What you need to know:
- Locally produced drinks dominate the illicit market compared with imported ones.
- Anti-counterfeit watchdog is working with affected companies to detect and arrest counterfeit products.
- Nacada last month seized over 27,000 litres of illegal brews in coordinated multi-agency operations in Nairobi and Kisumu.
Alcoholic brands by East African Breweries (EABL), Zheng Hong Kenya Limited, Partiala Distiller (K) Ltd, and Kenya Wines Limited (Kwal) are the most targeted by counterfeiters, the anti-counterfeit watchdog has revealed.
“About 67 per cent of locally manufactured alcoholic drinks are counterfeited. We are working with EABL, Zheng Hong Kenya Limited and Kwal to detect and arrest counterfeit products disguised as being manufactured by these entities,” Robi King’a, the Anti-Counterfeit Authority (ACA) chief executive, told the Senate committee on Information, Communication and Technology.
Security officers in Embu County seize alcohol suspected to be laced with poisonous chemicals
Kill me quick: Inside Kenya’s booming illicit alcohol trade
Counterfeit batches of the locally popular gin and vodka brands are frequently seized.
Alcohol
Explainer: How to spot fake alcoholic drinks in Kenya
Counterfeiters are becoming increasingly sophisticated, including by reusing genuine bottles.
From molasses to ethanol: Inside the making of illicit brews
Kenya’s illicit alcohol trade begins with an unlikely commodity: molasses.
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