The Value of Water at KBL
The United Nations ( UN) designated 22nd March World Water Day to celebrate water and raise awareness of global water inequality. For KBL, World Water Day is an opportunity to celebrate progress on water sustainability, engage stakeholders on shared priorities, and challenge ourselves to innovate further on water saving. This is because water is our number one ingredient, and we value every drop.
Brewing is a precise science. As Acting Supply Manager, Morati Pusumane puts it, the brewers “know how much water goes into a bottle, can or carton of beer.” KBL is a subsidiary of brewing giant Anheuser- Busch InBev ( AB- InBev), which aggressively pursues its Better World sustainability agenda through Voyager Plant Optimization ( VPO) – a plant operation system that “drives efficiency at plants through uniform processes and measurable standards for operations, quality, safety, and environment.” The purpose of VPO is to “create a culture of continuous improvement,” innovation and sharing best practices.
To track improvement, KBL sets annual water usage goals that it has beat for the last three years! Water usage is measured as hectoliters ( hL) ( 1 hL equals 100L) of water used to produce one hectoliter of beer. For example, water usage in 2019 was 4.65 hL of water to produce a hL of beer. However, in 2020, this fell to 3.98hL/ hL, which means KBL used 0.67hL less water for every hL of beer produced. With a culture of continuous improvement, the KBL supply team has set a water usage goal of 3.4hL/ hL for 2021.
It is important to note that this significant saving was not due to the alcohol bans, as KBL usage tracking is measured during Pusumane defines water usage as one of her topmost priorities as supply manager. The theme for World Water Day this year is “Valuing water,” exploring what water means to each of us in our personal and professional environments, our cultural practices and in our communities.
When asked what water means to her, she aptly responds,
Water- saving Initiatives at the Plants
“no water, no life, no beer.”
Teams at the Clear Beer and Chibuku plants ( in both Gaborone and Francistown site) have introduced a number initiatives to ensure that KBL is able to meet its water usage goals. The first is a VPO tool called Modulation. Modulation is a system of checks and balances put in place to ensure water usage matches the recommended or manualized volumes. This is done by tracking the opening and closing of valves, checking for leaks, and ensuring problem- solving is carried out immediately.
KBL also recycles large volumes of water. At the Clear Beer Plant, reclaim water is kept in the buffer tank, before it is pumped to the reclaim tank. This recycled water, which is regularly tested for microorganisms, is mixed with a chain lubricant and used to lubricate conveyers, clean crates and floors in packaging. Beyond quality checks, reclaim water passes through different color pipes from fresh water to ensure there is no cross- contamination.
From 2019 to date, water conservation efforts at Clear Beer have saved the company approximately BWP500,000 in monthly bills.
Water is also recycled at the Chibuku plant, although collection of water has not yet been yet fully automated. Water that is used to wash overflow from sealed Chibuku cartons and lubricate the conveyers the finished product carried on, is collected in 250L buckets. Approximately 22.5hL of water is collected daily and used to clean the packaging floors.
A borehole was dug to store reclaim water at the Gaborone Chibuku plant; however, plans to install a water treatment plant have been stalled by the Covid- 19 pandemic. The water treated at this plant would have been used throughout the facility - from ablutions, floor- cleaning, to donation to farmers that supply the company with raw materials. Furthermore, plant would help cut the water bill at Chibuku by 30 percent.
Additionally, the Head Office uses recycled water to maintain the site grounds.
Pusumane says she has known about sustainability for a long time but has never experienced a work environment that invests in making ( water) conservation sustainable practice as at KBL ( and AB- InBev).
KBL recognizes that it thrives by investing in the communities in which it operates. As such, people like Pusumane, her team and KBL employees are always looking for ways to engage and collaborate with external stakeholders to enact sustainable strategies that also support local business. is