Coconut water to cool thirst, make cash

While watching a business programme on the uses of coconut based on the Brazilian experience early this year, Mr Dan Abwao was amazed.

He wondered why coconut water, one of the products featured, was not being packaged in Kenya especially at the coast where the crop is in plenty.

“We had ventured into making biscuits and ice cream in the past with little success.

But the moment I saw how they package coconut water in Brazil, I knew that was it; I had this excitement that could not go away.

Surprisingly, my wife who had turned down several of my investment ideas was equally thrilled,” Mr Abwao says.

Money caught up with the couple last week at their office in Ganjoni, Mombasa County.

“Unlike all the other ideas,” his wife Monicah Abwao interjects, “this one seemed to me viable so I did not object.”

With this agreement, they invested all their savings – Sh500,000 – in packaging coconut water, popularly known as madafu.

WHY COCONUT?

Coconut water is a liquid that forms naturally inside the fruit and is a common drink in tropical countries.

In Kenya, it is popular at the coast but it is slowly making entry into Nairobi, where several vendors are selling the drink that is believed to have health benefits.

With little solid content, health experts say coconut water is a nutritious fluid containing sugar, protein, vitamins and minerals. 

It is a good source of potassium, sodium, magnesium, calcium and chloride minerals.

To start off, the couple registered a company – Masasada International Limited – and bought a machine used to extract the liquid from coconut.

They then made a sample and sent it to the Kenya Bureau of Standards for certification.

“This was the most difficult part because after presenting our sample it failed the test because as we came to learn later, we had bought madafu from street vendors yet we were supposed to source it directly from the farms.

It took a month before we were given green light.

After that, we did not waste even a second,” Mr Abwao, who is the company chief executive says.

THE BEGINNING OF DAFUKOOL

They then branded the product “DafuKool”, packaged several 500ml bottles and gave them to friends and relatives during a birthday party to sample.

“The response was amazing,” says Mrs Abwao, the firm’s managing director.

We could not believe it because those who tasted kept asking for more.

After several weeks, however, the product was not moving, sparking panic.

“One day, I posted a comment on WhatsApp asking my friends; ‘just what’s up with you guys, don’t you want to promote me?’

This elicited immediate responses, followed by orders,” she says.

Marketing the product has been challenging, but having cut his teeth as a salesman for years with a soft drinks company, Mr Abwao is slowly making inroads.

But the duo have to race against time — the product has to reach the consumer within 48 hours after production since it has no added preservatives.

The half-litre bottle is selling at Sh100 but there are plans to introduce smaller packs depending on the market response.

So far, they have sold over 50,000 bottles within the last four months. Their plant has a capacity to package 10,000 bottles per day.

And last week, Mr Abwao signed a supply contract with Uchumi supermarket which opened a branch in Mombasa recently — more than five years after it closed shop in the coastal city.

Their company will be supplying 500 bottles of DafuKool every day at the Uchumi Mombasa outlet.

FINANCIAL CHALLENGES

Even with the potential that their business promises, the company has been grappling with financing challenges according to the chief executive.

Many financial institutions cite the high risks involved since the enterprise does not have assets to guarantee its loans.

Asked about how much the firm makes, he says: “At the moment, we are not talking about profits since we plough back all the money we earn. But soon we hope to break even.”

The company has employed 20 people most of them in sales and others to support farmers since coconuts must be sourced from the farms to ensure that the water is not contaminated.

Mr Abwao now joins a growing list of new companies setting base at the coast to add value to the coconut crop.

Micro Enterprise Support Programme Trust (MESPT) and Kenya Coconut Development Authority (KCDA) are supporting initiatives for processing virgin oil, desiccated milk and coconut flour.

Such support will see Mr Abwao and other up-coming entrepreneurs acquire global certification to help turn their products into global standards.

Recently, the two agencies presented a memorandum to the government making a strong case of value addition and policy support that targets to have the industry earn the country its Sh25 billion as opposed to Sh6.4 billion it earned last year.