REN breaks into export market

by Surekha Galagoda

The Rural Enterprise Network (REN), a non profit marketing organisation founded by Practical Action in 2001 which sells organic rice, herbal tea, dehydrated vegetables, kithul jaggery, handloom products, dried fish and paper products manufactured by people in rural areas are planning to move to the export market, obtain organic certification and fair trade certification.

Manager REN, Nilantha Atapattu said that most people are moving away from paddy farming due to low prices and small acreage they have due to the land getting fragmented and lack of labour.

The advantages of organic varieties of rice are many and among them are high price, ability to withstand floods and high nutritional value due to it being cultivated the organic way. Therefore even if a small acreage is cultivated with organic varieties of rice you not only fetch a higher price but also lead a healthy life, said Atapattu.

He said according to research done there had been about 3,000-3,500 varieties of organic rice but on account of its inherent problems such as low harvest, and long time taken to harvest the paddy the farmers moved to hybrid varieties which led to many problems such as diseases.

As a solution to all these ills the National Federation for Conservation of Traditional seeds and Agricultural Resource have taken steps to conserve about 68 varieties of rice.

REN helps farmers to improve the quality of rice, shelf life and also markets the products on behalf of the farmers. REN brings together rural, micro-scale agro processors to improve their products and links with viable markets, he said.

Atapattu said that REN is a centralised marketing operation that links agro-produce manufacturers in far-flung villages across Sri Lanka, with markets in urban capitals and other countries.

The members are village-level producers and at present they have 30 group enterprises.

He said at present they find it difficult to cater to the demand for organic rice. All our products are available at the REN head office, Keells super outlets, Chen Lanka, YMBA Borella and at the Sthree outlet in Kandy.

The members must be able to produce high quality products and willing to improve the standards. Quality standards are being set by REN. The company provides technical support to upgrade the quality of their produce. Once they reach the prescribed standard, they will be permitted to use the REN brand name and REN market channels for a fee.

He said that privately-owned small and medium enterprises who are willing to adhere to the terms and conditions of REN can access its services. However, the membership is restricted to small-scale village producers.

REN was the brainchild of ITDG South Asia to address certain issues that plague rural producers in Sri Lanka. It is a venture that seeks to bridge the gap between rural entrepreneurs, distant markets and professional services.

Information Communication Technology is a field that is alien to small-scale producers. Although there is potential to use ICT as a knowledge and information resource, there are inherent drawbacks in rural villages that discourage such leap frogging.

REN plans to take its member community into the next level of technology by introducing ICT applications. ICT, applied appropriately, could provide information on markets, product improvement and even allow for better interaction between geographically scattered producer base and the company.

For example, a computerised quality feedback mechanism that would enable manufacturers to correct production malfunctions in time would be useful both to the company and the rural producer.

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