Tolaram Group launches Goodlife Majik fruit drink in Nigeria

Aug 12, 2019

Tolaram Group
Tolaram Group, partner to Kellogg’s and the manufacturer of the ubiquitous Indomie Noodles in Nigeria, has launched the Goodlife Majik fruit drink brand in three variants into Nigeria’s $165m fruit juice market. The brand, which is aimed at kids and has added glucose, is marketed as healthy.

The three variants of orange, watermelon and mango, will be sold in foil packs and manufactured by Tolaram Nutri Beverages, a Tolaram Group subsidiary. The importation of pre-packed fruit juice is banned in Nigeria, to protect local manufacturers. Bulk juice can be imported for packaging in Nigeria; domestic production of fruit can only meet around 25% of demand.

The new brand is aimed at kids and marketed as healthy and nutritious. It is fortified with vitamin c, but also contains added glucose (in this case, positioned as a healthy fortification, rather than simply as added sugar).

The positioning of added glucose as healthy, a formulation apparently endorsed at the brand’s launch by Dr Bartholomew Brai, president of the Nutrition Society of Nigeria, recalls the early positioning of the Sunny Delight (now SunnyD) brand, when launched by then owner P&G  in the UK in 1998. In that case, the brand was marketed as healthy alternative to carbonated soft drinks on account of its added vitamin c and fruit content. Within 3 years, the brand was in decline as consumers reacted to a series of press articles highlighting its high sugar content.

Tolaram Group has not released details of Goodlife Majik’s sugar content or fruit content. It will prove to be an interesting brand to watch as a gauge of how informed Nigerian consumers are about sugar content and whether they are concerned about obesity. Goodlife Majik is mainly aimed at the lower end of the market, which is one reason why its positioning still equates high sugar content with positive “growth”, rather than obesity.

Sugar taxes are gaining ground globally. The WHO has come out in favour of sugar taxes as a means of cutting obesity and associated diseases such as diabetes. In April 2018 South Africa introduced a new tax on sweetened soft drinks in a bid to cut obesity rates. The new tax effectively meant that a 500ml bottle of Coca-Cola increased in price by 7%. In response, Coca-Cola reformulated the brand in South Africa to contain less sugar.

Childhood obesity is still low in Nigeria. Other studies describe the wider obesity issue as being of epidemic proportions. Furthermore, we note that the Nigerian government has committed to supporting domestic sugar processors, having banned the importation of packaged sugar in 2013. In particular, Nigeria tycoon Aliko Dangote, whose investments frequently align with protectionist measures and who has long backed protectionism, has bet big on sugar.

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