Note to Editors: The Beer Association of South Africa comprises the Craft Brewers Association, Heineken South Africa and South African Breweries.
PRESS STATEMENT BY PATRICIA PILLAY
CEO OF THE BEER ASSOCIATION OF SOUTH AFRICA
6 January 2021
Beer industry plea to the President: craft brewers will not make it through the third alcohol ban
The Beer Association of South Africa (BASA) is calling on President Cyril Ramaphosa to immediately lift the ban on the off-site consumption of alcohol to assist small business owners of craft breweries, who now find themselves on the brink of closure due to the third alcohol ban, which was announced by the Presidency on 28 December 2020.
Wendy Pienaar, CEO of the Craft Brewers Association of South Africa (CBASA), says that the third ban on alcohol sales has had a devastating impact on the craft brewing industry. CBASA has been inundated with calls from members who have been left depleted of their savings and reserves, and are now in desperate need of financial relief if they are to survive. “The third ban is devastating to craft brewers, who are small businesses owners who work within small margins, always putting the welfare of their staff before their own. It is now no longer a question of keeping businesses open – it has become a question of whether business owners, their employees and families will have any food to eat this month,” she says.
“To make things worse, these craft brewers are the very same people who stepped up during the hard lockdown last year by producing soup and stew in their brewhouses from donated vegetables to feed over 2 million hungry people, while also manufacturing sanitiser to help fight COVID-19. It is heart breaking to receive calls from brewers who are now in danger of losing everything. We have to stand together to find alternative solutions to the outright ban on the sale of alcohol” says Pienaar.
One example is Lethu Tshabangu, owner of Ukhamba Beerworx, who opened a new taproom at Makers Landing at the V&A Waterfront in 2020. However, due to the alcohol ban, he now finds himself R300 000 in debt and has rental fees which he cannot pay as he is unable to sell any stock. He is concerned for the education of his children – without any sales, there has been no income, and he does not know how he will pay for his daughter to start her first year of high school in 2021.
“We need to fight Covid-19 without starting other fires – you don’t bring a snake into your home because you have a problem with rats. The President is protecting us from Covid-19, only to kill us with hunger because we are not allowed to work – the government has condemned my livelihood, and those of my employees, whose jobs meant a great deal to them – they also have families and children to feed,” says Tshabangu.
South Africa's first black female brewery owner, Apiwe Nxusani-Mawela, of Brewsters Craft states that she has no idea how they will make it through this third ban. "I am hoping we can reopen in order to make a few sales so that we can at least pay our employees something. But I have had to make them aware to not expect much at month end - that is our reality".
The situation faced by small business owners and craft brewers is dire - the last two alcohol bans had a devastating impact on the beer industry, with an estimated 7 400 jobs lost, R14.2 billion in lost sales revenue and more than a R7.4 billion loss in taxes and excise duties. BASA understands that the President has indicated that there will be a review of the ban on January 15th - but this may already be too late for some businesses.
BASA is therefore calling on President Ramaphosa to consider the plight of craft brewers by immediately lifting the ban on the off-site consumption of alcohol. BASA proposes this be done through safe alternatives, such as the use of click-and-collect platforms to assist in ensuring the safety of consumers, while retaining a restriction which prevents the on-site consumption of alcohol.
BASA maintains that the current curfew (21:00 pm – 06:00 am) should remain in effect, along with the 20:00 pm closing time for businesses. This, together with a ban on gatherings, increased policing and enforcement will ensure that we protect both lives and livelihoods while we fight the spread of the virus.
BASA remains committed to working with government to ensure the safe and responsible trading and consumption of liquor and we have proposed a number of measures to save lives without sacrificing livelihoods. It is critical that government and the industry work together to come up with solutions to tackle alcohol abuse in communities, prevent the spread of Covid-19 while ensuring we safeguard businesses and livelihoods across the value chain.
