Silvermill Holdings says goodbye Hiramanaya

Sanjeevi Jayasuriya

Another First by Silvermill was introduced to the local market, the frozen grated coconut in ‘easy-to-use’ retail packs. Silvermill has once again come out with their latest innovation when they launched frozen grated coconut at Keells Super, Union Place recently. The event was officiated by the Coconut Development and Janatha Estate Development Minister Jagath Pushpakumara, who unveiled a jumbo version of the pack. The Chairman and officials of the Coconut Development Authority, officials of John Keells Holdings Pvt. Ltd. with the management and staff of Silvermill were present at the launch.

A range of instant food packs produced by Silvermill was displayed at the event. Frozen grated coconut comes in handy 125 g (equivalent to half coconut) and 250 g (equivalent to a full coconut) packs. It is convenient to busy housewives as it saves time, avoids scraping and eliminates disposal of residue. It is available at Keells Super outlets and will be introduced to all leading supermarkets shortly at a mere price of a fresh coconut. The shelf life of the product is 6 months.

Silvermill Group, founded by Anthony Silva in 1920, remains a family business managed by the third generation of the Silva family, maintaining the same tradition on its products. Silvermill has developed modern processing facilities and produced an innovative range of food products for local and international market.

The attractive clear packaging of the product is designed for consumers to visualize the product and gives comprehensive details of its use. It replaces all the value of a fresh coconut, maintaining its original nutritional value and flavour.

A total of 1.9 billion nuts are consumed annually in Sri Lanka, of which 60 percent is used for coconut milk extraction which add to about 1200 million nuts per year, Ministry of Coconut Development and Janatha Estate Development Secretary, Anura Siriwardena said.

He added, that in domestic usage of fresh coconut, there is a considerable wastage of around 30% by way of coconut refuse discarded and these items are not put to any use. When manufactured products like frozen grated coconut and creamed coconut milk are used, there is value created by way of utilization of the discarded coconut shells, refuse etc. which is a boost to the country’s coconut exports. Silvermill Holdings Ltd. Chief Operating Officer Group Support, Dinesh Silva said that in keeping with our mission of adding further value to coconut products by developing frozen grated coconut after much research with a view to making it more effective. He added that it is our Corporate Social Responsibility by preventing the careless discarding of coconut shells which lead to mosquito breeding and health hazards like dengue.

Other products launched by the company are: Dessert products - Nougat Mixed Ice Cream Topping and Tropical Fruit Combo. Breakfast products - Fruit and Nut Breakfast Bar and Fruity Nut Breakfast Crunch, Instant products - Instant Vegetable Rice and instant Pol Sambol. Snack products Spicy Mixed Del Bite, Spicy Mixed Vege Bite, Sweetened Pineapple and Tropical Fruit Cocktail. Natural Herbal Hot Beverages of Belli Fruit Natural Herbal Tea, Karapincha Natural Herbal Tea, Iramusu Natural Herbal Tea, Cinnamon Natural Herbal Tea, Ginger Natural Herbal Tea.