E-Malt.com News article: Rwanda: Heineken’s unit Bralirwa increases beer prices

Bralirwa, Rwanda's leading beer maker has increased Mutzing and Primus big bottle prices by Rwf100 to cater for the increasing transport costs of imported raw materials, AllAfrica reported on July, 13.

Alexander Koch, Bralirwa Commercial Director said that the price increase has been implemented to cover increased input and business costs for the brewer.

"Basically, there is an increase in prices for malt which is a raw material we use in brewing," he said, adding that many raw materials are imported from Europe and their prices have drastically increased due to the turbulent global economy.

Mutzig 65cl (big bottle) was increased from Rwf800 to Rwf900 while Primus 72 cl (big bottle) also saw a rise to Rwf700 from Rwf600. The two products form a 50 per cent of the company's output. Koch added that despite the increase, Bralirwa is constantly investing in its brands with various marketing activities as one way of maintaining a fair price level for its brands towards the consumers.

"It is our mission to bring both quality and enjoyment to our consumers, whilst at the same time taking our responsibility towards the environment we live and work in. We will continue to maximize the value of our brands for our consumers", he said.

Aware of the current high demand and anticipated promising future of the business environment in Rwanda, Koch said that Bralirwa invested Rwf 4 billion in upgrading the brew house, crates, bottles and fridges to facilitate the maximum availability and quality of its product on the Rwandan market.

Niyonzima Mugabo, a retailer in Kigali said that the price increase will impact on the sales as many people are not willing to spend a lot when there are other alternatives.

"People don’t have money these days: when you tell them the price they ask for something cheaper instead", he said.

Meanwhile, Koch noted that the current increase in prices and inflation in the East African region is not affecting the company's exports.


20 July, 2011