Category: Agriculture
150 years of rubber: A milestone worth celebrating
This year, Sri Lanka marks 150 years since rubber was first planted on its soil, a milestone that traces back to 1876, when a shipment of young Hevea brasiliensis seedlings arrived at the Henarathgoda Botanical Gardens in Gampaha. Grown from seeds smuggled out of the Amazon by British botanist Henry Wickham and germinated at Kew […]
Labour shortages are pushing Plantation Companies towards machines, dataand a different kind of worker
Sri Lanka’s plantation sector is entering a new phase of transformation, as technology and innovation reshape how estates operate, manage resources and sustain productivity. Across the country’s tea estates and other plantations, machines are increasingly complementing skilled workers in tasks once done almost entirely by hand, while software and data bring new precision to decisions […]
The cost of hesitation: Lessons from Asian national strategies on oil palm
By Lalith Obeyesekere, Secretary General, Planters’ Association of Ceylon In his memoirs, Lee Kuan Yew described Ceylon as Britain’s model Commonwealth country, and tooknote of the significant lead that then Ceylon had in terms of its resources, infrastructure and institutions when compared to the Singapore he had inherited, or to his immediate neighbours, Malaysia and […]
Beyond El Niño: Building lasting climate resilience in Sri Lanka’s plantations
Climate resilience has become the defining test of this El Niño year for Sri Lanka’s plantation sector. The National Disaster Relief Services Centre says over 81,000 people across 25,563 families in seven districts, Ampara, Polonnaruwa, Batticaloa, Badulla, Monaragala, Hambantota and Ratnapura, have been affected by the dry weather linked to the phenomenon. The government has […]
Incoming Planters’ Association Chairman proposes 5-point plan for industry revival at 172nd AGM
Malwatte Valley Plantations PLC Director / CEO, Shanaka Samaradiwakara was appointed as Chairman of the Planters’ Association of Ceylon (PAC), while Kahawatte Plantations PLC Director / CEO Binesh Pananwala, was appointed as Deputy Chairman at the Association’s 172nd Annual General Meeting (AGM) on 19 September at the Cinnamon Grand. The event was graced by Central […]
“Pulle Madu” to medical school: record intake signals turning point for plantation sector welfare
Many generations ago, an estate child’s first years began in a cloth hammock strung up near the rows of tea bushes, so a mother could keep working within earshot of her infant. Later a corner in a line room was converted to establish Pulle Madu, where infants and toddlers were sheltered to ensure that plucking […]
Dr. Nandalal Weerasinghe to keynote Planters’ Association AGM
Governor of the Central Bank Sri Lanka, Dr. Nandalal Weerasinghe, will grace the 172nd Annual General Meeting of the Planters’ Association of Ceylon (PAC) as its Chief Guest. The AGM on Saturday, 19th September will bring together Regional Plantation Companies (RPCs), industry leaders and key stakeholders, to review the sector’s performance and shape strategies for […]
SL Launches Digital Seed Production, Certification & Traceability System to Strengthen Quality Seed Availability
The Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Land and Irrigation and the Department of Agriculture, with the technical support of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), launched the CROPIX Seed Production, Certification & Traceability System, a major step towards modernizing Sri Lanka’s seed sector through digital innovation. The new system strengthens seed production […]
Planters seek coordinated response to stabilise tea production and key export markets
The Planters’ Association of Ceylon (PA), the apex body of Sri Lanka’s Plantation industry, has called for an urgent review and streamlining of the industry’s cost structures in light of the unprecedented crisis in West Asia and the Strait of Hormuz. Currently, approximately 45% of Sri Lanka’s total annual Tea exports – equivalent to approximately US$ […]
Tribute: Nissanka Welikala – Planter (1945-2026)
April 28, 2026 (LBO) – In Sri Lanka you come across all types of ‘characters’, and then there was my Uncle Nissanka, AKA Aswin, Alex and of course ‘Boora.’ Nissanka Welikala was the only son of Radiologist Dr. A. H. N. Welikala and Viola Welikala. Dr. Welikala dropped dead of a heart attack in his […]
Sri Lanka’s first 100-pct enewable energy recycling center in plantation sector unveiled by the Coca-Cola Foundation
The first zero-emission Material Collection and Processing Facility in Sri Lanka was officially inaugurated under the SWYFT Project. This initiative is funded by The Coca-Cola Foundation (TCCF), implemented by Janathakshan, with Neptune Recyclers serving as the recycling partner, in collaboration with Talawakelle Plantation. The Somerset ECO Material Collection & Processing Center was officially opened on […]
Kenilworth Estate: Crafting premium Ceylon tea through innovation and heritage
Since 1947, when its current factory rose from the site of an earlier 1942 structure, Kenilworth Tea Estate has crafted teas renowned for their long, wiry, well-twisted leaves; blacker, cleaner, and meticulously rolled through an extended 2.5-hour Orthodox process that yields a coppery-bright infusion with creamy, full-bodied strength, woody frankness, and subtle citrus notes. Perched […]