May 25, Colombo: Sri Lanka Prime Minister Rathnasiri Wickramanayaka today opened a new iodized salt factory in the Sothern Province Hambanthota district.

The factory situated adjacent to the Hambanthota saltern was set up with the funding of the Sri Lankan Centre of International Council for the Prevention of Diseases of Iodine Deficiency under the Micronutrient Initiative.

A similar project is soon to be established in the Puttalam saltern also.

Sri Lanka hopes to minimize the imports of salt and increase the production in the country which is surrounded by the Indian Ocean.