Business

Cargills steps forward to purchase bumper tomato harvest, ensures farmer sustainability

Published

2 years ago

2024/04/29

Sahan Weerasooriya

Tomatoes are loaded on to a Cargills truck, in Thanamalwila on April 26.

* Timely intervention prevents farmers from dumping their crop on open fields

* Purchased over 30 metric tons of surplus tomato on April 26

* The deal favourable for farmers is akin to a forward commodity pricing arrangement

* Surplus tomato will be processed to manufacture KIST tomato sauce

by Sanath Nanayakkare

KIST food brand operated by Cargills Ceylon PLC, has stepped forward to help out farmers with their bumper tomato harvest. The move facilitates the farmers to sell their produce to the company five-fold the price they can obtain elsewhere as if in a forward commodity pricing arrangement.

At a time the farmers are compelled to sell their bumper tomato harvest for as low as Rs.10 a kilo, Cargills has entered into agreements with the farmers to buy it at Rs. 50 a kilo with the objective of ensuring farmer sustainability.

Cargills KIST purchased over 30 metric tons of surplus tomato on April 26 from local farmers in Gageyaya (Monaragala district), Welimada (Badulla district), and Wangiyakumbura (Badulla district). By doing so, the company mitigated the significant risk these farmers faced to discard a substantial portion of their harvest.

The surplus tomato will be processed to manufacture KIST tomato sauce, at the company’s state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Katana. It is the only Sri Lankan facility with aseptic processing capabilities which can convert and preserve fresh local tomato at highest quality standards, to use for tomato sauce production.

A farmer brings his harvest to check the box weight

This initiative underscores the company’s steadfast commitment to support the local farming community, with which it has had direct engagement for the last 25 years. By providing a consistent market for the farming community, the company is able to drive income to the rural economy and support livelihoods.

Cargills has made significant investments over the years to reduce post-harvest losses in the agriculture value chain in Sri Lanka.

The media had the opportunity to witness this initiative first-hand at Jeewangama, Thanamalwila on April 26. The distraught farmers began to flash a smile as they saw Cargills trucks were coming to their farms to purchase their bumper tomato harvest.

Farmer Malini chooses the best tomatoes to pick on her farm
Pix by Sanath Nanayakkare

Speaking to The Island, female farmer Malini said that tomato harvest has gone up substantially these days and the general market is not able to absorb the volumes they produce.

“As a result, the wholesale buyers of fresh vegetables in the market offer us only Rs. 10 for a kilogram of tomato. Tomato being a perishable produce, they know that we can’t wait for good selling conditions. Fortunately, Cargills has come to our rescue again. As you may recall from 2018, Cargills reached out to us to help out with bumper pumpkin harvest. We feel secure in our longstanding partnership with Cargills. The company has the capacity to use this tomato yield to make sauce, and we are assured that Cargills will buy any amount of tomato that will be harvested in the coming weeks at Rs. 50 a kilo. This price is five times higher than the price we can get elsewhere. Also, I must say that Cargills doesn’t differentiate the price depending on the size of tomato. If we go to other vendors, they sort the tomato into three size categories and quote different prices. Cargills doesn’t do that. They give us the agreed price regardless of the size of tomato. This is a great relief to us at this difficult time. One can imagine the pathetic condition of the post-harvest food loss if not for Cargills’ timely intervention,” she said.

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Sri Lanka secures IMF staff-level deal for USD 700 million tranche

Published

3 hours ago

2026/04/10

Thilina Walpola

Sri Lanka has reached a staff-level agreement with the International Monetary Fund to secure the next tranche of funding under its ongoing bailout programme, marking a key step in the country’s fragile economic recovery.

The agreement, announced this week, will enable Sri Lanka to access approximately USD 700 million, subject to approval by the IMF Executive Board. The funds form part of the USD 2.9 billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF) programme agreed following the 2022 economic crisis.

The latest development covers the combined fifth and sixth reviews of Sri Lanka’s reform programme, indicating that the country has made sufficient progress to move forward, while highlighting the need to sustain reform efforts.

