A TEA company has been granted more than £1million to increase its production of ethically sourced tea from Sri Lanka.

English Tea Shop, which operates its main warehouse in Wickford, has received a grant from banking giant HSBC.

The deal will see the firm granted £1.45million in order to boost its quantity of ethically sourced products.

The company pays farmers in Sri Lanka a premium on top of their Fairtrade fee and makes sure that their families are cared for in suitable living conditions.

The business also ensures that no harmful chemicals are used on their plants and instructs farmers not to add dangerous fertilisers and pesticides to their growing process.

Chief executive of the English Tea Shop, Suranga Herath, said: “Small farmers and suppliers make a huge impact on sustaining the planet’s natural ecosystem and this finance deal has enabled us to import even more and continue supporting ethical producers.”

After arriving at their main warehouse in Wickford, English Tea Shop manufacturers its products and distributes them globally to more than 50 nations.

The HSBC deal would see the firm increase the amount of tea that they import and increase their turnover of more than £8million by 20 per cent in 2018.

Mr Herath said: “We have set ourselves some ambitious goals for the next few years, including expanding our global reach and continuing to grow as a truly sustainable business, both of which HSBC has been instrumental in supporting.”

Having opened their doors in 2010, the English Tea Shop has seen year-on-year growth of more than 20 per cent, developing its customer base of independent retailers to multinational companies along the way.

HSBC Area Commercial Director for Business Banking, Alison Harvey, said: “We’ve witnessed the growth that English Tea Shop has experienced, in conjunction with their support of local producers and look forward to working with them in their future plans.”