State-owned Carew and Company (Bangladesh) Ltd earned a record Tk232.96 crore in 6 months (July-December) of the fiscal year 2022-23 from selling alcohol in the country.  

The profit earned has increased by 21 percent compared to the previous year (2021). This is the highest growth record for liquor sales ever for Carew and Company, according to the company’s estimate.

This has happened as a result of the undeclared ban on importing foreign liquor; both the production and sales of domestic establishments have increased, officials said.

They say the National Board of Revenue (NBR) increased vigilance on liquor imports in 2021 to prevent duty evasion.

As a result, the import of alcohol through legal channels has decreased.

“There has been a shortage of foreign liquor in authorised bars. They are forced to buy liquor from domestic companies to deal with this crisis. Because of this, both the sale of alcohol and the income have increased,” said Syed Masudul Haque, a senior official of Carew and Company.

According to the company sources, in the first six months of the fiscal year 2022-23 (July to December) the income from the sale of alcohol was Tk 232.96 crore. The income from July to December of the 2021-22 fiscal year was Tk192.38 crore. That is Tk40.58 crore or 21 percent more income than the previous year.

Earlier, the record of the highest liquor sales was in the 2021-22 fiscal year. In that fiscal year, Carew and Company earned Tk 429.35 crore from the sale of liquor in Bangladesh.

In that year, excluding all expenses including revenue collection and company management, the actual profit of the company was Tk 49.17 crore.

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General Manager of Finance (Carew and Company) Saiful Islam told UNB that the production and demand for liquor increased in the last two years.

Earlier Carew used to collect raw materials from its own and neighboring sugar mills during the off-season. But currently, the company is procuring raw materials from all the sugar mills under BSFIC to meet the liquor demand, he said.

“If the demand increases like this, more raw materials will be needed for liquor. For this, farmers are being encouraged to cultivate high-productivity sugarcane,” Saiful said.

Carew and Company (Bangladesh) Limited is one of the 16 companies under the Bangladesh Sugar and Food Industry Corporation (BSFIC). It is the only licensed producer of alcohol made from sugar molasses in the country.

The company is located in Darshana of Chuadanga District. At present, the company has three sales centres in Dhaka, Chattogram and Chuadanga.