NB’s Investment in Local Raw Materials Development Hits N98bn in 5 Years

Gilbert Ekugbe

Nigerian Breweries (NB) Plc has stated that its investment in the cultivation of local raw materials in addition to sorghum and cassava value chains through commercial purchase and smallholder farming has hit over N98 billion in five years.

Indeed, the company stated that it is prioritising import substitution and accretion for foreign reserve with N78 billion in investing and cultivating locally sourced materials and N20 billion in sorghum value in 2021 through commercial purchase and smallholder farming.

Speaking at a Media parley to commemorate its 75th anniversary in Lagos, the company’s Corporate Affairs Director, Sade Morgan, said the brewing company has attained about 56 per cent in local sourcing of raw materials, adding that it has further injected $114million in capital investment, expansion projects, CSR activities to build a resilient economy.

She said: “NB Plc, in its bid to build a resilient economy through sustainable capital investments, have injected about $114 million in capital investments and expansion projects scheduled for 2021/2022 in Ama (Enugu) brewery. The company has prioritised import substitution and accretion for foreign reserve with N78 billion in investing and cultivating locally sourced materials in the last 5 years and N20 billion in sorghum value in 2021 through commercial purchase and smallholder farming.”

Morgan noted that despite the pandemic in 2020, the company kept to its strategy of delivering satisfaction and growth, adding that the Nigerian economy still remains an exceptional market with the right fundamentals for growth.

According to her, the company is strategically focused to achieve a 100 per cent target in local sourcing of raw materials, especially in the availability of local ingredients needed for production.

“We have done about 56 per cent in local material sourcing but our packaging material is at 100 per cent. The challenge with the raw material is the availability of local ingredients that goes into making most of our products. So that is an area where we will continue to pioneer as we did in backward integration for sorghum but for now, we want to be able to satisfy our consumers and give them the same quality of beer that they can get anywhere in the world,” she said.

Also speaking, the newly appointed Managing Director, Hans Essaadi, revealed that the company intended to invest significantly in business expansion as part of its growth strategy and objectives.

“We have grown with Nigeria and it is clear that moving forward, we will continue to invest significantly in capacity extension to meet our objectives as well as demands in the market. We should expect much of this extension in the East and Northern part of the country and our majority shareholder, Heineken is committed to this and this is good as it will bring direct and indirect job opportunities for Nigerians,” he said.