I’m impressed with Keringet. Early this month (March), Crown Beverages relaunched its Keringet bottled water packaging, and a refreshed logotype. The award-winning brand is keeping up with its 20 years unrivalled offering for premium, safe and hygienic water with a distinct natural taste. According to the MD as well as their print ad, ‘The new Keringet recyclable bottle is 20% lighter, stylish and the flowing lines feel just right in your hand while adding strength, stability to the bottle.’
I’m further impressed at how the unveiling launch was done- at a fitting event- the Blankets & Wine event. It is an outdoors affair in the sun, with a perfect crowd that falls smack and looking to stay hydrated. The launch was supported by billboard, print, TV and radio ads as well as a promotion on Capital Fm (an afternoon show when the weather is hot) with a tag “Filtered by nature bottled at source” that further reiterates its positioning and product offering.
Today, the consumer today is increasingly being bombarded with ‘green’ messages. The Keringet print, TV (simple animation and good direction on the voice and tone) and radio ads are also laying emphasis on the 20% lighter recyclable bottle. I only wish the same point was touted on their billboards, and did away with the first ‘bottle’ on the print ad.
Anyway, this got me wondering- do Kenyans really care if the brands they love so much are eco-friendly? Allow me to hypothesize. If Kenyans were today asked if it was important that packaging be manufactured from an environmentally friendly material, over 60% would say it was. But here is the problem- the proportion of “responsible dedicated” and “critical consumers” we have is much lower. They would answer from a guilty conscience.
Remember the outrage we had when the environment minister sought to ban plastic papers and packaging? Our supermarkets are still struggling to phase out their plastic carrier bags with eco friendly tote bags- but how many of us insist on the latter? I haven’t seen anyone from the many trips I make to the supermarket. The only thing I might add about half of my hypothetical 60% is that they are post-environmental friendly, that is, they dispose off such packaging with a responsible thought. I’m not sure if they actually follow it through, gauging from the amount of litter clogging our drainage systems.
So, is sustainability in packaging important to you as a Kenyan and does it influence the choice of brands you choose to buy? Now that’s a thought from Keringet, huh?
The Squared Factor 
I felt offended when they suggested that i carry a kiondo to the supermarket. I guess i felt they would go ahead to and ask me to re-use the bread wrapper, sauce bottle, jam tin you get the drill.
In an age when chapo`s are sold half cooked while greens are nicely chopped and packed in the supermarket counters. Who cares about the environment? I guess the house pests are even used to processed food already. so yes, Kenyans care less about the environment. Can i print this and re-read it later? Lol.
for some reason, the pre-done chapos (I dont know if I can cal them pre-cooked) look plastic too. I’m sure these prepacked greens are so inorganic, Michael Jackson had less plastic on him. You can tell when not one of them has an insect bite!
Well, at least some brands are showing a concern for the enviroment- I hope Kenyans will become eco friendly and stop poking at the environment. Instead of printing, save a tree and copy/share the link 🙂