Malwatte Valley-managed Sarnia Group reaches unprecedented heights

Saturday, 26 February 2011 00:01 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

In the past, quantity took precedence over quality in the mindset of the plantations in the Uva District. Focusing more on the need to keep the cost of production at the lowest level possible, plantation companies generally aimed at making substantial profits through focus on quantity.

However, Sarnia Estate, managed by Malwatte Valley Plantations Plc, took the road less travelled. Sarnia, whose sale average was one of the lowest in the region at the time, took up the challenge of developing quality and quantity simultaneously. This was during the year 2004 when strategic changes were being made to manufacture teas with a completely different standard in comparison to their counterparts in the Uva region. Plucking a high quality green leaf, Sarnia Estate exploited the bright liquoring characteristics inherent to any Uva estate and produced light liquoring leafy and semi leafy type teas throughout the season maintaining the black and neat leaf appearance required by the trade. This enabled Sarnia Estate to attract very high prices for every grade of tea produced, reaching a record sale average of Rs. 203.53 in the year 2005 with only 531,905 kg sold within that calendar year.

This was the first occasion any tea estate in Uva achieved a cumulative sale average above Rs. 200 per kg. Since then, year in and year out, Sarnia proved both parameters can be achieved simultaneously whilst maintaining top sales averages. The Estate was also able to gradually increase the volumes of teas produced. Following the new trend set by Sarnia Estate, many other Uva RPC estates and private tea factories too changed their strategies to emulate similar standards which subsequently resulted in a boom for Uva leafy and semi leafy teas. This enabled these estates to increase their profit margins over the last few years, benefiting the tea small holder community with much higher green leaf rates.

In the year 2010, the estate recorded the best ever sales average of Rs. 380.91 and also produced the highest quantity of tea sold by a single factory in excess of 1 million kilo grammes, having sold 1,195,614 kg in the category of Uva Medium Teas. This was truly a dream come true for many of those in the trade who contributed to Sarnia’s success.

The liquoring teas of Sarnia such as FBOP / FBOP1, BOP1, Pekoe1, OP1 and FBOPF1 are some of the finest Up Country Teas made in the island and is keenly sought after by a range of well reputed tea buyers at the weekly Colombo Tea Auctions. This tremendous buyer support enabled Sarnia to attract no less than 63 Top Prices at the auctions. This achievement is truly a rare feat displayed by an estate in the history of tea plantations.

The key figure behind the success of Sarnia is Anura Weerakoon, Director, Range 2, Malwatte Valley Plantations Plc. He has built a dedicated team that exhibits commitment, courage and determination. In turn, his team is well supported by the top management of Malwatte Valley Plantations Plc led by W L Bogtstra, Managing Director and Lucas Bogtstra, Director-Operations. Some of the produce manufactured by Sarnia Group is marketed by the produce brokers John Keells Plc.