February 26, 2017 was marked by the Ceylon Tea Party and the Networking Session, organized by the Embassy of Sri Lanka in Russia at the Lotte Hotel Moscow with the support of the Sri Lanka Tea Board.
The event was attended by more than 70 representatives of the tea trade sectors of Russia and Sri Lanka and 20 delegates of various Russian mass media outlets, whereas the Chief Guest was Mr. Rohan Pethiyagoda, Chairman of the Sri Lanka Tea Board, accompanied by an official delegation.
During the event the guests had a chance to taste pure Ceylon tea and enjoy the show, full of traditional cultural and musical elements which are essential for the Sri Lankan culture. The Sri Lankan music group "Soul" conducted fascinating live performances and the Russian dancing group "Vozrozhdenie" performed classical Russian dances, such as ballet.
During his speech, H. E. Dr. Saman Weerasinghe, Ambassador of Sri Lanka to Russia, pointed out that initiatives of the Sri Lankan Government focused on the export development and shared with the audience his opinion of the current nature of the Russian tea consumers market, saying that "we can see that Russian people give their preference to the quality of the product over its price. In our case, it is a great sign that Ceylon tea, the global quality setter in the world tea industry, is now becoming more and more popular with the Russian audience, which is yet another reason why we shall continue to explore the Russian market with the aim of further increasing of the recognition of the Ceylon tea image. It is essential for the Sri Lankan tea companies to establish constant presence here in order to keep up with the modern tendencies, prevailing on the Russian market and to diverse their contacts pools comprising Russian distribution companies, tea importers, and retail chains".
At the same time, Mr. Rohan Pethiyagoda, Chairman of the Sri Lanka Tea Board, expressed his hope for further development of Ceylon tea exports to Russia during his speech, and Mr. Ramaz Chanturiya, Director General of the Rusteacoffee Association, highlighted the positive tendencies seen in the current Sri Lanka-Russia tea cooperation and underscored that the Ceylon tea is one of the favorite teas of Russian consumers.
After the cultural part of the event Sri Lankan tea trade representatives shared their opinions on the current nature of the Sri Lanka-Russia commercial partnership with various Russian media agencies. H. E. Dr. Saman Weerasinghe, Ambassador of Sri Lanka to Russia, and Mr. Rohan Pethiyagoda, Chairman of the Sri Lanka Tea Board, gave interviews to journalists, expressing their views on the huge potential of Ceylon tea and the development of bilateral relations between the two countries in the tea industry.
The Ceylon Tea Party and the Networking Session became efficient grounds for yet another successful activity of the Sri Lankan Embassy in Russia, the main aim of which is the promotion of Ceylon tea in the Russian Federation and increasing of awareness of all benefits of Ceylon tea among Russian consumers through the mass media channels.
