http://www.cargillsceylon.com/MediaCentre/News.aspxNews and Press Releases from www.cargillsceylon.comCopyright 2010 www.cargillsceylon.com. All rights reserved.40 Scholarships awarded for students and free Farmer Insurance cover for 137 farmers Cargills Food City, Sri Lanka’s leading supermarket chain, has launched its first Fruit and Vegetable wholesale price display terminal at its fresh produce collection centre in Thanamalwila. The terminal was ceremonially declared open by Hon. Jagath Pushpakumara, the Minister of Coconut Development on Monday, March 25, 2013. Mr. Sidath Kodikara, Chief Operating Officer-Retail, Cargills (Ceylon) PLC said that the launch of the wholesale price terminal further reiterates the commitment of Cargills towards the empowerment of smallholder farmers. “Cargills continues to offer prices above the wholesale market to farmers along with technical inputs, training, and market information while facilitating credit. Through our retail chain and our Group’s manufacturing facilities we have created a revolutionary shift in taking the market to the farmer. Today with this launch of the price terminal we have taken this a step further by providing market intelligence to the farmers.” He added that the price terminals would be launched at all collection centres under the Group including Jaffna, Nuwaraeliya and Bandarawela. Cargills had during the year concluded collected over 3,800 metric tonnes of fruit and vegetable from the Gangeyaya community in Thanamalwila, to the value of Rs 238 million. Over Rs 1.9 Million worth of benefits to the community of Gangeyaya The ceremonial launch of the Cargills wholesale price terminal was held alongside the distribution of Rs 1.9 million worth of benefits to the farmer community as part of the Cargills Farmer Community Development Fund established in Gangeyaya, Thanamalwila. Over 40 scholarships were awarded to students who have passed Grade 5 Scholarship exams and those pursuing Advanced Level and External Degrees. A further 05 laptops were awarded to students from the area pursuing University education. 54 students who are from families facing economic challenges were also granted learning material while a further 15 farmers who have made the highest contribution towards fresh produce collection from the area were given farmer equipment. In addition a resting hut and 100 chairs was donated to the Farmer Society while plastic crates for post-harvest transportation was distributed among 30 farmers. Insurance scheme for farmers Cargills Food City also provided HNB Farmer Insurance schemes for 137 farmers free of charge. The scheme entitles famers to death, accidental death, disability and permanent disability covers as well as hospitalization benefits. 50 cents back to the Community against each kilogram purchased This disbursement of benefits comes as part of the annual community development initiative planned by Cargills together with the farmer community and World Vision Lanka. Explaining the project, Mr. Haridas Fernando, Deputy General Manager- Agribusiness for Cargills said, “every time Cargills buys a kilogram of vegetables from the farming community in Gangeyaya 50 cents goes back to a community development fund. Annually the funds are utilized for scholarships and projects that would develop the quality of life of this community.” Mr. Keerthi Gunasekara, General Manager, Retail Operations of Cargills added “We have developed a similar fund at our collection centres in Jaffna and Moneragala with plans to expand the concept to all farmer communities we work with. The funds provide scholarships for needy children from the community, resources for learning and advancement and even meet basic community infrastructure needs such as utility connections, community centres, libraries etc. Our focus is to engage the communities that work with us to charter their own course of development.” http://www.cargillsceylon.com/MediaCentre/News.aspx?newsId=0282Fri, 05 Apr 2013 08:13:10 GMTMillers Brewery Ltd. (MBL) is to brew Fosters Lager under license for distribution and sale in Sri Lanka. The move follows MBL, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Cargills Ceylon Plc., last week entering into an agreement with Calrton United Breweries Ltd. of Australia (CUB), a subsidiary of SAB Miller of London and Johannesburg. In 2011, Cargills entered the soft alcohol industry by completing the acquisition of the McCallum Brewery and its ‘3 Coins’ brand. McCallum Brewery Limited was established in 1963 by the eminent entrepreneur late U.K. Edmund. Over