Beer: What Place For Nationals In A Competitive Local Market

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Beer: What Place For Nationals In A Competitive Local Market

02 août 2022 07:03

The brewery sector in Cameroon is currently witnessing some dynamism as new actors are making their way into the industry which for now is dominated by a multinational company.

T he brewing sector in Cameroon is one of the lucrative industries in the country. Millions of litres of beer are produced annually by brewing companies with the French Castel Group Cameroon subsidiary SABC (Societé anonyme des brasseries du Cameroun) leading production and distribution with about 75 per cent of market shares. Established since 1948, SABC brews several brands of beer. 95 per cent of its sales are in Cameroon with the five per cent sales in neighbouring countries lie Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Chad, and Central African Republic amongst others. The Castel Group subsidiary recently sealed the deal to buy over Guinness Cameroon SA which now gives it more weight in the brewery industry. Despite the near monopoly enjoyed by Les Brasseries du Cameroun, local brewers have not been indifferent. The local brewers include both industrial and artisanal actors who are daring into the brewery sector. For the local industrial brewery companies, the Union Camerounaise de Brasseries (UCB) of the Kadji Group is gradually penetrating the local market. Founded in 1972, UCB is one of the pioneers in the brewery industry, currently producing and marketing three brands of beer and five brands of soft drinks. The market shares of UCB has grown from 2 per cent about a decade ago to 15 per cent today. This follows sustained efforts of restructuring policy, its five years development strategic plan and modernization of production capacities. “Based on the feedback, our initial concern was the quality of our products followed by our relationship with the customers. We knew quite well that we didn’t have to be great to start, but that we had to start in order to be great,” reads a statement of its former managing director on the Kadji Groups online newsletter. In recent times, the sector is experiencing a positive dynamism with new actors joining the competitive market. The launching of Brasseries Samuel Foyou (BRASAF) with its first beer put in the market last June 30, has marked another milestone for nationals. BRASAF’s creation was announced eight years ago with a share capital of FCFA 100 million. It has become the fourth industrial brewer in the co...