Mr. Deepti Kularatne, Chairman of the Sri Lanka Thriposha Ltd. says that more than 3.7 million Thriposha packets have been distributed to villages so far in 2023.
He also said that the production and distribution of Thriposha is being carried out as usual and currently 1.3 million Thriposha packets are being produced per month.
Speaking to media today (13), he said :
“Usually, we have to provide around 1.9 million Thriposha packets monthly. However, the current requirement is about 1.3 million, which includes separate supplements produced for expecting mothers, lactating mothers and for children aged over 03 years.”
“Presently, due to an issue with the criterion imposed, the Thriposha supplement produced for children aged between 06 months – 03 years, is currently not in production. After the Ministry of Health resolves the issue, we are able to supply this as well,” he added.
“The biggest problem we have is the shortage of maize. We have not yet managed to produce the maize required for the Sri Lankan market. If we get the exact amount of maize we need, we can produce the entire 1.9 million packet requirement within a period of 20 days,” he further said.
Mr. Kularatne also said that they hoped to initiate a mechanism to cultivate maize exclusively for the Thriposha production, which will be kicked off after receiving the necessary approval, he added.
In addition, the World Food Programme will provide the necessary Maize and Soy for the next 03 months, he said.
Mr. Kularatne also appeals to the public not to have unnecessary fears about Thriposha and Suposha, which have been a highly nutritious supplement for Sri Lankan mothers, lactating mothers and children for 50 years.
