Want that exotic biting taste of cider without the fear of getting drunk? Kenya, has you covered.
In the early 80s the British Pop group, UB 40 set out to make palatable Reggae music for people who hate Reggae.
Now the Kenya Wine Agencies Limited is doing the same in the beverage sector. KWAL is coming up with a special Cider for people who don’t like alcohol.
The newly launched Savannah Cider with a 0.0 alcohol is the latest product from the Kenya Wine Agencies Limited (KWAL), a drink for teetotallers who don’t want to stick out among friends in any pub.
The company is seeking to increase its share of the growing market for cider lovers in Kenya without side-lining those who abstain from alcohol for one reason or another.
They are especially targeting new consumers, mostly youngsters who love to experiment with new flavours but also keeping safe from the aftereffects of alcohol packed traditional beverages, like beer, dry wines and spirits.
The KWAL Commercial Director, Jonas Geeraerts, points out that the Savanna Cider 0.0 is for the people who prefer premium products, exotic taste and keeping up with modern lifestyles without sacrificing their teetotalism.
“There is a demand for premium drinks that resonate with the consumer’s preferred lifestyle without compromising quality or taste. That’s exactly the market segment which the new Savanna Cider 0.0 is out to fill,” said Geeraerts during the Cider launch event in Nairobi.
According to the director, Savanna Cider 0.0 offers the same premium, crisp apple taste found in any other cider and is a great choice when one wants to enjoy great social connecting moments with friends without getting tipsy.
One could also switch between the alcoholic and non-alcoholic variants of the Cider depending on the occasion.
Savanna Cider 0.0 now becomes part of KWAL’s growing portfolio of beverages.
The company also produces the Savanna Dry, Savanna Angry Lemon and Savanna Light with only 3 percent ABV.
In 2019, KWAL launched a new production line for ciders, aiming to garner a sizeable market share in the segment and is currently producing Savanna Dry locally.
Cider is a fermented drink typically made from apples and other ingredients, and conveys a unique, premium, crisp apple taste.
According to Global Data, the total world cider market was valued at about USD 14.2 billion with an average of 2.6 billion litres consumed annually.
A report published by Heineken in the United Kingdom in 2022 reveals that Millennials and Generations Z youngsters make up over half of all cider drinkers.
Savanna Brand Manager at the Kenya Wine Agency, Mukami Miriti, said the popularity of cider lies in its appeal to the youthful drinkers.
Savanna Cider was awarded the Number 1 Cider in the World in 2023 by IWSR, a globally renowned beverage intelligence research company.
This is not the first non-alcohol drink that KWAL is launching in the Kenyan market. In 2022, the firm introduced Heineken 0.0, a premium non-alcoholic beer that has become popular among the premium beer consumers.
Head of Marketing, Dr. Senorine Wasike, reveals that their push into the low or no alcohol-free beer and cider segment arises from the need to create inclusive drinking experiences for consumers who don’t want to feel left out of the party.
The company operating from the Ksh 3 Billion plant at Tatu Satellite City in the Nairobi suburbs is banking on such trends to diversify its product range of ciders, beer, wines, spirits and flavoured alcoholic drinks, while strengthening its presence in the region.