India and Sri Lanka discuss food security

India and Sri Lanka had talks focused on food security and cooperative development, during a visit undertaken to India by the Minister of Trade, Commerce, Food Security and Cooperative Development Wasantha Samarasinghe.

Samarasinghe, accompanied by K.A. Vimalenthirarajah, Secretary to the Ministry of Trade, Commerce, Food Security and Cooperative Development, visited New Delhi from September 24–26, 2025, and participated in World Food India 2025.

In the course of his engagements, Samarasinghe held meetings with the Minister of Food Processing Industries of India, Shri Chirag Paswan and the Minister of State for Cooperation, Shri Murlidhar Mohol.

These discussions covered a wide spectrum of issues, including strengthening bilateral cooperation in the areas of food security, cooperative development, and capacity building, while also reviewing avenues for enhanced collaboration across other sectors of mutual interest.

During the visit the Minister also addressed the thematic session on “Food Loss and Waste as a Catalyst for Food Systems Transformation”, where he shared Sri Lanka’s perspectives and highlighted the importance of collaborative approaches in addressing challenges of food wastage, sustainability, and resilience of food systems.

In addition, the Minister met the Managing Directors of National Cooperative Export Limited (NCEL) and National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Ltd. (NAFED). The discussions centered around opportunities for exports and marketing of agricultural products, capacity building, and the sharing of best practices in cooperative models, supply chain management, and commodity trading.

The Minister also interacted with eminent CEOs of leading agri-business and food companies during interactions organised by CII and PHDCCI. He also engaged with representatives of industry associations participating in World Food India-2025 on the sidelines of the event, which provided a platform to explore partnerships, investment opportunities, and technology exchanges in food processing, agriculture, and related sectors.

The Indian High Commission in Colombo said the visit reinforced the shared commitment of both countries to deepen economic cooperation and explore new avenues of partnership in food security and cooperative development.