ENDS
Media Enquiries
Nicole Mirkin – Media Officer
084 552 3122
Lethu Tshabangu - Ukhamba Beerworx
072 757 6427
Apiwe Nxusani-Mawela – Brewsters Craft
072 584 2449
End
PRESS STATEMENT BY WENDY PIENAAR
CHAIRPERSON OF THE CRAFT BREWERS ASSOCIATION OF SOUTH AFRICA
09 July 2020
Craft brewer survey reveals the devastating impact of the lockdown on the industry
After a nine week ban on the sale of alcohol and the resumption of limited trading under alert level 3 of the lockdown, the Craft Brewers Association of South Africa (CBASA) recently ran a survey amongst craft brewers to get a clearer picture of the impact of Covid-19 and the lockdown on the sector.
Responses received revealed the industry has been hard hit, with a staggering 87% of brewers saying that they are currently unable to meet their monthly expenses.
108 breweries and brew pubs from across the country responded to the survey, with the following breakdown across provinces:
- Western Cape: 45
- Gauteng: 27
- KwaZulu-Natal: 21
- Eastern Cape: 6
- Mpumalanga: 4
- Free State: 3
- North West: 2
The survey covered a number of questions including how much respondent’s sales have decreased as a result of the lockdown, have they received UIF payments from government; have they had to retrench staff, have they had problems buying raw material during the lockdown; the level of trade under alert level 3 and questions regarding the implementation of Covid-19 protocols and guidelines.
Responses received revealed the following:
- 53% of respondents indicated that their sales have decreased by between 60-100% since the start of lockdown;
- With 24% of these respondents indicating that their sales have dropped by between 90-100%; and
- 7 breweries have been forced to close their doors permanently during June.
When it comes to their employees, 84 out of 109 respondents applied for the Covid-19 UIF benefit with:
- 16 of these applicants receiving payouts each month;
- 33 only receiving a payment in May; and
- 35 receiving no payouts to date.
Unfortunately, 63% of craft breweries and brewpubs have had to retrench staff during May and June as a result of the limited trading restrictions. Nearly 70% of these businesses indicated that they had to retrench over 50% of their employees, with eight breweries having to retrench all their staff members.
To compound this situation 76% of brewers also reported difficulties and delays when it comes to purchasing their raw materials due to suppliers struggling with the COVID-19 shut down including no production occurring during level 4 and 5, issues at the ports and the poor rand/dollar exchange rate.
The survey also revealed that many brewers have had to come up with creative solutions in order to keep their businesses afloat during this difficult period:
- 10% of respondents have amalgamated with another brewery to reduce costs;
- 20% have changed their recipes or production methods to reduce the cost of each brew; and
- 3% have found second jobs to supplement their income.
Some brewers also indicated that they had moved to the manufacturing of other products such a fruit juice, cleaning products and other non-alcoholic beverages.
Encouragingly, 77% of breweries had found it fairly easy to implement Covid-19 health protocols at their businesses due to the high level of sanitation usually implemented at a brewery.
Of major concern is that only 10% of brewers believed that they would be able to continue trading in the near future - should the current restrictions on the trade of alcohol and the prohibition of on-consumption sales continue.
Brewers raised the following concerns in the survey:
“We won't make it. Rent and keeping the staff going with no sales means we won't have the cash flow to buy ingredients to start up production again unless we can get an investor to help us through.”
“Threat of business failure and shutdown. Barely survived the last lockdown. Online only is not enough to sustain the business. We need some on-consumption sales channels that the whole market has evolved for.”
“While opening the industry more and specifically on-consumption sales quickly and safely will be the first step on the road to recovery for brewers – for others, irreparable damage has already been done with our sector already losing 15% of South African craft breweries and 68% of those still trading having a decidedly negative outlook for the sustainability of their businesses going forward. The future of craft in South Africa is extremely unpredictable and we call on the government to work with us to give our sector a fighting chance of survival.” said Wendy Pienaar, Chairperson of the CBASA.
