The British government has warned travellers visiting Kenya to be cautious when consuming alcohol, citing the growing risk of methanol poisoning from counterfeit or tainted drinks.
In a fresh travel advisory, the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) named Kenya among eight new countries where incidents of methanol poisoning involving foreign visitors have been reported. Others include Nigeria, Uganda, Japan, Mexico, Peru, Ecuador, and Russia.
The updated notice extends an earlier alert covering destinations such as Thailand, Laos and Vietnam, where contaminated alcohol has previously caused illness and death among British tourists.
A Hidden Threat in the Glass
Methanol, an industrial solvent found in products like antifreeze and paint thinner, is sometimes illegally mixed with alcoholic drinks to reduce production costs.
Unlike ethanol, the type of alcohol meant for human consumption, methanol is toxic and can be fatal even in small amounts. The substance has no distinct taste or smell, making it almost impossible to detect.
According to Doctors Without Borders, ingesting as little as 30 millilitres can cause blindness or death within 48 hours. Early symptoms include nausea, dizziness, and blurred vision, progressing quickly to respiratory failure or coma if untreated.
Hamish Falconer, the UK’s Minister for Consular and Crisis Affairs, urged British nationals in Kenya to be vigilant.
“Travellers should buy only sealed drinks from licensed outlets and avoid homemade or pre-mixed cocktails,” he said, adding that counterfeit alcohol remains a serious global health risk.
Kenya Responds
In response to the advisory, the Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS) insisted that methanol circulating within the country cannot be mistaken for alcohol.
“All methanol in Kenya is denatured by adding denatonium benzoate, the bitterest chemical known to make it unfit for drinking,” KEBS said in a statement on Wednesday. “Its taste is extremely unpleasant, preventing accidental or intentional consumption.”
Nonetheless, industry data show the scale of Kenya’s illicit alcohol trade remains alarming. A Euromonitor report released in May found that illegal or unregulated alcohol accounted for nearly 60 percent of all sales in 2024.
Analysts attributed the problem to high taxes on legitimate brands, lax enforcement, and the widespread availability of cheap, unregulated brews.
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