Illovo launches affordable 90 grams packet of sugar at K150 amidst unbearable economic challenges

* While the product is affordable for low income earners, it is also one way of enhancing hygiene

* Taking cognizance that the traders pack the sugar into the thin plastics with bare hands

By Duncan Mlanjira

As the low income earning citizenry are facing tough and unbearable economic challenges, Illovo Sugar Malawi Plc has launched an affordable 90 grams packet of sugar at K150 as a solution for everyone to afford to buy sugar.

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A 1kg packet of Sugar is being sold at recommended retail price K1,500 but the rural masses buy the same packet at over K200 to K400 as traders add the mark-up due to high cost of transportation to and from wholesale distributors.

At the same time, most traders have opted to buying bulky bags of sugar and pack the commodity in thin plastic bags at a price of K200 per 100g — a suspect that the measurement scales they use might be tampered with.

At the launch on Wednesday in Ndirande of the 90g packet, dubbed ‘Shuga Mtape’, Illovo Sugar Malawi Managing Director, Lekani Katandula said while the product is affordable for low income earners, it is also one way of enhancing hygiene — taking cognizance that the traders pack the sugar into the thin plastics with bare hands.

He said the continued rising cases of cholera across the country is due to unhygienic habits of not washing hands regularly, especially after visiting the toilet — thus the traders cannot be sanitary at all times as they manually pack the sugar.

He emphasized to the gathering at Nyambadwe Primary School that they took that consideration so that they shouldn’t be associated with cholera spread through thin plastic bag packing.

He quoted Mahatma Gandhi in Chichewa, saying: ‘Munthu yemwe waona vuto koma osachitapo kanthu, nayenso ndi gawo limodzi la vutolo’ (a person who detects a problem and does not act to solve it, is part of the problem).

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He emphasized that the new product will at least afford parents to provide tasty porridge for the children before they go to school every day — thereby assisting the learners to concentrate on their studies.

Present at the launch as guest of honor was Secretary for Trade, Francis Zuwayo, who applauded Illovo’s initiative — attesting that this was way to go in order to play a part in solving the economic challenges Malawians are facing.

“Times are hard and such an initiative to afford sugar for low income earners should be commended,” he said, while also encouraging the gathering to continue observing health etiquettes, saying CoVID-19 is still with us and also to avoid contracting cholera.

The ceremony at Nyambadwe Primary School was glamorous as various activities — music performances, comedy, dances, poetry — kept the gathering entertained.

The gathering were also being invited on stage for some comedy and those who impressed the crowd were being rewarded with Illovo Sugar-branded T-shirts, caps as well as the 90g packet.

The message they took back home was that Illovo Sugar Malawi has given them a relief from the huge price of 1kg packet to affordable 90g while at the same made aware of risks they had through traders’ unsafe packaging of the product using thin plastics.

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The cases of cholera are indeed on the rise because on November 2, the Ministry of Health reported that a total of 110 new cases were recorded on that day accompanied by two cholera- related death with 198 being admitted in treatment units.

On Tuesday, November 13 there were 113 new cases recorded accompanied by four deaths with 169 admitted.

Since the onset of the outbreak in March in Machinga District, the cumulative confirmed cases is at 8,374; 252 deaths with all 29 districts affected while 7,953 people have since recovered from the deadly disease.