the years McCallum Brewery has established itself as a craft brewer nurturing the ‘Three Coins’ brand from a conservative product to the premium league. The brewery located in Meegoda uses the pristine natural spring water from the area to produce high quality beer that is now available in a range of strong and mild varieties. http://www.cargillsceylon.com/MediaCentre/News.aspx?newsId=0281Thu, 07 Mar 2013 14:39:02 GMTLeading supermarket chains have managed to keep vegetable prices relatively low, despite the price manipulations by Naadi-mafia operating from Dambula, the centre of the country’s vegetable supply chain. Following The Nation’s exclusive exposure of how vegetable prices are kept consistently high by the ‘Naadi Mafia’, investigations were launched as to how the various supermarket chains keep vegetable prices relatively low. The Nation focused on the two largest chains, Cargills Food City and Keells Super [see chart for price comparisons on selected vegetables]. Ranjith Page, Chairman, Cargills (Ceylon) PLC, pointed to a long standing strategy of linkages with producers and mechanisms to reduce wastage as the main reasons for relatively low prices: ‘We maintain a strong relationship with farmers and we have a strategy to strengthen them as farmers constitute a very important part of our internal vegetable supply chain. We work with farmers to make sure that they do not over-produce. Also, we make utmost efforts to reduce wastage, not only in farms, but also during transportation. We, as a company, can do that because we have a direct relationship with farmers. That is how we keep the cost-factor down.’ Charitha Subasinghe, Vice President John Keells Holdings, said that they use collection centers to eliminate the costs of middlemen. “We have our own vegetable collection centers at three places- Nuwara Eliya, Suriyawewa and Thambuttegama. We directly purchase vegetables from farmers and send them to warehouses. From warehouses, we send vegetables to our various outlets on a daily basis. We don’t deal with outside vendors and therefore we don’ have to deal with middlemen who allegedly manipulate vegetable prices.” Subasinghe, when asked why Food City prices were generally lower than Keells Super prices, said that Keells has its own price comparisons: ‘We sell local potatoes, which are relatively more expensive than potatoes imported from India, for example.’ The Nation, however, used Friday’s prices posted in the Keells website and averages of store prices in selected Food City outlets for this comparison. Page declined to comment on the strategies and pricing mechanisms of competitors. A cross section of consumers told The Nation that vegetable prices are one of many criteria considered in choosing a supermarket. These include the quality of service, the range of non-produce items and convenience of location. It was noted, in general, that there were ‘store-specific’ factors, both positive and negative, that impacted choice. The Nation learns that while the proliferation of supermarket chains across the length and breadth of Sri Lanka has all but hoofed out of business smaller vegetable vendors in the vicinity of such outlets, their collective market share is still very small and too weak to stump the likes of the Naadi Mafia. http://www.cargillsceylon.com/MediaCentre/News.aspx?newsId=0280Thu, 7 Mar 2013 14:07:27 GMTH.E. the President Mahinda Rajapaksha declared open the latest Cargills Food City at the new Resting area along the Southern Express Way at Welipenna yesterday, (December 6, 2012). The ‘Canowin Arcade’ at Welipenna has two resting areas for commuters travelling on either side of the Southern Expressway. Cargills Food City outlets are located at both resting areas. http://www.cargillsceylon.com/MediaCentre/News.aspx?newsId=0279Fri, 07 Dec 2012 10:32:40 GMTCargills Food City, the top supermarket chain, has joined up with the College of Community Physicians of Sri Lanka to support the goals of 'Healthfest', a national action programme to influence life style change in Sri Lanka. The programme also partnered by the National Nutrition Secretariat of the Presidential Secretariat, the Ministry of Health and the Department of Agriculture promotes 8 health targets towards healthy living, according to a Cargills media statement. “The College of Community Physicians has developed the concept of Healthfest in response to the increasing burden of Non Communicable Diseases (NCD) such as heart diseases, stroke, hypertension, diabetes etc. The organization notes that NCD’s are mostly related