For over 150 years, the Ceylon tea you thought you were drinking was not really Ceylon tea. It was instead this impure mix of leaves from various sources of poor quality and of poor taste. All of that would change with Merrill J Fernando and his company Dilmah. He would go up against big tea companies, insisting that tea be picked, packed and shipped direct from Sri Lanka by pickers themselves — ensuring that the Ceylon tea you were drinking was actually Ceylon tea. 

The 85-year-old also claims that Fair Trade certification is the "biggest fraud perpetrated on consumers". Listen to this podcast to find out why.

Mr. Merrill J Fernando spoke with us at the NHRC Malaysia SME Congress 2015.

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