Watawala Plantations, South Asia’s first RSPO certified palm oil plantation

Watawala Plantations PLC (WATA), Sri Lanka’s leading diversified agribusiness company, has reached the next milestone in its development of sustainable oil palm plantations, achieving the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) certification for the palm oil mill and concessions (the entire estates) in Galle District.

The momentous recognition makes WATA the first plantations company in South Asia and Sri Lanka to be certified with this coveted accreditation, the company said in a media release.

The palm oil plantations of WATA—a joint venture between Sunshine Holdings and Pyramid Wilmar—are located in Udugama, Galle. The certification strengthens Watawala Plantations’ leadership as the largest certified producer in Sri Lanka with a production capacity of 14,000 MT of palm oil (CPO) and 1,350 MT of palm kernel oil (PKO). WATA also supports local communities where 7 per cent of the total fresh fruit bunches (FFB) that is used to produce palm oil is sourced from smallholder farmers within the community.

“The well-being of the neighbouring village communities, our employees and the environment are most important to Watawala Plantations. We continuously strive to protect that sanctity by respecting rights, valuing relationships, and operating responsibly in all of our oil palm plantations. The RSPO certification is a testament of our commitment to this responsibility and to achieving our broader goal of a fully sustainable and transparent palm oil supply chain in Sri Lanka,” said Sunshine Holdings Group Managing Director and Watawala Plantations Director Vish Govindasamy.

WATA’s palm oil operation provides livelihoods to families, small businesses and organisations in and around the plantations resulting in many people depending on WATA for socio and economic progress. WATA closely monitors and manages any impact the operations may have on these communities while seeking to address their needs, providing and improving social amenities with the expectation of uplifting living standards and livelihood.

Commenting on this hard-won recognition, Watawala Plantations Chief Executive Officer Binesh Pananwala said, “This is a significant achievement for the WATA Sustainable Team that has been working towards obtaining RSPO Certification. It underlines the continuous effort and the perseverance by WATA to maintain the highest standards in our operations.”

WATA closely monitors and manages any impact the operations may have on these communities while seeking to address their needs, providing and improving social amenities with the expectation of uplifting living standards and livelihood.