Category: Agriculture

The brands owner Watawala Plantations Ltd., the biggest exporter of Ceylon Tea to Malaysia, has held detailed discussions with Sri Lankas High Commissioner designate to that country and former Mrs. World Rosy Senanayake on this initiative. Plans announced this week by Watawala include the setting up of Zesta shops modeled on the prototype at Colombos […]

Average prices for tea at the Colombo auctions dropped to Rs.145.02 by April from an average of Rs. 156.82 in 2002. Low grown prices lead the drop, affected since February by the US led incursion of Iraq. The tension in the Middle East saw low grown sales average in February drop below the high grown […]

The Colombo bourse reacted positively to deals in the insurance market and increasing tourist arrivals over the last week.Shares in Commercial Bank and DFCC climbed on news that the two were planning a joint bid for a majority stake in Eagle Insurance.The All Share closed at 820.4 points up two point six points from last […]

Brewing through the synergies of John Keells and Elephant House is a ready to drink tea product that could hit the local market in end 2003. Tested and developed under the conglomerates tea marketing arm endash Gordon Frazer & Company, the firm is currently testing its brew, sources close to the firm told Lanka Business […]

The banking sector is willing to prop up the tea industry by lending up to Rs.1.25 billion to buy teas unsold at weekly auctions.The bail out plan was put together by the newly formed Tea Association of Sri Lanka (TASL), who has to float a new independent firm to utilise the loan. The new firm […]

Buyers set aside developments in the Middle East to step up buying at Tuesdays low grown tea auctions, pushing up prices in the process. Brokers said that buyers were paying at least Rs 5.00 over last weeks prices, a welcome development for low grown plantations and leaf suppliers ahead of the Sinhala Tamil New Year. […]

This weeks low grown auction average could slip below Rs.130, down from Rs. 147.46 for February. Brokers say that buyers stepped up orders marginally at the weekly auctions, but preferred to stay at previously low prices.Producers with little choice and desperate to liquidate their stocks to meet payments to leaf suppliers ahead of the Sinhala […]

The tea industry continued its ill fate with indications that around 25% to 30% of all teas brought to the weekly auctions in Colombo would remain unsold. Brokers say low prices and a lack of demand could lead to a liquidity shortfall ahead of the Sinhala Tamil New Year in April. The low grown sector […]

A strategy to expand its investment options will see Amana Investments venturing into the tea brokering business shortly.Amana will hold a 55 per cent stake in the Rs. 15 million venture, with six other investors taking up the balance shareholding.The new firm endash Tea Commodity Brokers endash opens shop in early July and will tap […]

Key stakeholders in the tea industry got together last week to form a pan industry apex body. The tea association of Sri Lanka plans to provide a singe point of view from the industry to policy makers in the future.” Before this association came whenever a problem arose we had to speak to several associations […]

New apex body for the tea industry, the Tea Association of Sri Lanka (TASL) officially got off ground Tuesday, mapping out plans to set the industry standard for tea. The TASL will steer through all strategy and policy development for the sector acting also as a catalyst for product development and research Through promotion and […]

A collective decision by private tea factory owners to cut Rs.2 on the price for green leaf paid to smallholders, has prompted a threat of legal action.” The move by the factory owners is completely irregular and unlawful.It is illegal to pay less than the price determined by the reasonable price formula and if there […]