Summary

The world cinnamon market is around USD 728 Million in 2019, of which 42.67 % is true cinnamon. Sri Lanka holds 55.31% of the true cinnamon market. This amounts to 20.91% of the total world cinnamon market in 2019. In 2018, the annual cinnamon production was around 24,000 Tonnes and 72% of them are
exported to the global market. Further, Ceylon cinnamon has been able to capture 61.5% of the total spice export in 2020. This market share is captured with a considerable production cost of manual traditional processing.
There has been a requirement of mechanisation of cinnamon since the 1990s, however, there is no pragmatic solution yet for skilled labour scarcity and the real need for quill making. The dependence on manual labour has been a major constraint to the growth of the cinnamon industry and thus expanding the market share beyond 20.91%. Therefore, it is of paramount importance to introduce mechanised processing methods to the Sri Lankan Cinnamon industry. This would lead to a better work environment
and quality of life for the workers as well as the landowners will be motivated to invest more in cinnamon as the production cost is reduced.

Objectives

1. Ascertain the rationale of established output forms of cinnamon with their processing rates and
investigate mechanisation attempts of cinnamon processing.
2. Design of a machine for cinnamon processing in bulk volumes with enhanced rates leading to novel
value-added forms of processed cinnamon.
3. Develop a prototype machine for bulk cinnamon processing integrating process controls with
improved performance and hygienic conditions.
4. Test the developed machine for improved performance.
5. Disseminate findings to initiate novel value-added forms of processed cinnamon in the global
market.

Major Equipment Facilitated by Grant