Report: Illicit alcohol places heavy burden on regulated producers
The presence of illicit alcohol on the market has placed a heavy burden on regulated alcohol producers a report by the Uganda Alcohol Industry Association has indicated.
The report, titled “Understanding and Sizing Illicit Alcohol Consumption in Uganda” was released from a research that had been done by Euromonitor International, a leading independent provider of strategic market research for the past 40 years said the grow of illicit alcohol on the market has seen the sales for regulated alcohol go down.
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“Over 2017-2020, Ugandans shifted towards homebrew, with a widespread variety of cheaper illicit alcoholic drinks widely available,” the report indicated.
The report indicated that in the light of the ongoing pandemic and restrictions on gatherings, as well as pubs and bars closures, consumption of illicit alcohol recorded increased growth and accounted for 64.7% in volume terms of the alcohol consumed.
This meant that many of the people who were initially consuming regulated alcohol now turned to illicit alcohol and consequently eating into the market of the companies that produce regulated alcohol.
“Illicit alcohol currently makes up 65% of the total market volume. We have been greatly impacted by the thriving illicit alcohol trade since we carry the burden of heavy taxation and regulatory measures that are not fairly distributed,” said Onapito Ekomoloit, the chairman of the Uganda Alcohol Industry Association.
The report also pointed out that social acceptance of illicit alcohol remained high and not restricted to low-income earners and consequently eating onto the market for regulated producers of alcohol.
