Marking Two Years of Positive Change with the Seal Initiative in Sri Lanka’s Tea Sector

In 2024, five major tea companies (three plantations, one exporter and one brand) successfully completed their first two-year cycle of the Mother and Child-friendly Seal for Responsible Business (‘the Seal initiative’) and were granted full usage of the Seal logo on their marketing and communications.

This recognition marked a significant milestone in the Sri Lankan tea industry's journey towards a resilient tea sector committed to continually addressing challenges and enhancing the well-being of workers and children in tea communities.

The Seal initiative offers a pragmatic and sustainable approach to improve key challenges, not by imposing a long, unrealistic list of standards and expectations that businesses need to meet instantly, but by giving them the means to identify and address the challenges that they themselves consider to be a priority and then tackling them one at a time with continuous support from The Centre.

These efforts have led to a range of meaningful initiatives designed to create lasting positive change within tea-growing communities, while enhancing the global appeal and quality of Sri Lankan tea from Seal plantations.

Through the Seal Initiatives, 2,559 individuals were directly impacted, 127 tea industry participants were engaged through the annual Family-Friendly Tea Industry Conference, and a new Seal Initiative was launched for the tourism sector.

Moving forward, we look forward to welcoming global brands and retailers to the Seal initiative to support their human rights due diligence and to create greater visibility and engagement in tea supply chains.

The tea sector across the globe has multiple human rights issues and Sri Lanka is no exception. However, the Seal Initiative developed in collaboration with the tea industry in Sri Lanka has been a step in the right direction – that of acknowledging that there are critical issues that need to be addressed to ensure sustainability of the tea industry and that there is a need for collaboration among different stakeholders to create meaningful impact. We hope that more tea industry stakeholders join the Seal journey,” said Ahila Thillainathan, Sri Lanka Country Director, The Centre.

• Bogawantalawa Tea Estates (BTE): expanded its child protection policy to cover all 11 up-country estates and three additional low-country estates.

• English Tea Shop Organic: implemented a parent-child benefit policy, providing monthly support for 172 employees' children under 16, along with 25 children of smallholder farmers. Watch a video about their initiative here.

• Horana Plantations: established a production unit for affordable reusable sanitary napkins, creating local jobs and promoting menstrual hygiene at its pilot estate. Watch a video about their initiative here.

• Jafferjee Brothers: updated its policy frameworks across key areas, including workplace health and safety, grievance handling, supply chain management, anti-harassment, and child and forced labour.

• Talawakelle Tea Estates: launched a female field supervisor programme, training 24 young women to enhance career opportunities and support social mobility. Watch a video about their initiative here.

Contact us to learn how you can get involved.