True cinnamon or Sri Lankan cinnamon, scientifically known as (Cinnamomum zeylanicum) is an important multipurpose crop that provides cinnamon oil and numerous by-products to be used as raw materials in many numbers of industries. Sri Lankan cinnamon is nourished with soil and climatic factors exist in the coastal belt of southern Sri Lanka being located from Negambo to Matara with best possible assimilation of unique chemical compositions in the plant living tissues. The unique identity of chemical composition adheres to the Sri Lankan cinnamon has secured the brand of “true cinnamon” to the substitute products in the Asia Pacific region.

​From the year 1997, through the Cinnamon Research Unit, a research program on mechanization of cinnamon processing events had been initiated by the Department of Agricultural Engineering, University of Ruhuna with the main objective of designing and testing appropriate devices for cinnamon processing by studying the entire processing steps, attitude and habits of the peelers. Currently, the Research Unit have engendered several machinery and technology for the advancement of the cinnamon industry.