Beer bottles on a conveyer belt at the East African Breweries factory in Ruaraka, Nairobi. [Photo/ standardmedia.co.ke]
The Kenya Breweries Limited (KBL) is set to contract with 30,000 farmers from Kisumu, Busia, Homa Bay, Siaya, and Migori counties to supply white sorghum for beer production at its new plant in Kisumu. According to KBL Managing Director Jane Karuku, the construction work at the Sh15 billion factory will be completed in June this year.Karuku said they plan to commence production on July 1.The MD also noted that the new plant will be expected to produce 100 million litres of Keg annually, a move that will require 15,000 tonnes of sorghum for the first batch of production.Karuku further said that alternative supplies will come from Kitui and Tharaka Nithi counties, as the number of contracted farmers is slowly set to rise by 15,000 during the next five years. The company also assured farmers that their earnings will improve from the current Sh 2.2 billion per year to Sh6 billion annually in the next 10 years.The firm is also optimistic that the consumption of local illicit brew in the region will drop once it begins its production.“As a result, consumption of illicit alcohol is likely to reduce from the current 50 percent to less than 20 percent over the next five years,” said Karuku, during a farmers workshop held in Nyakach.The workshop was held to educate farmers on the use of best farm practices that will help improve their product.
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