DFM Sri Lanka literature review

Status

PUBLISHED

Terms of reference

• The report should be 20-40 pages in length
• The report should review current knowledge and sources of information about dried fish in the area studied by the research team
• The report should draw on grey literature, archival sources, legal texts, student theses, and local publications.
• The report should identify areas for further investigation.

Workflow

• 2020-11-15: Submitted by Dilanthi Koralagama, with acknowledgements to Nireka Weeratunge and Oscar Amarasinghe
• 2021-01-16: Copy-edited by Steven Smeltz
• 2021-04-04: Final draft submitted by Dilanthi Koralagama
• 2021-04-05: Final edits incorporated by Eric Thrift. Source text and images are in the wiki; contents listed at DFM Sri Lanka literature review.

Contents

• Introduction
• Sources of data
• The fisheries sector in Sri Lanka
• History of the dried fish industry in Sri Lanka
• Dried fish production
• Dried fish trade
• Dried fish consumption
• Nutritional value and quality
• Conclusion and scoping priorities
• Annexes

Metadata

abstract

The social economy of dried fish in Sri Lanka, an island located at the crossroads of maritime trade be-tween Europe, East Africa, South and Southeast Asia, has a long history. Dried fish has not only been an important commodity traded within the island and among neighbouring countries, but it has also played a significant nutritional and cultural role in the Sri Lankan diet. Although a greater proportion of the total fish production is iced, traded, and consumed as fresh fish, it is estimated that 14 percent of the catch is preserved using simple techniques such as sun drying, salting, smoking, and fermentation, collectively referred to as “dried fish.” In Sri Lankan cuisine, dried fish is consumed as a main dish, as well as a condiment to enhance the flavour of vegetable dishes and rice.

series

DFM Reports

title

A Preliminary Analysis of the Social Economy of Dried Fish in Sri Lanka

short title

Social economy of dried fish in Sri Lanka

date

2021

author(s)

Dilanthi Koralagama, Shalika Wickrama, and Anupama Adikari

series editor

Derek Johnson

technical editor

Steven Smeltz and Eric Thrift

advisor(s)

Nireka Weeratunge and Oscar Amarasinghe

license

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/.

address

Dried Fish Matters Project Department of Anthropology, Faculty of Arts 432 Fletcher Argue Building, 15 Chancellor Circle The University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB, R3T 2N2 CANADA

dried.fish.matters@umanitoba.ca

acknowledgements

This work draws on research supported by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council.

Cover media

logos

cover image