As Malawian’s appetite for energy drinks grow, Buy Malawi member ZAMM Investments responds to the need to provide the market with a drink they can easily associate with. The market which has more imported energy drinks has now found a product they can easily relate to. Venom is the newly introduced energy drink being manufactured by Zamm Investments and it was launched in July 2019.

“A research we conducted showed that all energy drinks were imported from our neighboring countries (Tanzania, Mozambique, Zambia, South Africa etc.). This gave us the drive to try to produce our own Malawian energy drink called Venom energy drink.” Said Zakariya Tutla, Managing Director for Zamm Investments.

Under COMESA and SADC Rules of Origin, for instance, products would be treated as originating from a Member State and qualify for tariff preferences if they contained a minimum of 35 % regional value-addition while for the products under Buy Malawi Strategy, there should be at least 20% Value addition for a product to be considered Malawian.

“All raw materials for Venom are sourced locally and since the introduction of the product, there has been an overwhelming response from the consumers who are currently purchasing the product in large numbers “

“Customers reaction has been very positive, Said Tutla. Energy drink is a fast-moving product in Malawi, and venom is a local product which means availability is always there. We’ve targeted both wholesalers and retailers.”

The Buy Malawi Strategy’s role among others is to raise awareness on Malawian products of higher quality that can act as import substitutes. Private sector is taking a leading role in ensuring this comes to fruition.

“Government ‘s desire is to ensure the private sector in Malawi produces products that should appeal on the local market as well as compete effectively on the international market”

“As government, our role is to create an enabling environment for business to thrive. We are therefore happy to see the private sector, in this case, ZAMM Investments seizing the opportunities offered by the Buy Malawi Strategy to grow their business and most importantly complementing Government efforts of growing the economy” Said Mayeso Msokera, PRO in the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Tourism.

Buy Malawi Strategy has brought a lot of attention to quality products being produced in Malawi hence increasing sales in the products. The Beverage industry is one of the fastest growing sectors in the Malawian economy.