A Soda shortage has reportedly hit the larger Gusii region and its environs, a phenomenon attributed to change of proprietorship and closure of a local branch of the drinks production plant.
The shortage came to its height in the just concluded Christmas and new year festivities in Kisii and Nyamira towns,the headquarters of the two counties of the region among others.
Nyanza Region Director of, Kenya National Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Benjamin Onkoba, decried the shortage terming it an embarrassment to families.
The soft drinks, he remarked, were an integral item in the families menu during the festivities and that their non availability was unacceptable.
Onkoba challenged the Soda bottling company to explain closure of the Kisii town based production plant and subsequent transfer to Nyeri.
The director also sought clarification on the fate of pickups and trucks bought by the distributors to transport the commodity.
He urged the two levels of government to invite investors who could establish Soda plants in the region to meet the demand and protect jobs should the company fail to resume its production in Kisii.
Soda distributors interviewed complained of inconveniencies and loss of profits accruing from the irregular soda supplies.
They claimed the company supplied soda in plastic containers instead of bottles and whose expiry period was due in a matter of days besides them being expensive.
According to the distributors, orders took a week to be delivered by the company and if received the supplies were not enough, thus some customers were turned away.
Moses Nyamweya called for intervention from relevant authorities to curb the shortage, he claimed that he has incurred losses and can’t afford to pay his workers.
Moses called for phasing out of the soda in plastic containers, and come up with a new soft drinks factory in the region to create and sustain employment opportunities.