Chibuku Products Limited Malawi (CPL) has seized over 200 cases of Chibuku Super beer in Lilongwe, following a two-day search in Lilongwe and Mchinji districts on July 16 and 17 respectively.

The search was conducted after the company decried a 50% drop in sales, a loss that was solely attributed to smuggled beer. According to the Business Development and Cooperate Affairs Manager, Gloria Zimba, the smuggling was noted 2 years ago.

“We have been struggling for almost two years and when we checked at the market to find out why our sales have dropped, we discovered that there is a lot of Chibuku Super in the market that is being smuggled into the country from Zambia,” Zimba said.

In March this year, Chibuku Products urged court authorities to make stricter penalties for liquor/beer smugglers. This was an observation after Mchinji Magistrate Court charged 17 smugglers with 3 months jail sentences each, or pay a K20,000 fine.

The recently smuggled beer is suspected to have been smuggled into the country from Zambia, which drops the smuggled beverages in Mchinji and Lilongwe. On the other hand, the Malawi Revenue Authority (MRA) has been intensifying border patrols, to combat smuggled goods, as Illovo Sugar has also attributed its losses to smugglers.