Firm Kick-Starts $17 Million Brewery In Calabar Free Trade Zone
By Anietie Akpan, Calabar
 6th NOV 2006

Business at the Calabar Free Trade Zone (CFTZ) was recently boosted with the ground breaking of a $17 million microbrewery company.

The company known as Fredino Brewery Company CFTZ (FREBCO) is a micro -brewery to be built and privately owned and operated in the zone by an American based Nigerian Industrialist and Chairman of the Board of Fredino Industries Mr. Okon Akpan for export and domestic market.

Speaking at the ground breaking ceremony of the first brewery project at the zone, Mr Akpan said "Fredino Brewery Company shall initially focus its activities on the production of PET empty bottled and bottled water at 6000 bottles per hour, with aggressive emphasis on juices, and Carbonated Soft Drinks (CSD) at a cost of approximately U.S. $8900 million".

Mr. Akpan, who owns Morechamp larger beer in North America marketed in 17 states for over 15 years said, with the Western styled superb packaging and quality presentation of the table water at modest introductory prices, there is no reason to worry about the risk of selling any quantities produced, especially where the hospitality industry is vastly enhanced with the state's development of the tourism industry and the TINAPA project.

He said the beer brewery section shall have an overall capacity of 150,000 hectoliters per year while the initial brewery capacity will be 60,000 hectolitres employing about 70 staff at phase one and 2500 when phase two is operational.

The state of the art brewery according to him will produce on demand all Fredino's own empty PET bottles without any delayed out-sourcing and "we shall package any legal brands of your desire with your own labels and bottle styles for onward sales... we shall produce in-house beverages for hospitality industry hotels, tourism facilities and restaurants in their own unique private names".
He gave the assurance that the brewery, which is up to NAFDAC specifications, the United States Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) and the World Health Organisation's standards will create meaningful job opportunities with attractive wages and salaries.

Akpan disclosed that Fredino had in 1995 become one of the producers of up-scaled larger beers in the Americans having won the franchise rights from Champion Brewery, Uyo recreate Champion larger and beer that Nigerian popular gold medalist in America in 1994.

The General Manager of CFTZ MR. R. T. Famidele expressed excitement with the emergence of one more investor at the zone and promised to assist investors at the zone achieve their laudable goal and "we are determined to make your stay here comfortable and we shall overcome hiccups".

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