Wrigley opens a 7 Billion production facility in Kenya – more jobs to chew on!

Fuzu news center. 

Kenya has something new to chew on: Wrigley chewing gum factory, a game-changer investment that is expected to have multiple impacts on the economy. The Mars Wrigley Confectionery 7 billion shilling 'green' production plant whose construction began three years ago in Athi River, Machakos county has officially been unveiled. 

Now let’s crane necks and have a peek at what the commissioning of this plant behind chewing gum brands like PK, Big G, Doublemint, and Orbit means to the Kenyan economy.

1. More jobs : It’s obvious; more jobs will open especially to the locals. The factory will need human capital to run, and given the spiking rates of unemployment in Kenya, this is good news. The plant projects that after it has established its footing it will produce 7.8 billion pellets of chewing gum per year. Maybe not that much, but it’s a sure bet it will also produce jobs for Kenyans to chew on and savor the flavor of earning a living.

2. An environment friendly economy: Allow me diverge just a little bit and tell you something about the Economy for Common Good (ECG), a German developed matrix that landed in Kenya and a training on it was done at the Co-operative University of Kenya. It’s important to mention it, because it’s a piece fitting here perfectly. One of the aspects the genius matrix talks about is environmental sustainability. If a company makes a mountain of profits but while at it fails to consider whether the environment has been destroyed or not, then that is a failure and the praises accorded to the company must be shot down. The ECG matrix asks the following: Did the suppliers destroy the environment to feed the company with supplies? Is the behavior of the staff environment friendly? What effects on the environment do the products have?

The fact that Wrigleys has a certification from LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) simply means that the ‘green’ plant factors in the good of the environment. It has a biomass boiler, waste water treatment plant, skylights and many windows that provide lighting, cutting down the use of electric light. Showering facilities are available among other measures to ensure the health safety of workers.

3. Increased government revenue: The taxman – Kenya Revenue Authority will smile as the new plant will remit taxes as stipulated in the law. This translates into increased revenue for the government.

4. Community focused actions: With strong ties to the local community expected to formulate, the society will benefit from community focused actions for instance CSR activities.

The future is bright, and we can’t wait to see the economic impacts lurking ahead. What are your views?