Exporters of Ceylon's finest

Teas and Spices...

From the tea plant to your cup, crafted ethically with care.

Our Story

Although in operation since 1906, Meezan was registered as a trading company in 1943 dealing in spices for which Ceylon as Sri Lanka was known before was famous for. In 1953 the company got an opportunity to venture in to exports in the form of Cocoa Beans. The maiden shipment was sent out to Amsterdam. The Cocoa Bean exports were followed by Coffee and spices such as Cloves, Nutmeg, Mace, Pepper, Cardamoms and Cinnamon. In 1955 our first consignment of Teas were shipped out of the country. Today, our passion for Tea has made it our core export product.

Mission Statement
To provide our customers with goods of quality and value, exceed expectations of our customers, shareholders and employees. To nurture, uphold and protect our founders’ fair business practices, ethics and integrity and remain as a profitable and responsible organization.

Our Certifications
Our Affiliations

Our Certifications

We at MEEZAN have achieved the highest industry and international standards in food safety management.

GMP - Good Manufacturing Practice
HACCP - Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points
ISO 22000 - The highest international certification that can be achieved for food safety

Our Affiliations

We are affiliated to the oldest and most active institutions in the trade.

The Ceylon Chamber of Commerce
The National Chamber of Commerce of Sri Lanka
Exporters’ Association of Sri Lanka
The Colombo Tea Traders’ Association
Spices and Allied Products Producers’ and Traders’ Association
The Spice Council
Tea Exporters Association

"Whether it was trading, day to day decision making or matters of the family, my father always taught me to make responsible decisions ~ the cornerstone I built this company on from the time my father handed it over to me"
- M. Irshad (Chairman/MD)

Products

We are excited to talk to you about our own brand of teas that range from orthodox teas, tea bags, green teas and herbal teas. We can also undertake your Private Label orders.

Our Brands
ISTA Tea range

About Tea and its History

The first tea plant to arrive in the island of Sri Lanka, then Ceylon, was in the year 1824. Brought here from China by the British, it was planted in the Peradeniya Royal Botanical Gardens, located in the country’s hill capital and last kingdom, Kandy.

It was over four decades later, in 1867, that tea was first grown commercially, after Ceylon’s main crop at the time, coffee, was destroyed by the fungal disease, Hemileia Vastatrix. The first tea estate was in Loolecondera, Kandy, and was initiated by James Taylor on his 19 acre plantation. Taylor went on to establish a tea factory on the same estate in 1872, and in 1873 the first shipment of Ceylon tea arrived in London.

The Ceylonese tea industry branched out and flourished in the 1880s, and since then has been an integral aspect of the island nation’s identity.

Today, although Sri Lanka is well known for its exotic beaches, amazing wildlife and hospitable inhabitants, the country’s most popular cash crop holds a place of great importance, not only in the economy, but deep down in our culture too. The smiling tea-plucker on the postcards, the scenic hills resplendent with tea bushes, and the warm cup of tea extended to every guest in a Sri Lankan household, stand testament to this fact.

It may be just a cup of tea to some, but to most Sri Lankans, it is an integral part of day-to-day life itself. It may be three cups of tea among three friends, catching up on old times. Or perhaps it’s the bus driver’s well deserved break, a quick refreshment while discussing current affairs with the street vendor. Or maybe even two complete strangers, two cups of tea, and perhaps, later, a long lasting friendship. Perhaps an argument that’s not going anywhere, or a decision that’s hard to make, a cup of tea helps keep things going steady, from the moment someone suggests “Let’s sort it out over a cup of tea...” From business deals to marriage proposals, discussions across this country are seldom held without a cup of tea nearby...

Why Tea?

After water, tea is the most popular beverage in the world.

It’s been around for longer than coffee. The earliest records of tea drinking date back to the 10th century BC, while the discovery and use of coffee is often traced back to around the 13th century AD

It’s economical...
Tea is one of the cheapest drinks in the world. Compare the price of a cup of tea to any cola or aerated drink in the market or even coffee or fruit juice for that matter, and you’ll see this is true.

It’s healthy...
Tea contains less caffeine than coffee, is good for your heart, it is packed with anti-oxidants, and works as an aid to digestion. Tea has also beenknown to act as a great stress reliever, and several recent studies have shown that tea helps prevent or combat health issues, including heart disease and Alzheimers’ – and perhaps even cancer.

Studies continue to reveal a series of health benefits brought to us by tea:
Good news for tea drinkers
Green tea and Alzheimer's
Tea and Cancer Prevention: Strengths and Limits of the Evidence
The Health Benefits of Green Tea
Tea 'healthier' drink than water

It comes in a variety of different flavours, and we’re not just referring to the more recent introduction of artificially flavoured tea (here alone flavours range from the most popular Ear Grey, to exotic fruit flavours, such as mango and soursop). Many tea drinkers, much like wine lovers, have learnt to savour the subtle, natural flavours that each blend of tea contains.

Tea is a world in itself In different parts of the world, tea and culture present a unique story – not just in terms of origins and history, but in the way it has woven itself into daily lives and customs that thrive even in the modern world

Why tea? Pour yourself a cup of Meezan’s finest tea, made from the tender leaves of the tea bushes that carpet our hill country. Taste the flavours, the love and passion that each fine brew is infused with. Feel the warmth that stems from Sri Lankan hospitality. Understand the uniqueness of our island nation’s most savoured drink – and you’ll know why.

Jazz it up!

One of the most common misconceptions of the modern world is that the good ol’ cup of tea is a thing of the past. Nothing could be further from the truth. As much as we in the tea industry cherish our history and cultural values, which we will never let go of, we have also learnt to explore new avenues, and so have tea lovers across the globe.

Nice n’ Spicy
Several spices are known to complement a cup of tea. In Sri Lanka for instance, many people enjoy their tea with a bit of ginger. Tea is also taken with a dash of cardamom or a sprinkle of cinnamon. Mint leaves, although not of the spice variety, add a most reviving flavor to tea, both warm and chilled

Iced tea
That’s right, we don’t just take it hot any more. Hundreds of health conscious people – both young and old – have replaced the fizzy drinks in their refrigerators with iced teas of a variety of flavours

Fruit infusions
Warm tea with lime or iced tea with raspberry... more adventurous tea lovers might want to keep the list going

Tea in ice-cream
Green tea flavoured ice cream has increased in popularity, particularly in Japan and across East-Asia – so much so that famous ice-cream manufacturers Häagen-Dazs and Baskin Robbins have both added it to their list of ice cream flavours

Sun grown

Hand plucked

Hygenically packed

Fully equipped tea laboratory

Fully automated tea bagging unit

Meezan Tea

Contact us

366/10 Avissawella Road
Wellampitiya 10600
Sri Lanka

+94 11 4412650
+94 11 4412651
+94 11 4412652
Fax: +94 11 2572866

meezan@meezantea.com
www.meezan.lk