Quality, nutritional benefits drive demand for snacks and CSDs

The rate at which Nigerians consume snacks and beverages on a daily basis has been on the upward swing. Chinwe Agbeze, consumer editor, after tours of the different sausage rolls companies, writes that the processes Rite Foods Limited products undergo before they finally get to the consumers are more like being on point.

Sausage rolls and carbonated soft drinks (CSD) have warmed their way into the hearts of millions of Nigerians because they are handy, quite filling and relatively affordable. Consumers rely on these products to quench hunger due to tight work schedule.

Also, the current economy situation, which has reduced consumers’ disposable income, has compelled more people to embrace these products.

Moved by the health hazards posed by these products, especially when they are not produced under the right hygienic condition, BusinessDay recently visited Rite Foods Limited, maker of Rite and Bigi sausage rolls, Bigi drinks and bottled water.

At the company’s office in Lagos, Seleem Adegunwa, managing director/CEO, says they are committed to producing the best quality, safe and hygienic products that exceed consumer needs and expectations.

Due to overhead cost and foreign exchange, most fast moving consumer goods companies are cutting down on quantity, quality and hiking the prices of their products as a way of adjusting to inflationary pressures, but he says they will never compromise on quality.

‘‘We just increased the sausage price and they tell me that consumers are having it as a challenge. Some people suggested that we reduce quality and everything, but I said, we cannot do that because it is not our culture,” he says.

According to Adegunwa, the company has so much faith in Nigeria and has demonstrated this with the two world-class factories, which is second to none in the country.

‘‘Everybody that goes to our factory seems a bit surprised that something like that actually exists. We are absolutely confident in the system in Nigeria and we have put our money where our mouth is,’’ he says further.

True to his words, when BusinessDay visited Rite Foods’ factory at Ososa area of Ogun State, the two factories were of world-class standards.

At the sausage production section, there are two clean stores. One is the dry store where everything dry such as flour and sugar are stored, and the wet store that houses the meat.

Ibikunle Olatunde, the plant manager, bakery, explains the stringent measures they take to ensure that beef is free from microbial contamination.

‘‘When we purchase beef from the abattoir, we remove the bones, weigh and section it before taking it to the blast freezer where it will stay for two to three days. Because of the state of our abattoirs, we spent a lot of money to make our blast freezer. Our blast freezer is about -40◦C; it kills all the pathogenic organisms and bacteria in the beef completely.

‘‘We ensure that the meat from the abattoir is microbial free so that when people are consuming our products, they are sure they are consuming healthy products,’’ Olatunde says.

The automated mixing machine, which is of 400kg capacity, mixes the flour, vegetable and other ingredients needed for sausage making.

At the quality control unit, a lady is seen weighing the sausages line by line at regular intervals to ensure that it corresponds with certain standards after which she records her findings. Those sausages that do not, the beef is emptied and reprocessed.

Olatunde offers more explanation on what the lady is doing, saying, “We do not want to cheat the customers and we don’t want the customers to cheat us. Whatever we declare on the wrap of our sausage is what we give to the customers. She is recording her findings for NADFAC or SON whenever they visit.’’

The sausage rolls move into the oven travelling for 21 minutes maximum with the temperature set at 400◦C, since it is a travelling oven.

‘‘The lines are synchronised from the beginning to the end and it has a capacity of 40,000 pieces per hour. The sausage comes out of the oven at a minimum temperature of 97◦C and goes into the cooling chamber at a maximum of 88◦C.

‘‘We are able to cool the sausage roll to maximum temperature of 28◦C from 97◦C minimum coming out of the oven to 28◦C before we can start packaging to prevent spoilage,’’ Doris Egu, quality control team lead in the sausage production unit, explains.

At the laboratory, the sausage wrappers are sterilised to ensure that they are germs free.

‘‘We collect these wrappers from suppliers. So, we put it under the UV light for two days after which we swab it at the microbiology laboratory to make sure what we are using to wrap the sausage is free from germs,’’ Olatunde says.

At the beverages section, adequate analysis is carried on all raw materials to ensure that both the CSDs and the bottled water are fit for consumption.

‘‘Our major raw material constitutes about 70 percent water. Everything processed here must be of high hygiene because the final product is consumed directly without been boiled,’’ Adeyinka Adeyemi, the quality control lead at the beverages unit, says.

After the tour, Sulaiman Adebola Adegunwa, the CEO, tells how he came about the dream and what informed his choice of location for the factory.

‘‘We spent five years on planning alone because we want to make a statement that Nigeria can do something good. Everybody believes Nigeria cannot do anything and I don’t believe that. I was born in this town several years ago and I wanted to do a very good job for my people,’’ he says.

What do consumers think about Rite Foods products?

Some consumers that spoke with BusinessDay listed quality, nutritional benefits and convenience as the major reasons they consume Rite products.

‘‘They still have meat in their sausages unlike other sausages. I love their Rite sausage. It tastes like freshly baked meat pie,’’ Olayinka Ebunlorun, an insurance salesperson with Mutual Benefits Life Assurance in Lagos, says.

Michael Anyanwu, a banker in Port Harcourt, says: ‘‘I love the bigi drinks, especially the Tropical Bigi. It is so unique; I have never tasted any drink like it before. Their drinks contain less sugar and that is.’’