Kelani Valley & Talawakelle win 12 of 34 awards presented to Regional Plantation Companies in Sri Lanka
Plantation companies in the Hayleys Group dominated the Regional Plantation Company (RPC) sector at the first National Plantation Awards in Sri Lanka, winning a total of 12 awards including the top awards in four of the 12 award categories and eight other positions.
The four first place awards were presented by President Mahinda Rajapaksa at ‘Temple Trees’ on 12th July.
Of the four top awards won by the Hayleys Group, Kelani Valley Plantations PLC (KVPL) accounted for three, and Talawakelle Tea Estates PLC (TTEL) took the fourth. KVPL was the only company to win three first place awards at this event.
KVPL was adjudged best among the RPCs for ‘Commitment to Value Addition,’ ‘Innovativeness’ and ‘Highest Investment for Social Welfare Activities and Corporate Social Responsibility,’ while Talawakelle Tea Estates PLC (TTEL) was presented the award for ‘Replanting – Highest Rate (Percentage) and Extent in the Tea Sector.’
KVPL took second place in three award categories – ‘Replanting,’ in the Tea sector, ‘Commitment to move towards mechanisation’ and Commitment to HRD – Capacity Building’ and was adjudged third in three others for ‘Replanting’ in the Rubber sector, for ‘Highest Crop Productivity’ in the Tea sector and ‘Commitment to Generate Hydro Power.’
Meanwhile, Talawakelle secured second place in ‘Highest Crop Productivity’ in the Tea sector and third place in ‘Forestry Management, Environmental Friendliness and Self-sufficiency in Energy.
“The Plantations sector has faced more than its fair share of challenges over the past two decades, but these companies have never slackened in their commitment to best practices,” Hayleys PLC Chairman Mohan Pandithage said. “We are therefore greatly encouraged by the decision of the government to recognise the efforts of these companies and their contributions to the national economy. There has been substantial investment in modernising processes and improving the properties entrusted to us, and we will continue to seek ways to make Sri Lanka’s plantations more competitive and profitable.”
KVPL’s award for Value Addition was based on the volume of tea converted into value added tea, additional income from value addition, ownership of value addition and quantity of value added tea exported over the past five years.
The award for Innovation recognises environmental innovativeness, social innovativeness and economic innovativeness as recommended by the Tea Research Institute and the Rubber Research Institute.
The provision of facilities to workers such as re-roofing of line rooms, provision of latrines, drinking water facilities, child development centres and other activities, and the total investment made by the company from 2006 – 2010 for worker welfare activities were considered for the CSR award.
TTEL’s award for Replanting was based on the total extent of replanting and continuous commitment to Replanting over the last five years.
Kelani Valley Plantations manages 27 estates, over 13,000 hectares in extent, divided almost equally in to tea and rubber. All of the company’s black tea producing factories have been certified as HACCP and ISO 22000-2005 compliant with regard to product and quality standards, ensuring that the product meets the highest international food safety parameters.
Talawakelle Tea Estates PLC produces high-quality tea in 17 tea gardens situated in the best tea country of the land. Twelve of these estates, nestled in the Dimbula region manufacture high-grown teas while the rest, situated on the verdant planes of the South bring forth the low-growns that satisfy tea connoisseurs around the world.