Patricia Pillay, CEO of the Beer Association of South Africa said: “The craft brewing sector is a vital to the long-term sustainability of the South African beer industry. Not only does it support thousands of livelihoods, it contributes to an increasingly transformed, differentiated industry and has increased consumer choice for beer drinkers. We have seen a remarkable growth in the craft brewer sector over the past few years and so it is extremely concerning to see the devastating impact Covid-19 and the lockdown has had on this vibrant industry. The BASA remains committed to working with government to come up with joint solutions to ensure the safety of communities, will protecting the thousands of livelihoods and small businesses the beer industry supports.”
ENDS.
PRESS STATEMENT BY WENDY PIENAAR
CHAIRPERSON OF THE CRAFT BREWERS ASSOCIATION OF SOUTH AFRICA
09 July 2020
Craft brewer survey reveals the devastating impact of the lockdown on the industry
After a nine week ban on the sale of alcohol and the resumption of limited trading under alert level 3 of the lockdown, the Craft Brewers Association of South Africa (CBASA) recently ran a survey amongst craft brewers to get a clearer picture of the impact of Covid-19 and the lockdown on the sector.
Responses received revealed the industry has been hard hit, with a staggering 87% of brewers saying that they are currently unable to meet their monthly expenses.
108 breweries and brew pubs from across the country responded to the survey, with the following breakdown across provinces:
- Western Cape: 45
- Gauteng: 27
- KwaZulu-Natal: 21
- Eastern Cape: 6
- Mpumalanga: 4
- Free State: 3
- North West: 2
The survey covered a number of questions including how much respondent’s sales have decreased as a result of the lockdown, have they received UIF payments from government; have they had to retrench staff, have they had problems buying raw material during the lockdown; the level of trade under alert level 3 and questions regarding the implementation of Covid-19 protocols and guidelines.
Responses received revealed the following:
- 53% of respondents indicated that their sales have decreased by between 60-100% since the start of lockdown;
- With 24% of these respondents indicating that their sales have dropped by between 90-100%; and
- 7 breweries have been forced to close their doors permanently during June.
When it comes to their employees, 84 out of 109 respondents applied for the Covid-19 UIF benefit with:
- 16 of these applicants receiving payouts each month;
- 33 only receiving a payment in May; and
- 35 receiving no payouts to date.
Unfortunately, 63% of craft breweries and brewpubs have had to retrench staff during May and June as a result of the limited trading restrictions. Nearly 70% of these businesses indicated that they had to retrench over 50% of their employees, with eight breweries having to retrench all their staff members.
To compound this situation 76% of brewers also reported difficulties and delays when it comes to purchasing their raw materials due to suppliers struggling with the COVID-19 shut down including no production occurring during level 4 and 5, issues at the ports and the poor rand/dollar exchange rate.
The survey also revealed that many brewers have had to come up with creative solutions in order to keep their businesses afloat during this difficult period:
- 10% of respondents have amalgamated with another brewery to reduce costs;
- 20% have changed their recipes or production methods to reduce the cost of each brew; and
- 3% have found second jobs to supplement their income.
Some brewers also indicated that they had moved to the manufacturing of other products such a fruit juice, cleaning products and other non-alcoholic beverages.
Encouragingly, 77% of breweries had found it fairly easy to implement Covid-19 health protocols at their businesses due to the high level of sanitation usually implemented at a brewery.
Of major concern is that only 10% of brewers believed that they would be able to continue trading in the near future - should the current restrictions on the trade of alcohol and the prohibition of on-consumption sales continue.
Brewers raised the following concerns in the survey:
“We won't make it. Rent and keeping the staff going with no sales means we won't have the cash flow to buy ingredients to start up production again unless we can get an investor to help us through.”
“Threat of business failure and shutdown. Barely survived the last lockdown. Online only is not enough to sustain the business. We need some on-consumption sales channels that the whole market has evolved for.”
“While opening the industry more and specifically on-consumption sales quickly and safely will be the first step on the road to recovery for brewers – for others, irreparable damage has already been done with our sector already losing 15% of South African craft breweries and 68% of those still trading having a decidedly negative outlook for the sustainability of their businesses going forward. The future of craft in South Africa is extremely unpredictable and we call on the government to work with us to give our sector a fighting chance of survival.” said Wendy Pienaar, Chairperson of the CBASA.
