Castel Malawi Limited has raised prices of its alcoholic drinks, citing rising cost of distribution and raw materials as driving factors.

The price adjustment comes barely four months after the company also adjusted prices of some of its alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages due to rising production and distribution costs.

An employee manages the Castel production line

In a notice signed by the company’s head of national sales Nelson Zoto Banda, Castel said its operating costs have increased, as such, the price adjustments were inevitable.

Reads the statement: “The company is strained by high costs of production, distribution, utilities and importation of essential ingredients due to forex scarcity, before and after the devaluation of the kwacha, which has brought about an increase of 27 percent in our operating costs.”

According to the new price structure, the raise means that a 330 millilitre (ml) bottle of Carlsberg Green and Special will be selling at a retail price of K900, up from K700 while Kuche Kuche, Doppel Munich and Castel Beer will be selling at K700 per 330ml bottle from K600.

Imbibers will have to dig deeper into their pockets as the price of Alcomix such as Booster Cider and Booster Banana Mama has been increased to K900 for a 330ml while spirits such as Malawi Gin and Malawi Vodka will fetch K7000 for 750ml bottle.

Premier Brandy in 750 ml bottles will be selling at K10 000 while Carlsberg Chill and Green in 330ml bottle and Special in 640ml bottles have been pegged at K1 200 and K1 600, respectively.

Consumers Association of Malawi executive director John Kapito is on record as having said the price hikes were justified and not surprising as the economic environment is not conducive.

Between January and July this year, Malawi’s headline inflation rate has doubled from 12.1 percent to 24.6 percent. Similarly, the kwacha, currently trading at K1036 to the dollar, has lost value to other trading currencies following the 25 percent devaluation of the local currency in May this year. Transportation costs have also been on the higher side with petrol now selling at K1 946 per litre while diesel and paraffin currently selling at K1920 and K1 236 per litre, respectively

The post Castel hikes prices for alcoholic drinks appeared first on The Nation Online.