to modifiable risk factors such as unhealthy diet, physical inactivity and tobacco and alcohol use that in turn give rise to the intermediate risk factors that lead to these chronic diseases.In response Healthfest is actively engaging the public towards 8 health targets known as the SUPER EIGHT which would be launched at full-day festival on Saturday, November 17, 2012 at the Viharamahadevi Park,” the statement added. Of the eight health targets, consuming five servings of fruit and vegetables per day (approximately 400 gms of vegetables and fruits per day) is a key health target which Cargills Food City is partnering Healthfest towards promoting this healthy habit. Sidath Kodikara, Chief Operating Officer-Retail of Cargills (Ceylon) PLC said Cargills is already promoting the consumption of fruit and vegetables through in-store communication. “The targets of Heathfest are very much in line with our own responsibility towards health and nutrition. We already promote the consumption of local fruit and vegetables but our partnership with Healthfest would see this becoming a more focused engagement with the consumer. We will be prioritizing the availability of exotic local fruit and vegetables at all of our outlets islandwide while promoting the Super 8 targets of Healthfest,” Mr. Kodikara said. At the Healthfest launch on Saturday, Cargills Food City is providing a chance for more than 400 pre-school kids to sample a variety of local fruit and vegetables towards building awareness on the nutritional and medicinal values local fruits and vegetables. “In addition we will also run a full-fledged Cargills Food City stall with our entire range of local fruits and vegetables that are also available for sale there. Our representatives would be there to share with you the importance of eating more fruit and vegetables that are sourced directly from our farmer network of over 15,000. Cargills invests a lot of time and effort with our farmers to ensure that fresh produce reaches outlets at optimum quality condition so that their best nutritional value is passed on to the consumer through advanced agricultural and pots-harvest practices,” Keerthi Gunasekara, General Manager- Retail Operations of Cargills noted said. http://www.cargillsceylon.com/MediaCentre/News.aspx?newsId=0278Fri, 16 Nov 2012 11:04:55 GMTUS Ambassador to Sri Lanka Michele Sison and Jim Bednar, Mission Director, United States Agency for International Development (USAID), recently visited the fruit and vegetable processing centre being constructed in Kilinochchi by Cargills (Ceylon) PLC. The visit was part of a tour that saw a team of US diplomats and officials visiting USAID –supported projects in northern Sri Lanka. USAID support to the Cargills-initiated Northern Horticultural Alliance Project (NHA project) is aimed at empowering the livelihoods of over 1,000 fruit and vegetable farmers as well as palmyra sap tappers and processors from the conflict-affected Northern Province. Ambassador Sison and Bednar, along with a team of delegates, visited the fruit and vegetable processing facility being constructed in Kilinochchi. Haridas Fernando, Deputy General Manager- Agribusiness for Cargills, said: “The facility would process an estimated 150 tons of fruit and vegetables per month procured from farmers in the region. Cargills aims to take its total fresh produce collection from the region to 250 tons per month. This processing centre would also support the Cargills Northern Palmyra Project by providing processing facilities for 100 palmyra tappers that we presently collect from.” G. Samuel Neshakumar, Business Development Manager of Cargills for the Northern region, noted that the Cargills Collection centre in Allawedi, Jaffna, also an initiative under the NHA project, brings together the produce from 2,000 farmer families in 10 Grama Seva division, including Alaweddi, Chunnakkam, Massiyapitty, Illavalai and Thellipalai. The project’s most recent agricultural innovation introducing new varieties of seedless sweet grape sapling to Jaffna farmers has also been well received and is likely to change the landscape of grape imports and income from grape cultivation. The NHA project will also introduce passion fruit cultivation to the northern region, another first from this alliance between Cargills and USAID. http://www.cargillsceylon.com/MediaCentre/News.aspx?newsId=0277Wed, 10 Oct 2012 00:00:00 GMTAug 20, 2012 (LBO) - Profits of Sri Lanka's Cargills (Ceylon) Plc, which interests in retailing and fast moving consumer goods fell 24 percent to 245 million