Bralirwa has realised a Rwf191m half-year decline in profit compared to the same period last year.As at end June this year, the company made Rwf 7.746m in after-income tax profit down from Rwf 7,937m made in the same period last year.Jonathan Hall, managing director of the soft drinks and beer maker attributed the 2.4 per cent decline to slowed volume growth in the softer beverage market.He said in spite of the backdrop, the beer maker continued embarking on brand investment and strong market execution to fight off competition from other brands.“Revenue growth was driven by a positive sales mix with Turbo King in particular showing growth within the beer portfolio,” he said.Regarding costs, the currency alignment that took place in third and fourth quarters of last year impacted their cost base given their exchange exposure on energy and raw materials, leading to beer price increase in June this year.Consumers now part with Rwf500 for a 33cl bottle of Mutzig that was previously Rwf450 and Rwf 1,000 for the 65cl bottle that was at Rwf900. A bottle of Guiness is at Rwf750, up from Rwf600 and Amstel now costs Rwf600 from Rwf550. Bralirwa was the sole beer and soft drinks maker until UNIBRA, producers of SKOL beer, ended their monopoly in 2010.Hall also said the export market had been quite a difficult one citing competition from the regional breweries.“Competition is very good for the market and we anticipate modest volume growth despite continued uncertainty globally,” he said.Bralirwa’s volume sales grew to 1.7 million hector litres in 2012, increasing from 1.6 million hector litres the previous year.
