Private sector helping farming community to get better prices, new markets
Private sector food processing companies in Sri Lanka are increasingly supporting the farming community in the country to have a ready market and a better price for their produce.
Niranjan Palipana, Vice President, John Keells Holdings Head of Marketing, Food and Beverages told a media conference this week in Colombo held to announce the holding the Profood, Propack and AgBiz Exhibition 2013 at the BMICH that the entire requirement of ginger and vanilla is obtained from the local farmers to make their ginger beer and ice cream.
He said that their company supported these farmers in the quality cultivation of these crops and this produce is directly purchased from the farmers.
He said they are probably the only beverages manufacturer in the country that uses natural ginger. The exhibition that is scheduled to be held on August 23-25 is billed to be the ‘largest supermarket ‘and trade fair comprising processed food, beverage, packaging and agiculture. This year’s theme for the exhibition is ‘From the Farm to the Kitchen’. It would showcase products and services of each and every component in the processed food and packaging industry.
Elaborating on another area of important assistance to food processing and various other industries, Thushantha Karunanayake, Director, PCL Solutions (Pvt) Ltd said that their company was established about 36 years ago by ‘The Man of Dilmah’ – Merril J Fernando, Chairman, Dilmah Tea to first promote this country’s tea as the best pure ‘Ceylon Tea’ in best packaging, to steadily compete in the global arena.
He said that they acquired modern machinery and adopts best known technology to come up with global competition in packaging. Later on he said that Mr. Fernando ventured to stretch his hand out through PCL Solutions to impart and share the knowledge in this company with the other manufacturers.
They subsequently moved into total food industry in packaging and in 2007 they have diversified into various other industries too.
The media conference also reflected that India and China are actively exploring the Sri Lankan markets in relation to processed food with China and India also putting up separate pavilions at the event. Further there would be stalls from Thailand, Malaysia, USA, Dubai and Singapore.
This year there is a 30 per cent increase to 340 in the stalls from 270 last year.
The Business Times had the opportunity of speaking to Ms Jade Tan, General Manager Assistant, Beijing Lansing Century Exhibition Co Ltd (CICES), China, on the sidelines of the media conference.
She said they are an exhibition organizing company in China and are here to explore the opportunities in holding Chinese exhibitions in Sri Lanka and also to explore the markets for Chinese processed food products.
She said that they are hoping to bring in more exhibitors from China for these exhibitions in the future and also to develop economic ties between China and Sri Lanka.
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