15 Sep BMI Food Bites: Volatile times for mageu
Mageu, SA’s popular traditional mealie malt-based beverage, has been a major victim of the recession but looks to be recovering ground again, reports BMI Research.
By way of background, mageu is manufactured by fermenting a mixture of thin mealie pap and wheat flour. As the mixture ferments, the glucose found naturally in mealie pap turns into lactate, giving the product it’s dairy base and milky texturing and flavouring. Commercial producers pasteurise the product to extend its shelf life.
This product has been manufactured locally for many years, and has become a favourite amongst working class citizens.
Mageu is often flavoured for retail selling purposes, and comes in a variety of pack sizes, though liquid mageu is mainly found in cartons. The product is also legally required to have a less than 1.0% alcoholic level in order to classify as mageu.
Mageu is primarily consumed by the middle to lower portion of the market mainly in Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal and Eastern Cape. Recently a smooth version of the drink was introduced under the same brand label in a variety of flavours.
Market moves
- The mageu market saw an increase during 2010, after a major drop in volume in 2009. This recent increase is attributed to a recovered customer base after 2009’s infamous economic recession. It is believed that the category may also have been assisted by a small price increase during 2010. This helped to bolster the category’s value, and production followed.
- Since 2009, garage forecourts, on-consumption and top end retail saw a decline in consumption, making way for bottom end retail, which is expanding its volumes.
- Several producers in other SADC countries have tried in the past year to expand into new countries and markets. Not all ventures were successful, as the markets are mostly local and brand loyal.
- Newer pack sizes which were introduced in 2007 and 2008 suffered volume erosion as the whole category declined to the point where they were no longer used. However, as the category itself recovered this year, some of these pack sizes saw reintroduction.
- New product development options remain high in an effort to build the consumer base as the traditional beverage user group is getting older.
Download the Annual Market Quantification from BMI for this category, here