Elpitiya Plantations diversified into strawberries

Elpitiya Plantations, now into a variety new crops, announced last week that luscious home-grown strawberries under the ‘BerryMuch’ brand will soon be on offer to consumers adding to the its portfolio of herbal tea, bees honey, kitul treacle and cinnamon products. Fruit pulp (passion fruit and soursop) are also part of the range.

Commenting on this initiative, Bhathiya Bulumulla – Director/ CEO, Elpitiya Plantations PLC said, “We are excited to bring fresh, real produce to the people of Sri Lanka through ‘BerryMuch’, by delivering products that are locally harvested and ethically grown.

“At a time when the demand for health foods is on the rise globally, fresh plantation grown berries fulfil the requirements for health, taste and wholesome goodness. As the company behind ‘BerryMuch’, Elpitiya is proud of evolving to meet changing market demands while ensuring sustainability through healthy products like fresh berries.”

A news release said the launch of ‘BerryMuch’ is preceded by the company’s move into value-added processing and branding with the recent introduction of ‘Harrow Ceylon Choice’ Herbal tea, Bees honey, Kitul treacle and Cinnamon products such as sticks and powder; and ‘Tropifrut’ products such as Soursop and passion fruit pulp.

Going ahead, the ‘BerryMuch’ brand will also offer value additions including jams, purees and pulps to be delivered on a B2B basis, the release said.

This innovation drive is a result of Elpitiya Plantation’s transformation from a traditional plantation company to a modern innovative and entrepreneurial entity as part of its Growth and Transformation Strategy to create economic value through value-addition, it explained.

Elpitiya Plantations PLC , managed by Aitken Spence, is one of the top two plantation companies in Sri Lanka, the release claimed. It is expanding into Sustainable Forestry Development, Eco-Tourism, Reusable Energy Development, Specialty-Tea Manufacturing and Value-added products, it said.

The Company has 13 estates located in Up, Mid and Low Country regions, which cover more than 8,800 hectares. The core business is focused on cultivation and manufacturing of Tea, Rubber, Oil Palm, Coconut and Cinnamon.

Its value-added products consist of tropical fruit pulp, herbal tea, natural bee honey and berries.