Sri Lanka’s economy has shown signs of stabilisation in recent months, supported by improved revenue collection, easing inflation, and a gradual buildup of foreign reserves. However, the recovery remains vulnerable to both domestic and external pressures.

By Ifham Nizam

Business

Israeli attack on Lebanon triggers local stock market volatility

Published

4 hours ago

2026/04/10

Thilina Walpola

Initially CSE trading was somewhat volatile despite the ceasefire in West Asia but it experienced further volatility after Israel attacked Lebanon yesterday.

However, the IMF delegation which is now in Sri Lanka to release two tranches of its relief package created some positive sentiments for the market, analysts said.

The All Share Price Index went down by 73.06 points, while the S and P SL20 rose by 10.57 points.

Turnover stood at Rs 2.96 billion with six crossings. Those crossings were: JKH 5.5 million shares crossed to the tune of Rs 807.6 million and its shares traded at Rs 19.70, CIC Holdings two million shares crossed for Rs 54 million; its shares traded at Rs 32, Access Engineering 600,000 shares crossed for Rs 44.4 million; its shares traded at Rs 74, Central Finance 116,000 shares crossed to the tune of Rs 27.5 million ; its shares sold at Rs 237, LMF 250,000 shares crossed for Rs 22.8 million; its shares fetched Rs 91.10 and Kelani Cables 200,000 shares crossed for Rs 21 million and its shares traded at Rs 105.

In the retail market seven companies that mainly contributed to the turnover were; Dialog Rs237 million (7.5 million shares traded), LMF Rs 203 million (22 million shares traded), Colombo Dockyard Rs 199.7 million (1.1 million shares traded), HBA Foods Rs 163 million (18.5 million shares traded), JKH Rs 156 million (7.8 million shares traded), JKH Rs 156 million (7.8 million shares traded), Softlogic Holdings Rs 117 million (9.6 million shares traded) and Acme Printers Rs 107 million (15.6 million shares traded). During the day 133.3 million share volumes changed hands in 23666 transactions.

It is said that manufacturing sector counters, like JKH, performed well, while food sector counters, especially LMF and HBA Foods, performed well. Other sectors too performed somewhat well during the day.

Yesterday the rupee was quoted a Rs 315.42/48 to the US dollar in the spot market from 315.30/40 the previous day, dealers said, while bond yields were quoted higher.

By Hiran H. Senewiratne

Business

HNB Assurance marks 25 years with strategic transformation to ‘HNB Life’

Published

4 hours ago

2026/04/10

Thilina Walpola

Highlights from the new brand reveal as HNB Assurance transforms into HNB Life

Marking 25 years of trust, growth, and service excellence, HNB Assurance PLC has unveiled its new corporate identity, transitioning to HNB Life PLC a strategic evolution that reflects the company’s forward-looking vision and commitment to empowering lives with protection and the freedom to thrive, no matter where life takes them.

This milestone signifies more than a change in name or visual identity. It represents a deliberate transformation shaped by strong performance over the past few years, during which the company has achieved remarkable growth, strengthened its market position and enhanced its customer-centric capabilities.

The newly introduced logo, inspired by the form of a wing, symbolises HNB Life’s role as a proactive enabler. It reflects the organisation’s commitment to supporting individuals in navigating life’s journey with confidence, empowering them to pursue their aspirations and live life on their own terms.

The official unveiling took place at a launch event attended by key stakeholders, strategic business partners, well-wishers and employees.

Addressing the gathering, Chairman, Stuart Chapman highlighted the significance of this transformation, stating, “As we mark 25 years of progress, the transition to HNB Life reflects our strategic intent to evolve with the changing needs of our customers and the broader market. This new identity embodies our purpose, to enable and empower individuals to achieve what they truly aspire to in life, with confidence and security. As a company we are extremely excited on what the future holds for as, as we build on an incredible foundation laid over the past two and a half decades.”

The new Vision of the Company is “To be the leader in empowering lives with protection and freedom to thrive, no matter where life takes them”.