Patricia Pillay, CEO of the Beer Association of South Africa said: “The craft brewing sector is a vital to the long-term sustainability of the South African beer industry. Not only does it support thousands of livelihoods, it contributes to an increasingly transformed, differentiated industry and has increased consumer choice for beer drinkers. We have seen a remarkable growth in the craft brewer sector over the past few years and so it is extremely concerning to see the devastating impact Covid-19 and the lockdown has had on this vibrant industry. The BASA remains committed to working with government to come up with joint solutions to ensure the safety of communities, will protecting the thousands of livelihoods and small businesses the beer industry supports.”
ENDS.
24 August 2020
Alcohol industry commits R150m to alcohol harm-reduction programmes
The alcohol industry will invest no less than R150 million in direct harm-reduction programmes over the coming year. The investment is to focus on upscaling existing programmes and finding new, innovative measures to deal with key areas of concern including the following:
Drinking & driving/walking
The industry will support legislative and enforcement measures to reduce drinking and driving/walking by capacitating law enforcement with resources to effectively enforce it, and by partnering with retailers regarding interventions in high-risk areas. Alcohol Evidence Centres that will have the capacity to process breath alcohol testing and immediately make available results for prosecution purposes is one of the measures to be put in place. In addition, the Industry working with retail partners particularly taverns will also introduce a patrol/buddy system to walk home intoxicated customers in order to curb drinking and walking incidents.
Binge drinking
The industry will ramp up its consumer education campaigns on binge drinking, which will include responsible messaging as well as defining drinking guidelines to influence behaviour. Various brands have introduced reduced alcohol products and 0% alcohol products to encourage responsible drinking habits.
Underage drinking
The industry is in discussion with the retail sector to explore the implementation of an ID verification system in all retail outlets (on-and off-consumption), as well as the extension of the underage drinking education programme. This programme was developed for engagement in school environments using digital platforms so that information can be disseminated to community- based youth organisations.
Gender-based violence & femicide
The industry is committed to partnering with government and civil society in addressing the issue of gender-based violence and femicide. One of the industry members, SAB, has launched a Gender- Based Violence WhatsApp helpline through its GBV social awareness campaign #NoExcuse. This is a safe reporting platform for anyone who is a victim of GBV providing for referral to a counselling support service.
Dialogues with tavern owners are currently underway to explore the best measures and the role that outlet owners can play in an effort to curb gender-based violence. This process will be used to facilitate dialogue with government on how the industry can provide support with the implementation of the national strategic plan on gender-based violence and femicide.
Direct support to the Health Care System during the Covid-19 Crisis
Since the outbreak of COVID-19, businesses in the liquor value chain have already made investments in direct support to the health system including provision of more than 200,000 litres of pure alcohol for production of sanitisers, supply of finished sanitisers and other PPE material.
The industry is making a further commitment of providing R15,5 million worth of PPE to hospitals in the four most affected provinces – Eastern Cape, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal and Western Cape.
The alcohol industry spokesperson, Sibani Mngadi said the industry appreciates the opportunity to trade again from Tuesday, 18 August.
“We call on the traders and consumers alike to abide by all the lockdown rules and make sure that their drinking occasions do not contribute to the spread of infections and unnecessary burden on the health system. We have a collective responsibility to protect our livelihoods as various players in the alcohol value chain. Consumers equally have a responsibility to behave appropriately and not expose themselves and others to unnecessary harm and potential infections.”
End
PRESS STATEMENT BY WENDY PIENAAR
CHAIRPERSON OF THE CRAFT BREWERS ASSOCIATION OF SOUTH AFRICA
09 July 2020
Craft brewer survey reveals the devastating impact of the lockdown on the industry
After a nine week ban on the sale of alcohol and the resumption of limited trading under alert level 3 of the lockdown, the Craft Brewers Association of South Africa (CBASA) recently ran a survey amongst craft brewers to get a clearer picture of the impact of Covid-19 and the lockdown on the sector.
