Kenya Breweries Limited Managing Director Jane Karuku during interview with The EastAfrican in Nairobi on March 1, 2022. PHOTO | JEFF ANGOTE | NMG Whether it is Kenya Breweries, Serengeti Breweries or Uganda Breweries, EABL is an integral part of the society and the economy.
In 2000, EABL attracted the global firm Diageo, who acquired a majority shareholding, enabling the brewer to stretch our portfolio, especially in spirits, which has grown exponentially.
The chief executive and managing director of 100-year-old East African Breweries Ltd spoke with Jackson Mutinda about the regional brewer’s growth path in the next century
This year, EABL marks 100 years of operations in East Africa. What are you celebrating?
We are celebrating history. EABL is the biggest and oldest local consumer packaged goods company in East and Central Africa. EABL’s cradle is in Ruaraka, in Nairobi, established by George Hurst in 1922. George was killed in an elephant-hunting accident in Ngorongoro, Tanzania, and his brother Charles took over his small brewing operation. In memory of George, Charles decided to name the first beer Tusker.
We have made significant milestones in our growth journey: We have a vast value chain that contributes nearly one percent of East Africa’s GDP, partnering with 60,000 farmers who provide us with raw materials such as barley and sorghum, while more than 50,000 retailers employ many more in their outlets, sustaining livelihoods and contributing to local taxes.
Whether it is Kenya Breweries, Serengeti Breweries or Uganda Breweries, we are an integral part of the society and the economy. So we are celebrating the impact we’ve had on the people, from farmers to suppliers who give us even paper, the labels, the bottles, and the people we’ve employed over time. And the assets: the amount of money we’ve invested in East Africa as a business is huge.
In 2000, we attracted the global firm Diageo, who acquired a majority shareholding, enabling us to stretch our portfolio, especially in spirits, which has grown exponentially. So how many bars and distributors have we touched in East Africa? Right now we have 250,000 across the region. Kenya has 110,000.
Imagine what that does to the consumer. So, we are celebrating the effect of what we’ve got over the past 100 years in the communities we’re in. And if you look at it from the government side, we are always the number one excise taxpayer. And before the coming […]