rupees, as higher interest costs bit into the bottom line, interim accounts showed. The group reported earnings of 1.10 rupees for the quarter. Revenues rose 25 percent to 14.1 billion rupees and cost of sales rose 25 percent to 12.6 billion rupees but the firm also managed to grow gross profits 26 percent to 1.46 billion rupees. But interest costs rose 115 percent to 274 million rupees. The group reported current borrowings of 8.7 billion rupees. Cargills said newly acquired businesses are "yet to realize their expected potential." Cargills bought into confectionary and beer businesses when interest rates in Sri Lanka were low. The firm said major investments were planned for the newly acquired units. Cargills runs Sri Lanka's largest retail chain and holds the franchise for KFC in Sri Lanka. The group would continue to expand the retail chain and KFC outlets with 'utmost confidence' the firm told shareholders. http://www.cargillsceylon.com/MediaCentre/News.aspx?newsId=0275Tue, 18 Sep 2012 15:32:03 GMTSri Lanka’s Cargills Ceylon Plc has plans to improve production by adding storage capacity to its dairy ice cream plant while the Group is also investing in consolidating its dairy facilities at a single location, the firm disclosed. According to the company’s 2011/12 Annual Report, expansion of yoghurt and pasteurized milk production capacity is also ongoing. “The new capacity would be commissioned by the fourth quarter of the new financial year and is expected to yield immediate dividends,” Chairman Louise Page told shareholders. He however cautioned that the related cost of capital to fund this investment of more than Rs. 1.1 Bn, depreciation and overheads would impact the manufacturing segment profits in the new financial year. In the year concluded Cargills had also reopened the biscuit manufacturing plant which it acquired in the previous financial year. “While the market entry with signature blue packaging stirred the industry, the consumer response remains mixed and below our expectation,” Louise pointed out. He noted that the losses from this division weighed down the otherwise strong performance of the manufacturing segment in 2011/2012. “The distribution strategy in the segment has been revisited and the Company is focused on reducing its losses in 2012/2013 and breaking even in the following financial year,” he further mentioned. http://www.cargillsceylon.com/MediaCentre/News.aspx?newsId=0274Tue, 18 Sep 2012 14:19:30 GMTCargills (Ceylon) PLC which entered the soft alcohol industry early last year by acquiring the McCallum Brewery is investing massively in expanding capacity from the present 50,000 hl per annum to 600,000 hl within 12 months with installation of new equipment already begun and the expansion due to be completed during the new financial year, the company’s chairman, Mr. Louis Page has announced in its just released annual report."The investment in this project is substantial and the cost of capital, overheads and depreciation will affect the company’s profits in 2012/2013. However, upon commissioning of the new plant we are confident the brewery would give a substantial boost to your group’s results with our brands emerging as market movers," he said.He noted that their entry to this business ``stemmed from the opportunity arising from a distinct change in consumption pattern stimulated by rising disposable incomes.’’Increasing tourist arrivals expected to hit the million visitors mark this year plus last year’s 22.5% growth in malt liquor production indicated what he called the ``timely nature’’ of their investment.The Three Coins range which re-entered the market in September last year had been well received and had won excellent reviews. However limited brewing capacity was a major constraint. This was being addressed with a twelve-fold expansion within 12 months.Cargills had funded significant investments in its new businesses with had already been funded with debt and the interest on this debt, the anticipated revival cost and related losses have been born by the company’s established businesses. Page expected the new businesses to show attractive returns from the first quarter of 2013/14.Page reported that they will also be investing substantially in a new commercial bank, Cargills Agriculture and Commercial Bank, which is sponsored by Cargills and its parent, CT Holdings PLC."The re-development of the historic Cargills property in Fort into a 6-star hotel would be initiated in collaboration with internationally renowned partners. These investments will also be funded with