Kenyans are drinking more alcohol today than ever before with the trend expected to continue climbing, despite the introduction of tough control regulations in 2010.
Alcohol consumption trends gleaned from the official statistics, company research, store checks and trade interviews suggest that Kenyans have shrugged off the intended effects of the Alcohol Act 2010 with much of the drinking having shifted to the home.
Last year Kenyans downed 601 million litres of alcohol, some 30 million litres more than the previous year.
Market research also indicates they will consume 625 million litres of alcohol this year and hit the seven plus million litres mark by 2016.
Two industry surveys of the local alcohol market by the Chinese and Europeans tell investors that the sector is on a growth trajectory and is a safe bet to put their money in, especially in the manufacturing and big retailing outlets.
The future of alcohol drinking is described as resilient with wily Kenyans having already found ways to beat the new regulations and continue enjoying their tipple.
The data collected by industry research firms Euromonitor International and China Market Research Report.com show that Kenyans drank Sh182 billion worth of alcohol last year compared to Sh165 billion the previous year and Sh109 billion in 2006.
Excessive drinking
This means Kenyans drink much more than the remittances from the Diaspora which were about Sh76 billion last year.
This is good news for potential investors in the alcohol segment but extremely bad for the Minister for Public Health Mrs Beth Mugo who pushed the new alcohol Bill, arguing that excessive drinking had become a major health problem.
The Bill was expected to cut down drinking of all types of alcohol, while the legalising of traditional drinks was supposed to make their production more hygienic; but statistics indicate that both targets have not been met.
“The object and purpose of this Act is to provide for the control of the production, sale, and use of alcoholic drinks, in order to protect the health of the individual in light of the dangers of excessive consumption of alcoholic drinks,” says the Act.
However Naivasha MP John Mututho, who was the chief architect of the law, interprets the market figures differently, arguing that the increasing profits being made by brewers are a reflection that more people have abandoned illicit drinks for the more hygienically prepared conventional brands.
“I will say the Act is successfully because we are basically having people embracing legal drinks and shying away from the illicit drinks. This is a major success that has seen 90 per cent compliance,” he said.
He says, the profits being made by the brewers are a result of the good law, which has protected Kenyans from drinking poison.
But figures released last week by the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) showed inflation and costing to have had more impact on drinking trends than the Mututho laws.
Over the last nine months, says Mr John Njiraini, KRA Commissioner General, the tax-free non-malt brands, such as that sold by the keg, saw a volume growth of 60 per cent.
His figures indicated that more drinkers had shifted from the more expensive beer brands to the non-taxed products, consequently hurting the agency’s performance this year.
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