The United Kingdom has issued a travel advisory warning its citizens to be cautious when consuming alcoholic drinks in Kenya, citing the risk of methanol poisoning from counterfeit or contaminated beverages.
According to the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO), Kenya has been added to a list of eight new countries where such incidents have been reported. Other countries include Nigeria, Uganda, Japan, Mexico, Peru, Ecuador, and Russia.
The updated guidance expands existing warnings for destinations such as Thailand, Laos, and Vietnam, where British tourists have previously fallen ill after consuming tainted alcohol.
Methanol, a toxic industrial chemical found in products like antifreeze and paint thinners, is sometimes illegally mixed with alcoholic beverages to reduce production costs. Unlike ethanol—the safe alcohol produced through fermentation—methanol is synthetic and highly poisonous. It is tasteless and odourless, making it nearly impossible to detect.
Even small doses of about 30ml can cause blindness or death within 12 to 48 hours, according to Doctors Without Borders. Early symptoms include nausea, vomiting, dizziness, and confusion, while severe cases can lead to blurred vision, respiratory failure, or death.
UK Minister for Consular and Crisis Affairs, Hamish Falconer, advised travellers to purchase only sealed beverages from licensed outlets and to avoid homemade or pre-mixed cocktails when visiting Kenya and other affected countries.
In response, the Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS) assured the public that all methanol in Kenya is denatured with denatonium benzoate—a chemical that makes it extremely bitter and unfit for human consumption.
“All methanol in the country is denatured by adding the bitterest chemical called denatonium benzoate. This ensures it cannot be mistaken for alcohol,” KEBS said in a statement.
A Euromonitor International study released in May 2024 revealed that illicit alcohol accounts for about 60% of all alcohol sales in Kenya. The report attributed this trend to high taxation on legal drinks, cheap pricing of illegal liquor, and weak enforcement at the county level, all of which continue to fuel the trade in unsafe alcohol.
