Dilmah Tea named Top 10 Corporate Citizen for the 5th Consecutive year

This year Dilmah Tea was once more named among the Top 10 Corporate Citizens at the Best Corporate Citizens Awards 2024 and further received accolades affirming its commitment to quality, integrity and the environment. 

At Dilmah Tea, the commitment to quality, integrity, and the environment is guided by the vision of its founder, Merrill J. Fernando, who pledged to serve humanity with kindness and respect for people and nature. Driven by a deep sense of purpose, the Founder transformed the tea industry, challenging colonial practices and creating a global brand that prioritises ethical, producer-grown tea. 

Dilmah’s sustainability strategy is firmly aligned with the Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) framework. Having committed to achieving Net Zero by 2050 aligned with Science-Based Targets initiative, the family-owned tea company, this year, set ambitious goals to reduce emissions across its operations. Their comprehensive approach includes continuous improvements in sustainable packaging, enhancing water and energy efficiency and sustainability across tea factories and estates, and driving industry-wide change. Through the “Strong Together” initiative, Dilmah is empowering local suppliers to meet the tea industry’s goals for decarbonisation, strengthen humanitarian efforts and meet key sustainability standards through knowledge-sharing, ongoing support and monitoring to ensure compliance. This mission highlights Dilmah’s dedication to a greener, more sustainable future for the tea industry. Dilmah also enhances community sustainability by improving the welfare of tea estate communities through initiatives in education, housing, and healthcare. These efforts aim to provide better living conditions and create opportunities for growth, ensuring that workers and their families have access to essential services and a higher quality of life.  Moreover, Dilmah’s impact extends beyond business practices, with the Merrill J. Fernando Charitable Foundation and Dilmah Conservation playing central roles in community empowerment and environmental preservation on behalf of business. The initiatives Flagship projects such as the Small Entrepreneur Programme, Endane Biodiversity Corridor, the Rainbow Project and the Climate Change Research Centre are long-term, collaborative, and deeply rooted in community; and serve as exemplary models for fostering sustainable development, empowering local communities, and protecting biodiversity. 

Dilmah Conservation’s Endane Biodiversity Corridor is a 3 Km forested pathway through tea fields now being reforested to link two forest patches. An endeavour that aids wildlife and plants to thrive and boosts biodiversity, serving as a successful science-based planting model for reforestation. In 2023, it received the best project award at the BCCS Awards 2023.

The tea industry is experiencing the impact of climate change, particularly through altered rainfall patterns, temperatures and pest dynamics, all of which affect yields and quality. In response, Dilmah established a climate change research centre at our Queensberry Estate in 2017 to support local and international researchers. To date, over 20 studies have been conducted and we host over 80 workshops annually to educate around 2,000 people on climate change, its impact and measures to mitigate.

The MJF Foundations’ Small Entrepreneur Programme (SEP) has supported 2,500+ small entrepreneurs through grants in the form of equipment, networking opportunities and spaces for visibility. The Programme is an inclusive one that supports war widows, entrepreneurs with disabilities and prisoners on parole in their rehabilitation. This year, it received the best project award at the BCCS Awards 2024.

Rainbow Horizons is a transformative programme that offers holistic education, therapy and care services for children and youth with Down Syndrome and developmental disabilities in Moratuwa, Rajagiriya, Kalkudah and Jaffna. This programme has supported 3,500 children and youth with disabilities to develop to their fullest potential. In 2023, it received the best project merit award at BCCS Awards 2023.

As a leader in both tea production and corporate responsibility, Dilmah is invested in making a meaningful impact on people, communities, and the planet, while delivering exceptional tea that embodies the company’s core values of quality, integrity, and sustainability.