International Fruit Day: La Casera shows milestones in Nigerian market

At a party in April 2007 former students of social work from the University of Applied Science in Berlin came together talking about their fields of interest. They decided to bring people together with a basic social concept; sharing a meal. Sharing and eating fruits and vegetables together soon transformed into International Fruit Day which is celebrated July 1st every year.

The apple is considered to be one of the healthiest and the most versatile fruits. This marvellous fruit is extremely rich in important antioxidants, flavonoids, and dietary fibre. As one of the most consumed fruits in the world, apples are continuously being praised as a “miracle food”. In fact, apples were ranked first in Medical News Today’s feature article about the top ten healthy foods, helping to reduce the risk of developing cancer, hypertension, diabetes and heart disease.

Apple juice, is also one of the favourite drinks for many people. With the socio-economic climate in Nigeria, methods must be adopted for consumers to continue enjoying the great taste and benefit of apple through the provision of real apple juice in various products like Carbonated Soft Drinks (CSDs). This challenge was taken on by The La Casera Company, makers of La Casera Apple drink.

Interestingly, the La Casera brand was the first to introduce PET bottles in Nigeria, thus making it accessible and accepted by all. Consumers therefore experienced a new found love in the brand La Casera, because of its convenience of consumption as an ‘on-the-go’ Soft Drink, thereby changing the landscape of the entire soft drink industry in Nigeria. These unique qualities of the La Casera brand challenged two other Soft Drink giants to follow suit in 2004; 4 years after the birth of La Casera.

The competition was on and consumers still attached their loyalty to La Casera which contained real apple juice, as against the other flavour filled brands which dominated the market prior to its entry. The brand recently introduced its ‘Full Option’ range of SKUs giving consumers the options of 60cl, 50cl and 35cl.

While hundreds of products are launched yearly, only a few often survive competition due to taste appeal, quality and brand loyalty. Market and health analysts have questioned the quality standards of many of the products in the Nigerian market.

Hence, Nigerians refer to The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), and Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) as the lead safety authorities in Nigeria, whose certification can be taken as a final arbiter for any product’s safety concerns.

According to a report made public after a routine laboratory analysis of La Casera Apple drink, NAFDAC declared that “La Casera Apple drink ingredients conformed to laid down specifications and regulations.SON and the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) have also commended the company on its adherence to safety and health guidelines for beverage production.

La Casera Apple drink which has an undeniably attractive golden colour and refreshing taste, has no doubt earned its seal of quality in the Nigerian CSD landscape .La Casera is synonymous with “Great Apple Taste” for many consumers and that’s because La Casera Apple drink is carefully made with real fruit juice.