By Foster Obi
Coca-Cola is about to produce an alcoholic drink for the first time in the company’s 125-year history – with an alcopop-style product in Japan. Nigeria is expected to be the next port of call after this.
WHY NIGERIA? Analysts believe there is a huge market for alcoholic beverage in Nigeria and Coca-Cola has dominated the market for long with its soft drinks will like to take advantage of the market space which is there for the taking. Also Nigerian socialites are known to patronize products with big names and in this segment any of such products from Coca-Cola will create high attraction.
A report recently released by a market research group, Global Data (formerly Canadian), indicated that Africa is by far the fastest growing region for beer consumption, with Nigeria leading the top biggest beer drinking countries in Africa. According to the report, beer consumption in Africa is estimated to grow by a five percent (5%) annual growth rate (AGR) between 2015 and 2020. The figure is the highest growth rate across all continents in the world. Asia’s beer consumption is projected at three (3%) percent, Middle East and North Africa 2.8% and less than one per in the Western Europe.
With an average beer consumption of 12.28 litres per year, Nigeria leads the top 10 biggest beer drinking countries in Africa. This is by virtue of her population, which technically translates to higher volume and litres consumed per year.
Meanwhile the latest move by Coca-Cola in Japan is predicated on the need to cash in on the country’s growing taste for Chu-Hi – canned sparkling flavoured drinks given a kick with a local spirit called shochu. The product is typically between 3% and 8% alcohol by volume. A senior Coke executive in Japan said the move was a “modest experiment for a specific slice of our market”.”We haven’t experimented in the low alcohol category before, but it’s an example of how we continue to explore opportunities outside our core areas,” said Jorge Garduno, Coca-Cola’s Japan president.
It was unlikely the drink would be sold outside of Japan, he suggested. Chu-Hi – an abbreviation for shochu highball – has been marketed as an alternative to beer, proving especially popular with female drinkers. Japan’s big drinks firms including Kirin, Suntory and Asahi all have varieties of the drink, and continue to experiment with flavours. The most popular flavours are strong citrus ones such as grapefruit or lemon, but the drink can also be made with other fruit flavours like grape, apple and peach .As younger consumers become more health conscious, Coca-Cola has been diversifying from fizzy drinks, including buying water and tea brands. But last November, Wells Fargo analyst Bonnie Herzog speculated that Coca-Cola might move into alcohol, as it looked to “premium segments such as adult craft beverages”. The phrase alcopop typically refers to sweet but alcoholic drinks, and in 1990s UK brands such as Hooch, Reef, Smirnoff Ice and Bacardi Breezer became hugely popular but they were controversial, raising concerns that they encouraged young people to drink alcohol in large quantities because they were so easy to consume.
