ECONOMY-ZAMBIA: Breweries Trying to Have Their Cake and Eat It?

By IPS Correspondents Reprint | | Print |

Zarina Geloo

LUSAKA, Dec 23 2003 (IPS) - As the festive season in Zambia heads towards its climax, Zambian Breweries – a leading beer producer – has adopted a self-regulatory code of conduct to encourage responsible alcohol consumption. However, various bar owners are already describing the code as wishful thinking.

The company’s Director of Corporate Affairs, Augustine Seyuba, says the code focuses on minimising alcohol abuse and promoting responsible attitudes towards the supply, sale and promotion of alcoholic beverages.

This includes educating consumers about issues such as drinking and driving, and warning retailers about the dangers of selling to under-aged or intoxicated patrons.

“The codes are aimed at giving direction to the company’s approach to the marketing of its products,” said Seyuba.

Chipping in, Public Relations Officer Sam Kapembwa adds that it is important for the organisation to institute regulatory mechanisms before government decides to do so.

“If we just carry on as before, government might decide to regulate us and we may not like what they give us, or the regulations might make our operations difficult. So we would rather take the initiative ourselves,” said Kapembwa.

“It’s a proactive measure,” agrees Noel Mwamba, a bar owner. “The breweries do not want be sued like the tobacco industry, (where) clients are now suing for having (contracted) cancer.”

“They do not want to be sued by car accident victims who imbibed too much, or even as a co-respondent in divorce cases where alcoholism is cited,” he adds.

Under the list of practices proposed by Breweries, retailers like Mwamba would have to subscribe to a voluntary code that commits them not to supply alcoholic beverages to minors. Rapid or excessive consumption of alcohol would be avoided, as would promotions that encouraged speedy consumption.

The retailers would also have to ensure that activities on their premises did not cause undue offence or inconvenience to people who lived, worked or worshiped nearby. And, they would be barred from buying or supplying illicit or stolen beverages.

It’s a tall order: something that Mwamba and fellow bar owner Carly Simwiinga describe as little more than a “wish list”.

Mwamba shrugs off the idea that he should monitor how much alcohol a client is buying, or the speed at which they’re consuming it.

“It’s business. I have to sell my product and the larger the volume, the better for both of us – myself and the Breweries.”

Both owners say the best attendance in their pubs occurs on days when there are special offers, especially of the “buy-two-get-one-free” variety. They doubt that any bar owner would stop sponsoring competitions or events where there would be a “rapid consumption of alcohol”.

Simwiinga adds that the company is fully aware that retailers are not going to adhere to the code, even if they sign it: “When trouble comes, they want to pass the buck and (say): well, we have regulations – it is the retailers who are not adhering to them.”

In addition, the owners say there are already by-laws which regulate noise and disturbance – as well as the sale of alcohol to minors, which city councils implement rigorously. There is also a law against buying stolen or illegally obtained items.

Kapembwa maintains that his firm is merely applying the standards of its owner, South African Breweries.

“We do not expect retailers to suddenly start conforming. In time, with education and a lot of campaigns, they (retailers) will begin to audit themselves,” he said.

However, for an organisation that is enthusiastic about good drinking practices, Zambian Breweries is surprisingly reluctant to put its money where its mouth is.

Save for the 5,000 dollars it spent on posters and adverts in the newspapers, Kapembwe said the firm would not spend any more on awareness campaigns. “We will utilise our very effective sales team to promote and sell the ethics as part of their normal course of duty,” he told IPS.

These economies draw another sharp comment from Simwiinga. “If they were really interested in implementing the ethics, Zambian Breweries would have organised a couple of campaigns, meetings with retailers and sponsored talk shows and publicity events,” he said.

“It is a monopoly here and makes a lot of money. They are just going through the motions.”