Kumbucha Factory closed in Lilongwe

The Environmental Affairs Department has closed down Kombucha Factory owned by Nutricom Food and Beverage Limited for releasing untreated waste water into Chankhandwe River, resulting in increase of Bio-Organic Materials in the Lilongwe River- the main water source for the City.

The bio-organic materials have been clogging Lilongwe Water Board’s production plant and machines, the development which has been forcing the Board to reduce production capacity to avoid compromising water quality and standards during purification process.

Nutricom Food and Beverage Limited violated Section 32 of EMA 1996 and has been fined K1 million. It has also been ordered to develop proper structures to dispose waste.

LWB and the Environmental Affairs officials are working on penalizing all individuals and institutions who dump waste materials in the Lilongwe River or its tributaries.

Lilongwe Water Board relies on Lilongwe River for the water which it supplies to a population of over 1 million people in Lilongwe City.