History of Ceylon Tea

Akbar Brothers acquires 28% of the combined healthcare business

Sri Lanka’s diversified conglomerate Sunshine Holdings PLC today announced the merger of their healthcare business consisting of Sunshine Healthcare Lanka and Healthguard Pharmacy with the healthcare arm of Akbar Brothers. It consists of Akbar Pharmaceuticals, Lina Manufacturing and Lina Spiro.

The strategic merger will create Sri Lanka’s first fully integrated healthcare company starting from manufacturing up to retailing of healthcare products, including last-mile distribution across the country for all healthcare products. The company will be operating in all five segments of the healthcare supply chain, namely R&D, manufacturing, importation, distribution and retail.

This merger will also enhance the pharmaceutical manufacturing capacity in the country with both leading business groups working together to invest in this critical national building sector. By combining their strengths, the merged healthcare business will be able to build further manufacturing capacity as well as develop and scale up production of existing and new molecules, work with regional pharma companies to drive tech transfers and overall increase the local production of medicines as envisaged by His Excellency the President of Sri Lanka’s Vision “ Vistas of Prosperity and Splendour”.

Sunshine Healthcare Lanka, established in 1967, is a leading market expansion services provider, with an extensive specialized healthcare team, offering a broad range of customized services from registration to importation, customs clearance and temperature-controlled storage, sales and marketing, warehousing and pharmacy distribution. Healthguard Pharmacy Ltd, a 100% subsidiary of SHL, has established a network of 22 pharmacies across Greater Colombo, offering a range of pharmaceuticals, wellness and beauty products that has set the benchmark in healthcare retailing in the country.

Lina Manufacturing is the Akbar group’s first pharma manufacturing venture with an operating history of 10 years. Together with the University of Sri Jayawardenapura, they have developed molecules which they supply significantly to the Public Sector through the Ministry of Health’s pharmaceutical buyback program. The company manufactures a range of respiratory pharmaceuticals and devices including Beclovent, Flutivent, Salbuvent, Prazolin, Winterpan and the award winning Ventohaler inhalers. Lina Spiro is the latest venture of Akbar Pharma which focuses on manufacturing the latest technology metered-dose inhalers which are for respiratory care and is the only such manufacturer in Sri Lanka certified to WHO-GMP standards, opening the door to international exports.

About Akbar Brothers Group

With a history of over five decades, the Akbar Brothers Group has carved a legacy as a trailblazing exporter of the highest quality Ceylon tea to become a diversified Group with business interests in sustainable power generation, healthcare, packaging, property development, environmental services and leisure. Proud of a heritage that sees over 70 million cups of tea consumed worldwide daily, the Akbar Brothers Group constructs its business platforms on the strong building blocks of quality, ethics, integrity and responsible manufacture, all of which work on the fundamentals of sustainable best practices and transparent and accountable engagement with stakeholders. With sustainable solutions being the focus of the future, the Group will continue to be driven by its commitment to excellence in products and services and a dynamism in creating business areas that fuel growth, while charting a reduced carbon footprint.

About Sunshine Holdings PLC

Sunshine Holdings PLC is a diversified conglomerate contributing to ‘nation-building’ by creating value in vital sectors of the Sri Lankan economy – mainly in the healthcare and consumer sectors, with strategic investments in agribusiness and renewable energy. Established over 50 years ago in 1967, the Group is now home to leading Sri Lankan brands such as Zesta Tea, Watawala Tea, Ran Kahata, Daintee and Healthguard Pharmacy, with over 2,300 employees and revenue of LKR 21 Billion. The business units comprise of Sunshine Healthcare Lanka, Watawala Tea Ceylon, Daintee Confectionary, Healthguard Pharmacy, Sunshine Energy and Watawala Plantations PLC, which are leaders in their respective sectors and many of them certified as a “Great Place to Work” in 2020.