Kochi: Faced with rising wages, shrinking labour force and low prices, plantation major Harrisons Malayalam (HML) has initiated a brand revamp exercise focusing on value-added products to boost sales. The country’s largest rubber producer and a leading tea grower in South India plans to use its 160-year old tradition to launch an umbrella brand Harrisons Heritage for its speciality products, the majority of which will be in tea.
“While conventional tea is growing at 3% per annum globally, speciality teas are moving at double the rate. Moreover, there is increasing demand for teas from estates certified for sustainability and traceability,” said N Dharmaraj, HML CEO, SBU (A). The speciality teas will include white tea (made from tea buds), green tea, organic tea, hybrid tea (a mix of orthodox and CTC varieties, patented by the company) and frost tea (made from tea leaves at the time of frost). The company is jointly working with Kerala Ayurveda to introduce ayurvedic tea as well. Apart from a clutch of national and international certification, HML is applying for elephant-friendly certification with a US agency as elephants are often sighted in some of its tea estates.
“The products will hit the market next year. We are going for online marketing too and has registered with Amazon,” Dharmaraj said. In rubber, the company has developed de-proteinised natural rubber (DPNRL), centrifuged latex free of carcinogenic nitrosamine and a water-based adhesive.
HML is scaling up its mechanisation efforts and bought leaf operations to expand its output by overcoming the possible labour shortage in the tea estates. “The latest machines developed in collaboration with IIT Chennai can give three times the output generated by normal shears,” said Anil George Joseph, senior VP, tea.
“While conventional tea is growing at 3% per annum globally, speciality teas are moving at double the rate. Moreover, there is increasing demand for teas from estates certified for sustainability and traceability,” said N Dharmaraj, HML CEO, SBU (A). The speciality teas will include white tea (made from tea buds), green tea, organic tea, hybrid tea (a mix of orthodox and CTC varieties, patented by the company) and frost tea (made from tea leaves at the time of frost). The company is jointly working with Kerala Ayurveda to introduce ayurvedic tea as well. Apart from a clutch of national and international certification, HML is applying for elephant-friendly certification with a US agency as elephants are often sighted in some of its tea estates.
“The products will hit the market next year. We are going for online marketing too and has registered with Amazon,” Dharmaraj said. In rubber, the company has developed de-proteinised natural rubber (DPNRL), centrifuged latex free of carcinogenic nitrosamine and a water-based adhesive.
HML is scaling up its mechanisation efforts and bought leaf operations to expand its output by overcoming the possible labour shortage in the tea estates. “The latest machines developed in collaboration with IIT Chennai can give three times the output generated by normal shears,” said Anil George Joseph, senior VP, tea.