debt which would result in an increased interest expense over the next two years and steps have been taken to effectively manage this debt burden," he said.Cargills which owns the country’s leading supermarket chain has concluded a successful year ended March 31, 2012 with group revenue up 30% to Rs.48.26 billion and the group profit after-tax up 0.08% to Rs.1.09 billion.Page has said that retail remained the mainstay of their business with the sector continuing to outperform itself year-on-year with both Cargills Food City and its smaller variant, Cargills Food City Express, enjoying solid same-store growth with improved profit."Our expansion drive remains steady and focused towards meeting the mounting consumer demand from regional Sri Lanka," he said.Despite challenging market conditions of spiralling fuel prices and increased electricity tariff, the retail performance remained robust with the group confident that its unique brand proposition of delivering quality at the most affordable prices anywhere in the island would enable the company to retain its market leadership position in a growing industry."The 100 new outlets program initiated in December 2009 is on target with 31 new outlets opened in the year concluded. The construction of the ‘Retail Mall Project’ in Jaffna is also keeping good time with the property due to open its doors do the public in mid-2013," Page said.In the fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) industry, Cargills manufacturing business had posted 68.7% revenue growth with Magic ice cream doing particularly well with a sharp increase in both sales and profits.Their meat products had also enjoyed steady growth in revenue despite tighter margins attributed to pressure from competition with the company confident that this business would reap the benefits of a rising export demand and the rebounded hospitality industry.The market demand for the Kist range of cordials, jams and sauces was also rising and Kotmale has reported a strong performance in its pasteurized and ultra heat treated flavoured milk range.The group had made substantial investments in the dairy processing business with production and storage capacity added to their dairy ice cream plants. They were also investing in consolidating their dairy facilities in a single location.Their entering into biscuits manufacturing with a plant acquired the previous financial year had been below expectation with losses from this activity weighing down the otherwise strong manufacturing performance in the year under review."The distribution strategy in the segment has been revisited and the company is focused on reducing its losses in 2012/2013 and breaking even in the following financial year," Page said.He reported that increased rates of taxation payable by their manufacturing units which were previously exempted and higher interest cost of borrowings for their acquisitions had also impacted on profitability.Shareholders would appreciate that the substantial rise in administration cost associated with newly acquired businesses would stabilize in the medium term and the growth in cost would be moderate in the future.The directors have recommended a dividend of Rs.1.30 per share on top of an interim 70 cents paid in January maintaining the previous year’s dividend rate.Cargills has a stated capital of Rs.130.7 million, reserves of Rs.4.6 billion and retained earnings of Rs.2.9 billion in its books. Total assets ran at Rs.24.85 billion and total liabilities at Rs.17.13 billion.CT Holdings with 70% of the company is its major shareholder followed by Mr. V.R. Page with 6.43% and the EPF with 3.09%.The Cargills share with a net asset value of Rs.34.07, up from Rs.31.07 the previous year, traded at a high of Rs.240 and a low of Rs.117 during the year under review. This compared with a trading range of Rs.253 to Rs.70 a year earlier.The directors of the company are: Messrs. L.R. Page (Chairman), V.R. Page (Deputy Chairman/CEO), M.I. Abdul Wahid (MD/Deputy CEO), S.V. Kodikara, P.S. Mathavan, Jayantha Dhanapala, A.T.P. Edirisinghe, S.E.C. Gardiner, Sunil Mendis, Anthony A. Page, J.C. Page and E.A.D. Perera.http://www.cargillsceylon.com/MediaCentre/News.aspx?newsId=0273Mon, 17 Sep 2012 13:44:23 GMTLegendary Singapore-based Raffles Hotels is currently in negotiations with the Cargills Group to set up the Raffles at the old Cargills building in Fort which dates back to 1844, industry sources said.http://www.cargillsceylon.com/MediaCentre/News.aspx?newsId=0272Sun, 27 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT