sri lanka

A new generation is driving change in a tea category where for decades price has meant more than taste or goodness. The trend they are forcing is about taste and wellness but so much more. As younger customers turn to tea, they are demanding a more sincere appreciation of ethics and sustainability. This offers a glimmer of hope for passionate tea growers who make tea for the love of the leaf.

A growing body of scientific evidence points to the human health benefits in tea. Yet tea growers who value quality suffer the consequences of discounting that drives them to compete with cheap, blends that are popular for the ability it gives brands to discount and lure consumers through price. That is harmful to an industry struggling to overcome an exploitative, colonial history and evolve into a sustainable, climate adapted, socially responsible tea industry.

Everything in life is about perspective. That’s to be expected, because what we believe is conditioned by what we know and that is naturally, our point of view. That makes…

In March last year, an accomplished and empathetic photographer, Yuriko Nakao visited Sri Lanka and the Merrill J. Fernando Foundation’s Western Centre on the outskirts of Colombo. Making pictures at…

The Colombo International Tea Convention 2017 concluded on Friday, elegantly supported by our most accomplished cricketer and commended by several of the international delegates as the most significant gathering of…

Since the beginning of separatist conflict in the North and East of Sri Lanka in 1983, there have not been many good days in eastern Sri Lanka. Until hostilities in…

On most days there is an aura of peace at the MJF Centre. Some kids drum, others sing, dance or perform acrobatics. Some kids look a little different – they…

Next month, the beautiful South American nation of Colombia has the prospect of peace for the first time in over half a century. Why this topic appears here on a…

Last night the MJF Centre in Moratuwa, on the outskirts of Colombo, was aglow. It was after dusk but it was not the setting sun that caused the brilliant light…

Craftsmanship most often forms the heart of luxury, for whether an exceptional wine, a perfect violin, or the beauty in a work of art, it is the genius of the…