Responses received revealed the industry has been hard hit, with a staggering 87% of brewers saying that they are currently unable to meet their monthly expenses.
108 breweries and brew pubs from across the country responded to the survey, with the following breakdown across provinces:
- Western Cape: 45
- Gauteng: 27
- KwaZulu-Natal: 21
- Eastern Cape: 6
- Mpumalanga: 4
- Free State: 3
- North West: 2
The survey covered a number of questions including how much respondent’s sales have decreased as a result of the lockdown, have they received UIF payments from government; have they had to retrench staff, have they had problems buying raw material during the lockdown; the level of trade under alert level 3 and questions regarding the implementation of Covid-19 protocols and guidelines.
Responses received revealed the following:
- 53% of respondents indicated that their sales have decreased by between 60-100% since the start of lockdown;
- With 24% of these respondents indicating that their sales have dropped by between 90-100%; and
- 7 breweries have been forced to close their doors permanently during June.
When it comes to their employees, 84 out of 109 respondents applied for the Covid-19 UIF benefit with:
- 16 of these applicants receiving payouts each month;
- 33 only receiving a payment in May; and
- 35 receiving no payouts to date.
Unfortunately, 63% of craft breweries and brewpubs have had to retrench staff during May and June as a result of the limited trading restrictions. Nearly 70% of these businesses indicated that they had to retrench over 50% of their employees, with eight breweries having to retrench all their staff members.
To compound this situation 76% of brewers also reported difficulties and delays when it comes to purchasing their raw materials due to suppliers struggling with the COVID-19 shut down including no production occurring during level 4 and 5, issues at the ports and the poor rand/dollar exchange rate.
The survey also revealed that many brewers have had to come up with creative solutions in order to keep their businesses afloat during this difficult period:
- 10% of respondents have amalgamated with another brewery to reduce costs;
- 20% have changed their recipes or production methods to reduce the cost of each brew; and
- 3% have found second jobs to supplement their income.
Some brewers also indicated that they had moved to the manufacturing of other products such a fruit juice, cleaning products and other non-alcoholic beverages.
Encouragingly, 77% of breweries had found it fairly easy to implement Covid-19 health protocols at their businesses due to the high level of sanitation usually implemented at a brewery.
Of major concern is that only 10% of brewers believed that they would be able to continue trading in the near future - should the current restrictions on the trade of alcohol and the prohibition of on-consumption sales continue.
Brewers raised the following concerns in the survey:
“We won't make it. Rent and keeping the staff going with no sales means we won't have the cash flow to buy ingredients to start up production again unless we can get an investor to help us through.”
“Threat of business failure and shutdown. Barely survived the last lockdown. Online only is not enough to sustain the business. We need some on-consumption sales channels that the whole market has evolved for.”
“While opening the industry more and specifically on-consumption sales quickly and safely will be the first step on the road to recovery for brewers – for others, irreparable damage has already been done with our sector already losing 15% of South African craft breweries and 68% of those still trading having a decidedly negative outlook for the sustainability of their businesses going forward. The future of craft in South Africa is extremely unpredictable and we call on the government to work with us to give our sector a fighting chance of survival.” said Wendy Pienaar, Chairperson of the CBASA.
Patricia Pillay, CEO of the Beer Association of South Africa said: “The craft brewing sector is a vital to the long-term sustainability of the South African beer industry. Not only does it support thousands of livelihoods, it contributes to an increasingly transformed, differentiated industry and has increased consumer choice for beer drinkers. We have seen a remarkable growth in the craft brewer sector over the past few years and so it is extremely concerning to see the devastating impact Covid-19 and the lockdown has had on this vibrant industry. The BASA remains committed to working with government to come up with joint solutions to ensure the safety of communities, will protecting the thousands of livelihoods and small businesses the beer industry supports.”
ENDS.
PRESS STATEMENT BY WENDY PIENAAR
CHAIRPERSON OF THE CRAFT BREWERS ASSOCIATION OF SOUTH AFRICA
09 July 2020
Craft brewer survey reveals the devastating impact of the lockdown on the industry
After a nine week ban on the sale of alcohol and the resumption of limited trading under alert level 3 of the lockdown, the Craft Brewers Association of South Africa (CBASA) recently ran a survey amongst craft brewers to get a clearer picture of the impact of Covid-19 and the lockdown on the sector.
