28 May 2007 - Leading Zimbabwe beverage firm Delta Beverages has disposed of its Mr Juicy and Premium Plus Mahewu brands due to poor results, reports the local media.
The group recently sold its non-carbonated beverages unit (Rainbow Beverages) to joint venture partners, who include the division's management.
The firm launched Mr Juicy in 2004 hoping to cash in on an expanding juice market. However Delta faced serious supply problems.
In March, FLEXNEWS reported that Zimbabwe had been impacted by a shortage of oranges, forcing local beverage producers to import orange juice concentrate from other African nations, such as South Africa.
Press reports at the time said that soft drinks makers in Zimbabwe were importing more than 80% of their raw material needs. Consequently prices for soft drinks and fruit juices skyrocketed.
In the period to September 2006, Mr Juicy reported a 47% fall in sales, adds the local media.
The disposal Mr Juicy and Premium Plus Mahewu brands enables Delta to concentrate on its core beer and carbonated beverage business.
Shocking Beer Prices
Today’s edition of ‘Zimdaily’ reports that the price of beer in Zimbabwe went up a shocking 100% on Thursday, hardly a week after Delta announced it was to offload Mr Juicy and Premium Plus Mahewu.
The newspaper adds that Delta is now pushing on clear beer volumes where input constraints were minimal.
The daily provides a few local examples of the beer price hike:
“The price of opaque beer or 'SCUD' raced to $25,000 up from about $10,000. A pint of beer, Castle, Lion and Black Label is now going for $20,000 (contents only) up from $9,000. The returnable empty, commonly known as 'deposit' in Zimbabwe, is now worth $7,000. A quart of beer, Castle, Lion, Black Label is now going for a shocking $40,000 (contents only) up from $16,000. With deposit, it now costs $56,000 for a quart of beer”.