Nigerian Breweries Plc, on Monday reported a 9% drop in first quarter sales (Jan – March) to ₦82.9bn ($230 million) from ₦91.2bn in 2017.
The brewing giant said that consumer spending has yet to recover despite signs of improvement in the country’s macroeconomic conditions.
A non-profit international alliance of 45 organisations known as The Global Cassava Partnership for the 21st Century (GCP 21) is set to meet in June in Benin Republic to seek ways on how to help Nigerian farmers boost low cassava yield and create wealth for themselves as well as food security for the nation.
Cassava is the main source of carbohydrates in Nigeria and other West African countries, replacing some traditional staples such as millet and yam.
The Federal Government is said to be considering levying imported sweeteners, flour and ethanol in order to reduce the food import bill and boost local investment in cassava processing, the ingredient from which starch is derived.
Despite been the world’s largest producer of cassava, Nigeria still imports most of its industrial starch, a by-product of cassava. With an import levy, the government hopes to reverse the trend under an “Industrial Cassava Policy.”
Brewers are rare colonial-era holdouts in a notorious trouble spot.
Bralima brewery in Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), is an island of modernity in a city where chaos is the norm. Inside a building near the docks where barges begin the journey up the Congo river, conveyor belts rattle as thousands of glass bottles are washed and filled with amber liquid. A generator hums to power the new brewing machinery, creating enough booze to fill 28,000 crates every two days.
Producers of beverages in the country have been urged to explore the use of cocoyam as an alternative to sorghum.
The recommendation came from the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), which said it had discovered that cocoyam can be used in beer production and other beverages.
The President of MAN, Dr. Frank Jacobs, who stated this through the Director, Corporate Communications, MAN, Mr. Ambrose Oruche, noted that this discovery came out of the partnerships that the group had formed with indigenous researchers while on the quest to increase local sourcing of raw materials.
Budweiser, a beer brand from the stables of International Breweries Plc, the local unit of Belgian brewer, AB InBev finally made its entry into the Nigerian market amid splendour and pomp.
The ceremony which took place at the famous Landmark Towers in Victoria Island, Lagos on Saturday, 14th April 2018 was well attended by personalities from the entertainment industry and guests.
Heineken NV said on Wednesday that consolidated beer volume for the first quarter grew 4.3% organically, with the biggest growth coming from markets in Asia Pacific, Americas, and Africa, Middle East & Eastern Europe. The growth was against a backdrop of lower volume in Western Europe which was impacted by the cold spell in places like France, Spain and Austria. Total volumes in Europe fell 1.7% as the benefit of an earlier Easter was more than offset by colder weather.
Guinness Nigeria Plc, and Wecyclers, a for-profit social enterprise that promotes environmental sustainability, socioeconomic development, and community health, have signed agreement on waste management.
The partnership is expected to, among other things, help support the implementation of Guinness Nigeria’s 4R waste management strategy, covering Reduction, Reuse, Recovery and Recycle, while addressing increasing local and global concerns around the environmental issues of waste disposal.
Nestlé Nigeria Plc, announced on Wednesday it had introduced a new breakfast cereal, GOLDEN MORN® Puffs. Made from grains and cereals, the company explained that it provides families with even more choices of tastier, healthier food. It noted that GOLDEN MORN® Puffs is proudly produced in Nigeria for Nigerians. It is fortified with vitamins and iron to contribute to the efforts to address micronutrient deficiency in the country.
The Federal Government has been urged to reconsider its decision to raise excise duty on locally produced alcohol and tobacco as the new policy risks threatening the over N420bn in investments so far made in the wine and spirits industry.
The call was made by a coalition of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) made up of the Business Renaissance Group and Sustained Development Collective while speaking with journalists in Abuja.
