousands of jobs for farmers and farm labour, modernising agriculture with a focus on organic farming and increasing export agricultural products. The proposition brought forward by the joint venture includes a long term agreement with a buy-back guarantee for farmers.
Starch Industries and Via Agri look forward to a long term successful journey to improve the agriculture sector in Sri Lanka.