‘Maliban YahaPosha’- an ideal breakfast for a healthier life
Maliban, inspiring goodness as always and with its genuine range of products introduced another nutritionally qualitative food item- Maliban YahaPosha which is capturing the market with its uniqueness and quality. Chief Operations Officer ( Milk and Agri) and General ManagerOperations (Biscuit), Mr. Bandula Perera joined with us to talk about this.
Firstly, could you briefly tell us about the heritage of Maliban?
Back in 1914, Late Chairman Mr. H i n n i a p p u h a m i f rom Akmeemana stepped in to Colombo to start working in a Boutique. With a very humble beginning as such, he opened his own tea kiosk in 1923, a few years later.
In 1954, Mr. Hinniappuhami, founder of this renowned company, Maliban, commenced the production of Maliban biscuits in Kotahena area. He focused on the customers and their needs and also attention was well given for the quality assurance. This was actually the key to his success. Initiated by Mr. Hinniappuhami, Maliban Biscuits was the pioneer in the local biscuit industry.
With time and with the increase in demand for Maliban’s authentic products, plant capacities and land areas in Kotahena were inadequate to deliver products in order to fulfill the required demand. Therefore, in 1965, the Maliban Factory was shifted to Ratmalana, which is the current head office of the Maliban Group. It possesses six biscuit manufacturing Plants where the sixth Plant was installed recently.
Maliban Group expanded gradually and now there are other products manufactured under the House of Maliban, in addition to biscuits. For example, Maliban Diary and Agri Products ( Pvt) Ltdis such one.
Speaking of Maliban Diary and Agri Products, what can you say about this company?
Two years ago, we established Maliban Diary and Agri Products. Under this sector, Maliban Tea and Maliban YahaPosha were introduced to the market. There are mainly two objectives for this expansion of our Maliban Group. First, we wanted to expand our range of products and establish more companies under the group. Secondly, the Senior Management and Directors came to a decision where we thought, Maliban being a local company, we are obliged to help the Nation in whatever way possible, by uplifting the lives of farmers and encouraging local agriculture.
The Company was founded in 26th March 2016 and on the 2nd of December the production procedures were initiated.
Some years back, Maliban introduced ‘Maliban YahaPosha’ and it was re-launched recently as well enriched with goodness of milk. Could you share with us more details about this product which is capturing the market rapidly?
Maliban YahaPosha is a breakfast cereal and also a snack that is enriched with the goodness of milk. This product was produced to provide families, particularly young children, with a wholesome breakfast and healthy snack. Children who are engaged in sports are often advised to consume a nutritious snack like this.
It is available in the market in 80g and 200g packages for the convenience of the consumers.
As usual, Maliban is concerned with maintaining their high standards. How are the quality standards ensured in ‘Maliban YahaPosha’?
All the ingredients of Maliban YahaPosha are sourced from local farmers and we possess a field staff that looks in to the crops to ensure that their quality is main- tained. From the seedling to the harvest, the process is carried out under our guidance. We are one of the companies to be certified to cater to the seeds and the quality is guaranteed through our trained field staff.
We also obtained the ISO certification soon after the introduction of Maliban YahaPosha.
Could you tell about the ingredients of this high nutritious product? And what are the nutritional factors of ‘Maliban YahaPosha’?
This healthy product includes ingredients like Corn, Soya, Rice, Green Gram and also incorporates milk which is the unique factor of this product. Maliban Yaha Posha is free from chemicals, added flavors, coloring and preservatives, highlighting our concern in providing healthy food for Consumers.
‘Maliban YahaPosha’ is enriched with the essential nutrients like Carbohyd r at e s, P ro t e i n s , Minerals, Fats, and Vitamin A, B, C, D and E which are needed for our wellbeing.
How are these ingredients obtained? Could you speak about the sources and the farmers’ community that is contributing to this?
The ingredients for Maliban YahaPosha is obtained locally and by doing so, close to 1500 local farmers are encouraged to cultivate and produce a substantial yield in order to produce a good product for local consumers.
We have our own Farmer Bases for Corn, Soya and Green Gram where groups of farmers are guided by a Farmer Agent. There are 450- 500 farmers cultivating Corn, 700- 800 farmers involved in the cultivation of Soya and in Tissamaharama area 70-100 farmers cultivate Green Gram crops.
The manufacturing plant of Maliban YahaPosha is based in Dambulla. This opens up employment opportunities for locals in that area. The company carries out numerous CSR activities specifically designed to uplift the quality of life of the local farmers and improve the well-being of the community in the area which in turn benefits the citizens in the country.
Is Maliban YahaPosha only available in Sri Lanka or has it reached the international market too? If so what is the response it gets from other countries?
Just like Maliban biscuits that have captured a significant place in the international market, Maliban YahaPosha has reached the international market too. We export Maliban YahaPosha to countries like the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia.
It is consumed by overseas consumers mainly as a cereal for breakfast but nevertheless it can be consumed in other ways, a snack being one of them.