Bringing the tea lion roaring up in front

By The Lion Without Spot

The Pure Ceylon Tea debate rages on. Though the dialogue so far has largely been confined to the print media on the way forward for Sri Lanka’s tea industry and it will no doubt open out the opportunity for discussion in other forums as well, in the days to come. This will make way for all stakeholders to bring their views to the table.

The Special Report filed by Willie Weerasekera was professional, unbiased and reminded all concerned that this was not just a tea matter, to be left to tea men to decide but an issue which has far-reaching effects for the well being of our people, the national economy and generations yet to be born in this country.

He cautioned that decisions must be taken only after in-depth studies are concluded and after well-researched information was available. The indispensability of arriving at the most advantageous competitive marketing strategy for our tea has been highlighted.

The need to include marketing professionals amongst others in formulating strategies to decide on the critical issues involved, which he rightly identifies as a sustainable competitive future for the industry, has been underlined.

The report was timely and most welcome as were the views expressed by many others especially in the Daily FT. Most refreshing was the response of Dilmah’s Tea Director Malik. J. Fernando to Willie’s report, who concluded his comments by saying “…if we resolve to become premium brand builders, Ceylon Tea would come roaring [emphasis mine] back…”

This remark attributed to Malik has led me to propose that while waiting for the outcome of the ongoing debate and the in-depth studies, the policy makers and regulators should take some measures in the meantime to test the efficacy of flying the Ceylon Tea banner on Pure Ceylon Tea Packs, namely the spotted lion depicted above, not inconspicuously at the back but in bold print right up on the front panel on every pack which qualifies and cares to carry it.

This means that the rules of usage must immediately be revised by the regulatory body viz. the Sri Lanka Tea Board to ensure prominent display. The pack designs will need change by those Pure Ceylon Tea marketers both locally and overseas who wish to derive the benefits of clearly identifying their teas as originating entirely from within the shores of this island.

It would be of great interest to see their interest. Would it not be to our advantage if packers overseas are also given the right to use the Symbol of Quality as long as they comply with the requirements which can be monitored?

Remember, it is these overseas packers who are already organised with well established distribution channels in place.

Should they take up the offer in return for the promotion that is our country’s responsibility there will be mutually-beneficial results. The more Pure Ceylon Tea is included in the world’s tea brands by whomever owned, the better it will be for our country.

Others, whether foreign or local, who do not see the merits should be free to exercise the limited facility of blending in Sri Lanka, which we already have in place in a limited fashion or at any other location of their choice to their individual business advantage.

There is no restriction placed either on the teas permitted to be used or as a consequence of the impact on the economy of the country selected in the latter case. Sri Lanka of course looses the economic activity generated by such hub type operations.

The question has been raised that the factual position relating to the awareness, importance and preference influencing power of the slogan ‘Pure Ceylon Tea’ as well as the ‘Lion’ in consumer decision making is yet to be proven. The question has also been raised that even if the consumer is aware of the goodness of ‘Pure Ceylon Tea,’ where is he or she to find it?

With those adherents of ‘Pure Ceylon Tea’ marketing teas depicting the Lion Logo (very often relegated to the back panel and rarely on the front face of the pack), the Lion Symbol of Quality that we have zealously guarded, promoted and nurtured over the years has hardly been visible in the modern trade channels of the world. Evidence suggests that the impact has been marginal but market research would bring out the facts more forcefully.

So the idea is that we bring back the Lion roaring back to the front panel, displaying it prominently for the consumer to pay due respect and regard to the purity and excellence of our product offerings which it symbolises. Simultaneously, the message of Pure Ceylon Tea and its special qualities will have to be widely broadcast, promoted and advertised.

We could advance and fast track our plans to use the funds already collected and lying idle in the ‘Promotion and Marketing Fund’ to support and reinforce the re-launch of the symbol of quality tea in the market place to ensure that the experiment hopefully will open up a credible roadmap for future marketing strategies to be developed around the Lion symbol.

The awareness of the goodness of our tea and its influence on consumer behaviour must be measured before and after the experiment. Should the experiment prove that there is no positive advantage, we must get back to the drawing boards and have the courage to completely overhaul our strategies, paying less attention to the exclusive use of Ceylon in our tea packs ex-Colombo, to sustain our tea industry. It is finally the world’s tea consumers who will decide this issue and not us, who naturally will drink our tea in preference to any other.

This matter has been lingering as an item in the agenda for too long. We need to agree on the way forward and need not necessarily wait for all the data to come in to try something new. After all there is a clear indication of policy originating from the Ministry of Finance and Planning that for the present its ‘Pure Ceylon Tea’ out of Sri Lanka.