Moses Amone
Uganda is currently witnessing a growth in the coffee shop sector and an increase in the number of different coffee brands, on offer at different supermarkets and retail outlets, such as; Good African Coffee, Star Café, Zigoti Coffee, Elgonia One Café, Masaba Coffee, Elgon Coffee, Nguvu and so much more. This trend is making coffee a fashionable drink and coffee shops the best meeting points offering an alternative to the regular beer bars, hence increasing on domestic coffee consumption.
But despite these positive attributes, it is important to note that domestic coffee consumption in the country is still at its very low and is estimated at about 0.8% of the total production in the country, a very dismal figure indeed given the quantities produced. These dismal figures according to research have been attributed to a number of factors, but the major ones can be pegged to the negative perceptions as relates to coffee and health and a lack of transparency in labeling (coffee mark of quality)
In order to curb these negative perceptions and help boost domestic coffee consumption, there is need to lower resistance to coffee drinking, which will act as a step to predispose existing coffee consumers to drink more coffee and non consumers to try out the product. Consumer education about coffee products can only be successful and efficient if it is coupled with a campaign to lower resistance to the product.
It has been noted that coffee consumers in the country always have difficulties in identifying and understanding the characteristics and contents of the coffee products offered in the market. This in most cases has led the consumer to drink a poor cup of coffee either because they bought the wrong product or used a preparation system that was not compatible to the product they bought. This lack of understanding about coffee products and unclear labeling of these products creates a confusion that is detrimental to consumer satisfaction and curtails the growth of the coffee market.
Based on the above findings, this therefore calls for a campaign aimed at educating consumers about the type and qualities of coffee available on the market. This campaign should be able to emphasize positive coffee and health attributes and its main focus should be to explain to consumers what is found inside the packages offered by retail outlets, for instance the type of product; roast and ground (R & G), soluble coffee, ready to drink coffee beverages, etc. presence or absence of non coffee products for example sugar, chicory and added flavors, etc. and the preparation system adequate for each product. At the initial stage, this campaign should aim at having proprietors of the coffee roasting establishment, label and more so providing directives on how to make a good cup of coffee, written on each packaging material of the coffee they produce.
This is important in that, in some instance consumers have been found to perceive other grades of coffee to be inferior to others, which may not necessarily have been the case. In line with this, it would be important to let consumers know that coffee being a product of great value, it comes in different forms as compared to its close substitutes. For example it would be important to explain to consumers that R & G is not necessarily an inferior grade of coffee as compared to instant coffee, as some consumers have perceive it to be but there major differences in terms of texture (fines & roughness), flavors, color etc. is simply for the benefit of the kind of satisfaction that each individual consumer may seek to derive from the final cup of coffee.
By so doing, this campaign will be able to address the issue of different coffee recipes for example espressos, cappuccinos, mocha, latte etc. and how they can be prepared, as well as the curiosities about the product. But most important of all, this campaign will put to rest the lingering doubts and questions related to coffee and health. Hence in the long run this will help boost the sector in terms of expansion of the tax base, employment generation and economic development.
