Background

An Allocation of Rs. 20 Mn. award has been won by the Department of Agribusiness Management, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences and has recognized the following five activities as the most required activities to enhance academic and socio-emotional skills and English language skill of its undergraduates.

Activity 1: Inculcating quality management principles for commercial level of Agri-Food Business creation

Activity 2: Strengthening the link between the industry and the Degree Programmes of B.Sc. in Food Business Management and B.Sc. in Agricultural Sciences and Management

Activity 3: Enriching teaching and learning through improved OBE & LCT methods

Activity 4: Improving analytical skills through students centered learning

Activity 5: English language skill enhancement

Staff

Project Coordinator:  

                 Dr. A. W. Wijeratne

Activity Coordinators:

                 Dr. S.H.P. Malkanthi

                 Ms. M.S. Elapata

Progress

Name of the project: Pathfinder of employability of graduates in Agri and Food business

Amount of allotted funding: Rs. 15,000,000.00

Team Leader/Project Coordinator: Dr. A. W. Wijeratne Senior Lecturer, Dept. of Agribusiness Management

Activity Coordinators: Dr. S.H.P. Malkanthi, Senior Lecturer, Dept. of Agribusiness Management

                                      Ms. M. S. Elapata, Lecturer (Probationary) Dept. of Agribusiness Management

Background

An Allocation of Rs. 15 Mn. award has been won by the Department of Export Agriculture. Faculty of Agricultural Sciences and has recognized the following five activities as the most required activities to enhance academic and socio-emotional skills and English language skill of its undergraduates.

Activity 1: Capacity enhancement of the staff and students in teaching, learning and assessments with special emphasis on outcome based education (OBE) and learner centered teaching (LCT)

Activity 2: Inculcation of research culture to the Department, strengthening and development of professional skills of both staff and students through collaboration with industries

Activity 3: Upgrading the existing farm to a model teaching and research farm

Activity 4: Plant germplasm conservation and establishment of a herbarium

Activity 5: Upgrading English language skills of undergraduates

Staff

Activity Team

Team Leader/ Project coordinator:

Dr. J B D A P Kumara, Lecturer, Department of Export Agriculture

Activity Coordinators:

1. Dr. J B D A P Kumara, Lecturer, Department of Export Agriculture

2. Prof. P.I. Yapa, Professor, Dept. of Export Agriculture

3. Mr. G A H Galahitigama, Lecturer (Probationary), Dept. of Export Agriculture

Progress

• Goods purchasing is in progress to purchase 37 different good items for the Department under the five activities in the project
• BOQ preparation process of refurbishment of an existing room to Gavel club office and Construction of a shed for Bio-fertilizer unit is in progress

Background

Ceylon Cinnamon (Cinamomum Zylanicum (old botanical name)/ Cinamomum verum ) a plant indigenous to Sri Lanka is a moderately size bushy ever green tree. In traditional medicine Cinnamon is considered a remedy for respiratory, digestive and gynecological ailments (Ranasinghe et al. 2013). Sri Lanka is producing 70% of the global Pure Cinnamon production in the world being the largest producer. The Ceylon Cinnamon referred to as "sweet cinnamon “, “true cinnamon”, and “pure cinnamon" due to its superiority over the Cassia cinnamon variety in the global market (SLEDB 2018).Cinnamon grown and produced in Sri Lanka has acquired long standing reputation in the international market due to its unique, quality, color, flavor, and aroma associated with the geographical origin. In current global market, Cinnamomum cassia (Chinese cinnamon) is widely using over many products. However, Ceylon cinnamon has superior qualities to Cassia type. Limited efforts in value addition to Ceylon cinnamon cause to low level of income to the country and provide space to misuse the Ceylon cinnamon reputed brand name. Accelerating Higher Education Expansion and Development (AHEAD) is a World Bank funded Sri Lankan government operation funded for the project “DEVELOPMENT OF NOVEL BEVERAGE TYPES WITH CEYLON CINNAMON, (Cinnamomum zelanicum) (STEM) (AHEAD/RIC No : 16) under RIC (Research Innovation and Commercialization) project (LKR 50 millions).

Objectives

• Promote the pure cinnamon value-added products in the global market and being competitive as the producer of pure cinnamon.
• To innovate, improve, and expand Sri Lankan value added products in beverage industry with unique products as carbonated drinks, herbal teas, wine, and latte with Ceylon cinnamon.
• Identify the most applicable extraction method of pure cinnamon in food/ beverage applications that gives its optimum functional values.
• Develop a formula with healthy ingredients by appropriate combinations that gives a unique and satisfying flavors.
• Manufacture the suggested products in a safe, healthy, and sustainable manner, after the research and development process.
• Manufacture the products in an attractive and profitable way to approach high-end market.
• Introduce the products to the local exporters in the beverage industry
• Introduce the products to the high-end customer in foreign market starting from the East-Asian countries and expand to EU and USA markets.

Staff

Coordinator             - Prof. D.A.M De Silva

                                   Contact - +94718307499/ desilva.achini@yahoo.co.uk

Deputy Coordinator -Dr. R. K. C. Jeewanthi

                                    Contact - +94774314067/ chatu03@gmail.com

Quality Experts          -Dr. M.A.J.P Munasighe

                                     Contact - jagath@agri.sab.ac.lk

Researcher                 - Ms. M.S Elapatha

                                     Contact - +94710818599/ maheshwari.elapata@gmail.com

Researcher                 - Ms. K. K. H. M. Rathnayake

                                     Contact - +94711538496/ kkhmr222rathnayake@gmail.com

Research Assistant   -Mr. W.M.T.B Weddagala

                                       Contact - +94713549462/ tharaka_92@hotmail.com

Research Assistant    - Mr. Janaranjana Ekanayaka

                                       Contact - +94712476733/ janaranjanaekanayaka@gmail.com

Postdoctoral fellow   -Yet to recruit

Progress

Laboratory installation (In Progress)

Cinnamon extraction production (Completed)

Sensory panel training (1st Stage Completed)

Product formula finalization (2 products in progress)

Patent & Copyright application (completed for 2 products)

Publications

1) Communications (abstract) submitted

Weddagala, W.M.T.B., De Silva, D.A.M., Jeewanthi, R,K, C., and Rajapaksha, R.H.N. (2019, September). Investigate the Product Harms Crisis in Ceylon Cinnamon. Paper submitted to Agri-food 2019 Conference

(Submitted) (Presented) (Won Best Presenter Award of the Conference)

2) Number of research publications submitted to peer reviewed internationally indexed journals

Achini M. De Silva, Rends Jeewanthi, Heshani Rajapaksha, Tharaka B. Weddagala, Naoki Hirotsu, Jagath Munasinghe, Bun-ichi Shimizu (2019). Clean Vs Dirty Labels: Transparency And Authenticity of the Labels of Ceylon Cinnamon. Sustainable Alternatives for Food Preservatives and Additives: Frontiers, (Submitted)

3) Number of research publications as books or monographs submitted to reputed international publishers

Jeewanthi,R.K.C, De Silva, D.A.M. & Weddagala, W.M.T.B. (2019), Value Creation and

Food Products of Cinnamon, (Chapter 15), Germany, Springer.

Participated in

Shilpa Sena EXhibition ශිල්පසේනා 2019

InnoTech 2020 - National Innovation and Technology Exhibition

Agriculture, Agrotechnology and food technology Invention-Investor Linking Programme