Cargills is the third most Valuable Brand in Sri Lanka

How did Cargills become the third most valuable brand in Sri Lanka? Ranjit Page the Deputy Chairman and Managing Director of Cargills (Ceylon) Limited, gives the most unconventional reply to a conventional question. “Love” explains Page in a statement issued by the company.

According to Page the business philosophy that drives the success of Cargills Food City (FC) is simple. “With every sale we make, with every unit we manufacture, with every gram we purchase, we try to ensure that lives are enriched and livelihoods are created and sustained. That’s the passion and love that drives this brand and takes it closer to the hearts of consumers spread across Sri Lanka.” Page said.

Ruchi Gunawardena, Managing Director of Brand Finance Lanka announcing the brand rating for FC, says the company has “created value by reinventing the grocery heritage to take super marketing to the masses.”

Page noted that FC has revolutionized the organized grocery industry in Sri Lanka by evolving itself from just a grocery that catered to the plantation elite to become a retail giant that thrives on sustaining and empowering the masses. “Through our evolution we have managed to evolve the entire grocery industry in Sri Lanka. And this not just happened through expansion. It’s the entire business model that has driven this brand’s success,” Page noted.

The company says the Cargills business model is unique, enabling the direct purchase of rice, vegetable and fruit from Sri Lanka’s local farming community. The Cargills farmer base is 6000 strong with all of them directly connected to the supply chain via Cargills. Collection centres are located in Thambuththegama, Nuwara Eliya, Norochcholai, Hangurankethe, Dehiattakandiya, Bandarawela, Gampaha/Divulapitiya and Neluwa and farmers are guaranteed a minimum price which is 20% above the production cost. Because Cargills takes care of the entire supply process it has also managed to bring down post-harvest losses to a mere 8% from a national average of 40%.

According to Page Cargills is a growing team that is currently 4500 strong with youth accounting for 80% of the number. “Our dream is to develop professionals in the Food Business. We give our team extensive training and skills building opportunities bringing them on par with global industry standards,” he noted. Today members of the CFC team have gone on to become leading players in the international modern trade industry.