Responses received revealed the industry has been hard hit, with a staggering 87% of brewers saying that they are currently unable to meet their monthly expenses.
108 breweries and brew pubs from across the country responded to the survey, with the following breakdown across provinces:
- Western Cape: 45
- Gauteng: 27
- KwaZulu-Natal: 21
- Eastern Cape: 6
- Mpumalanga: 4
- Free State: 3
- North West: 2
The survey covered a number of questions including how much respondent’s sales have decreased as a result of the lockdown, have they received UIF payments from government; have they had to retrench staff, have they had problems buying raw material during the lockdown; the level of trade under alert level 3 and questions regarding the implementation of Covid-19 protocols and guidelines.
Responses received revealed the following:
- 53% of respondents indicated that their sales have decreased by between 60-100% since the start of lockdown;
- With 24% of these respondents indicating that their sales have dropped by between 90-100%; and
- 7 breweries have been forced to close their doors permanently during June.
When it comes to their employees, 84 out of 109 respondents applied for the Covid-19 UIF benefit with:
- 16 of these applicants receiving payouts each month;
- 33 only receiving a payment in May; and
- 35 receiving no payouts to date.
Unfortunately, 63% of craft breweries and brewpubs have had to retrench staff during May and June as a result of the limited trading restrictions. Nearly 70% of these businesses indicated that they had to retrench over 50% of their employees, with eight breweries having to retrench all their staff members.
To compound this situation 76% of brewers also reported difficulties and delays when it comes to purchasing their raw materials due to suppliers struggling with the COVID-19 shut down including no production occurring during level 4 and 5, issues at the ports and the poor rand/dollar exchange rate.
The survey also revealed that many brewers have had to come up with creative solutions in order to keep their businesses afloat during this difficult period:
- 10% of respondents have amalgamated with another brewery to reduce costs;
- 20% have changed their recipes or production methods to reduce the cost of each brew; and
- 3% have found second jobs to supplement their income.
Some brewers also indicated that they had moved to the manufacturing of other products such a fruit juice, cleaning products and other non-alcoholic beverages.
Encouragingly, 77% of breweries had found it fairly easy to implement Covid-19 health protocols at their businesses due to the high level of sanitation usually implemented at a brewery.
Of major concern is that only 10% of brewers believed that they would be able to continue trading in the near future - should the current restrictions on the trade of alcohol and the prohibition of on-consumption sales continue.
Brewers raised the following concerns in the survey:
“We won't make it. Rent and keeping the staff going with no sales means we won't have the cash flow to buy ingredients to start up production again unless we can get an investor to help us through.”
“Threat of business failure and shutdown. Barely survived the last lockdown. Online only is not enough to sustain the business. We need some on-consumption sales channels that the whole market has evolved for.”
“While opening the industry more and specifically on-consumption sales quickly and safely will be the first step on the road to recovery for brewers – for others, irreparable damage has already been done with our sector already losing 15% of South African craft breweries and 68% of those still trading having a decidedly negative outlook for the sustainability of their businesses going forward. The future of craft in South Africa is extremely unpredictable and we call on the government to work with us to give our sector a fighting chance of survival.” said Wendy Pienaar, Chairperson of the CBASA.
Patricia Pillay, CEO of the Beer Association of South Africa said: “The craft brewing sector is a vital to the long-term sustainability of the South African beer industry. Not only does it support thousands of livelihoods, it contributes to an increasingly transformed, differentiated industry and has increased consumer choice for beer drinkers. We have seen a remarkable growth in the craft brewer sector over the past few years and so it is extremely concerning to see the devastating impact Covid-19 and the lockdown has had on this vibrant industry. The BASA remains committed to working with government to come up with joint solutions to ensure the safety of communities, will protecting the thousands of livelihoods and small businesses the beer industry supports.”
ENDS.