The Nigerian Bottling Company (NBC) Limited, says plans are underway to make available to its numerous customers in Nigeria additional range of Coca-Cola product as it has in the America market.
Mrs. Sade Morgan, Legal, Public Affairs and Communication Director, disclosed this during an interactive session with newsmen in Port Harcourt on Thursday. This, according to her is pursuant to customers’ satisfaction occasioned by the misconception in some quarters, that coca-cola manufactured overseas is different from the one used in Nigeria.
Addressing the issue, Mr. Ekuma Eze, NBC’s Country Corporate Social Responsibility manager maintained that contrary to the misconception, the quality of Coca-Cola remained the same across the world, adding that the concentrate syrup is exactly the same used all over the world.
The seemingly difference, he noted, is that in Nigeria, natural sugar is used and the range of Coke in Nigeria is also not much as NBC has in America which will soon be taken care of by providing as much range as in America.
But the truth, he noted, is that Coke is the same everywhere in the world and of the highest quality. On counterfeiting, he said, “It is not a huge problem to us because we have a robust tracking and monitoring system to ensure that our products are not counterfeited”.
Meanwhile, the NBC said as Nigeria’s leading beverage manufacturer, it has invested over $1.1billion in the country since 2014, and plans to invest as much as 600 million Euros between 2019 and 2023.
NBC’s legal Public Affairs and Communication Director, Mrs. Morgan said that since 2014, Coca-cola Hellenic had made a total of $1.1.billion in Nigeria, stressing that at a time in 2017, NBC was one of the highest FDI contributors to Nigeria.
“The basic philosophy that we operate with is that our business is only as sustainable as the communities we operate in. Therefore, we always endeavour to invest in programs and partnerships that help to build better communities around the world, and always promote sustainable and inclusive development,” she said.
The company’s Country CSR Manager, Mr Ekuma Eze, said that apart from youth empowerment through award of scholarships and skills acquisition programmes, NBC had ensured that it was not contributing to the pollution of the communities it was operating and the society at large.
To this end, he said NBC has phased out trucks considered not to be friendly to the ozone layer.
Eze said the decision to phase out such trucks that could pollute the atmosphere through the emission of ozone depleting fumes was in line with the company’s continued implementation of its corporate social responsibility content.
“Now, our trucks do not break down again. We have phased out trucks that are not friendly to the ozone layer. Our refrigerators do not contribute to ozone layer depletion.
“We invest a lot in communities where we do our business and even beyond those communities. The NBC has reduced carbon emission into the atmosphere and also invested in effluent treatment plants,” he said.
Explaining that over 13,000 youths had benefitted from a scheme known as the Youth Empowered, the CSR country manager described the programme as an initiative designed by Coca-Cola Hellenic aimed at reducing the level of unemployment in Nigeria.
“We partner the government to ensure employment for the youth. That is the way we can ensure that the society is safe. We have been involved in a management trainee programme, which is one of the best in the country,” Eze said.
At the media parley with NBC’s Legal, Public Affairs and Communication Director, Sade Morgan were Mr. Barnabas Eke, the new Regional Public Affairs and Communication Manager (East and Central) and NBC’s country Co-operate Social Responsibility Manager, Ekuma Ekuma Eze among others.
