The National Beverage Company (NBC), which holds the franchise to bottle and distribute Coca-Cola products throughout the West Bank and Gaza Strip, recommenced operations in Palestine, affirming the importance of investing in the country's economy and the continuance of production in the current difficult environment.
Located in the Betounia industrial park just outside Ramallah, NBC's bottling factory was brought to a standstill for 23 days due to the occupation of city.
”The company plans to continue to operate in Palestine despite the difficult situation facing the region and due to the fact that Coca-Cola is considered to be one of the largest Palestinian companies, playing a pivotal role in the country's economy,” Chairman of the Board of Directors Zahi Khouri said.
“Our faith in the Palestinian economy is boundless and we at the National Beverage Company are striving to continue our investment in the country. By doing so, we believe we make an important contribution to its revival. In addition, we employ a significant number of Palestinians, as part of the process of rebuilding the community,” said Khouri. “Companies like ours have struggled as production and sales came to a halt and while expenses remained fixed. This situation could result in an economic catastrophe if the conditions do not improve.”
The National Beverage Company Coca-Cola has suffered difficulties in conducting its business since the beginning of Israeli closures more than a year and a half ago, which have hindered the normally effective distribution of products. Imad Hindi, production manager for the company, said that the recent Israeli occupation of Ramallah has brought distribution to a complete standstill for the last 10 days.
Production and sales doubled in 2001 and were set to grow another 30 percent in 2002, according to a company press release. However, as a result of the closures and consequent difficulties of getting products to consumers, sales for 2002 to date have not exceeded 2000/1999 levels. — (menareport.com)
© 2002 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
