Coca-Cola Beverages Africa (CCBA) – Kenya have announced the opening of a Ksh7 billion Hotfill Line at its Nairobi Bottling Plant in Embakasi in a bid to expand its product portfolio. The new line will be used to process a range of products including fruit juices, sports drinks, dairy fusions, juices with bits and iced tea.
“We are witnessing a trend in which the entire fruit juice and sports drink segment is growing globally as consumer tastes and preferences shift,” said Daryl Wilson, Managing Director Coca-Cola Beverages Africa – Kenya. “It is therefore becoming an increasing priority for us to be innovative and increase our portfolio of beverages in the market to include categories that do not currently exist,” he added.
At the juice plant, 30 young men and women have been trained, certified and hired to operate and maintain the installed equipment.
As Africa’s largest bottler, the company has over 14,000 employees on the continent – 2,700 of these in Kenya within 4 bottling plants (Nairobi, Kisumu and Nakuru). The conglomerate was formed in July 2016 upon the successful combination of the Southern and East Africa bottling operations of the non-alcoholic ready-to-drink beverages businesses of the Coca-Cola Company, SAB Miller plc, and Gutsche Family Investments.
