Tanzania: Serengeti and Kilimanjaro beer brewers should contribute to the upkeep of these places

Beer brands such as Serengeti and Kilimanjaro, named after the national park and the mountain respectively, sell in their millions.

Gerald Bigrube, director-general of Tanzania's National Parks Authority declared that the makers of the beers are using names such as Serengeti and Kilimanjaro for the beer brands, so they should contribute to the upkeep of these places because if they deteriorate for whatever reason, it means that this will impact on their products as well.

Instead the brewers are being accused of cashing in while providing little or nothing towards conservation. Serengeti has become a byword for conservation, and like Kilimanjaro, is an internationally recognisable symbol.

Beer companies have seen the commercial opportunities of using such powerful brand names, but now they are among those being asked to give something in return.

The national parks have asked lawyers to investigate whether they can trademark the names of natural resources. It may have begun to pay off: they have just taken delivery of a brand-new patrol vehicle for the Serengeti paid for by Serengeti lager.

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