Many countries in Africa banned the sale of bagged alcoholic beverages, and the export of bottled filling machines ushered in the opportunity in Africa?
The Ugandan government has issued a ban, and since May 30, 2019, Uganda has banned the sale/transaction of bagged alcoholic beverages. The new directive issued by Uganda's trade minister, Amelia Kyambadde, shows that all alcoholic beverages with a minimum of 200 ml must be filled in plastic or glass bottles. Failure to comply with the ban will result in the closure of the business.
Kyambadde stated in a statement on March 1 that the government has set up a committee to monitor implementation. She pointed out that the government decided to ban the packaging and sale of alcoholic beverages in small bags through the Cabinet Directive issued in 2017, which means that the process will shift from small bag packaging to packaging and selling alcoholic beverages in plastic bottles and glass bottles.
In addition, the Ministry and the alcohol manufacturers under the Uganda Alcohol Industry Association agreed on a roadmap for the procurement and installation of new bottled packaging production equipment, including the construction of new plants for these new technology bottling machines. This process took two years and attracted several bottled equipment investments to transform the industry.
In fact, Uganda is not the first and not the only African country that bans the sale of bagged alcoholic beverages. On March 1, 2017, the Tanzanian government issued an injunction announcing that Tanzania has joined the list of African countries that ban the import, manufacture, sale and consumption of bagged alcoholic beverages.
In addition, similar bans have been taken in Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Senegal, Malawi and Rwanda. According to the analysis of the China-Africa Trade Research Center, the production, sale and consumption of bagged alcoholic beverages in African countries are mainly based on the following two considerations.
1) Reduce the impact on the environment
These pouches with a variety of alcoholic beverages pollute the environment because they are thrown away after consumption, and these non-degradable plastic bags pose a huge threat to the environment. In addition, drinking bagged alcoholic beverages is also contrary to the “ban on plastics” issued by African countries in recent years.
2) Protect the physical and mental health of youth groups
Drinking alcoholic beverages is also a public health problem because these alcoholic beverages are consumed in large quantities by young people. They are easily hidden by students in trouser pockets or bags, so they are easy to get into the classroom. In some African schools, you can see young students “sucking” 50 ml of bagged alcoholic beverages in two sessions. Therefore, the ban on bagged alcoholic beverages is generally welcomed by groups such as African parents and teachers.
Bagged alcoholic beverages are usually cheap, and some brands sell for only $0.25 a bag. The report shows that sales of alcoholic beverages in some African regions are even better than soda. After drinking, customers often throw empty bags on the road and throw them into sewers or open spaces.
In fact, even pregnant women and drivers in some African countries are a favorite group of such cheaply packaged alcoholic beverages, posing a major threat to public health issues. However, it is worth noting that the promulgation of the ban on bagged alcoholic beverages has also laid a good market foundation for the African alcoholic beverage bottle market and the export of Chinese bottled filling machines to Africa.
