Which branded sausage is the best?

What consumers think of branded Sausage Rolls elicited these responses: hunger stopper, gifts for loved ones and well-wishers, in-between-work meals, a lifesaver in traffic, and for entertaining guests during visits. Whichever you choose to go with, you are right!

However, the Sausages’ market is one of the few food production sectors where competition between market players has little or no implication on price differences. Interestingly, the wholesale and retail prices for the majority of the brands are virtually the same, bridging the affordability gap between the affluent and the impoverished consumers, nonetheless making the competition between products more severe.

Most Sausages have a net weight of either 80g or 90g for the N50 per unit Sausage, and an average expiry lifespan of 10 days from the date of manufacture. As earlier stated, for Sausages competition is not about net weight or even price, which is around N4,000 per carton (distributor’s price) for most N50 per unit variants, with 105-106 Roll units in a carton, but about taste, beefy content, attractive packaging and availability. This research unravels the reality of consumer inclination and preference for some Sausage brands over others.

While, Gala Sausage Roll is the most popular and available brand, with the highest number of variants. Rite Beef Roll has the best spiced or flavoured beef, a feature it shares with Hotty Spicy Roll. Bigi Beef Sausage Roll appears to be bigger in size in similarity to Beefie Beef Roll. Yum Yum Beef Sausage Roll is a favourite at most markets, it sells fast in close similarity to SuperBite Roll. In reality, Meaty Sausage Roll has the highest beef content. Hotty Spicy Roll, SuperBite Roll and Bigi Beef Sausage Roll all have attractive packaging, according to research findings from consumers. Baba Beef Roll is the cheapest and smallest (N10 and 20 g per unit respectively) branded Sausage.

Gala Sausage Roll

Gala Sausage Roll is the most popular and first branded sausage in Nigeria (since 1962). It is manufactured by UAC Foods Limited and fondly referred to as the generic name for all

branded Sausage types. It has the highest number of variants packed in different attractive wrappers with transparent Bull’s head window to signify pure beef content. Gala Sausage Roll can easily be found in many stores and shops across the country, and it is the only brand that currently offers the option of a bigger variant – The Mega Gala Sausage Roll, which sells at N100 per unit, and N2,000 per carton (26 units of Sausage Rolls). However, the major weaknesses of the brand as identified by some consumer is that at times, its quality and size fluctuate, and it gets hard faster more than other brands as the expiry date approaches.

Strengths:

• Most popular and most available brand
• Has the highest number of variants which are continually reviewed as market demand changes
• First in the Nigerian market (i.e. first-mover advantage)
• The only brand that currently offers the option of bigger variant
• Packaged in an attractive red and yellow/green and yellow wrap

Weaknesses:

• Quality and size fluctuate
• Quantity of beef content varies
• Gets harder towards its expiry date more than any other brand

Rite Sausages (Rite Spicy Beef Roll, Rite Sausage Roll, and Bigi Beef Sausage)

Rite Spicy Beef Role, Rite Sausage Roll, and Bigi Beef Sausage are products of Rite Foods Limited. Rite Spicy Beef Role is known to have the best spiced or flavoured beef with a signatory beef colour (blackish brown) which set it apart from other sausages. The heavy spicing discourages consumers who don’t like too much spicing. It is packaged in a brightly yellow wrap. The smaller variant, Rite Sausage Roll is packaged in a transparent green wrap at an affordable rate of just N20 per unit and easy to find around. On the other hand, the third variant – Bigi Beef Sausage Rolls have a value proposition of human satisfaction. It has a soft feel, an attractive packaging, and is actually bigger is size when compared to many others.

Strengths of Bigi Beef Sausage Roll

• It is bigger compared to many other brands
• Have a soft feel
• Attractive packaging
• Have two different variants (Rite Spicy Beef roll with uncommon munchy nature & Rite Sausage Roll which is cheap and easy to find around)

Weaknesses of Bigi Beef Sausage Roll

• It is mostly seen as the sausage for hungry ones

Meaty & Mini Meaty Sausage Rolls and Hotty & Mini Hotty Spicy Rolls:

These are all products of Leventis Foods Limited. Meaty Sausage Roll and the smaller variant, Mini Meaty Sausage Roll are uniquely known for having more beef content than any other sausage brands in the Nigeria market. Unfortunately, the high meat content may discourage consumers with high preference for sausage to beef

Conversely, Hotty Spicy Rolls and the Mini Hotty Spicy Rolls as the name indicates, are quite peppery. Hotty spicy Role has a very unique packaging, and its sausage is softer in texture than other competing sausages in the Nigeria market. Nonetheless, two major weaknesses of the Hotty Spicy Rolls is that it easily loses its firmness by breaking into pieces, and it is rare among vendors and in stores.

Strengths of Hotty Spicy Roll:

• Spiced/flavoured beef
• Quite peppery
• Attractive packaging

Weaknesses of Hotty Spicy Roll:

• Easily lost its firmness

Beefie Beef Roll and SuperBite Snack Roll

Beffie Beef Roll and SuperBite Snack Roll are both manufactured by CHI Limited. Beefie Beef Roll appears to be big in size and a number of consumers have likened its taste to that of regular bread. It is one of the biggest competitors in the market and can be easily found in wholesale and retail stores across the land.

On the other hand, the strengths of SuperBite Snack Roll lies in its attractive design, and the unique taste of its beef content. However, the major weakness of SuperBite Snack Roll remains its gluten content which is known for triggering bloating and constipation in some people.

Strengths of Beefie Beef Roll:

• Bigger in size relative to many other brands
• It has the taste of a regular bread
• One of the biggest competitors in the market
• Easily found in wholesales and retails stores

Weaknesses of Beefie Beef Roll:

• The taste is not attractive to consumers who don’t enjoy the bread-like taste

Strengths of SuperBite Roll:

• Sells fast
• It has (arguably) the most attractive design

Weaknesses of SuperBite Roll:

• Intake may cause bloating and constipation for consumer who react to its gluten content

Yum Yum Beef Sausage Roll

Yum Yum Beef Sausage Roll is a product of Food Concepts Pioneer Limited. A section of wholesalers at a certain Lagos market claimed it is a favourite at the market,

due to its unique taste and succulent feeling. However, a major weakness of the product is that it is quite scarce in some other locations.

Strengths:

• Unique taste and succulent feel
• Sells fast

Weakness:

• Quite scarce to find in some locations

Baba Beef Roll

Baba Beef Roll is manufactured by Health Products & Farms Limited. It is a small-sized Sausage, selling at N10 per unit and it is made specifically for children. Being the cheapest selling Sausage, it goes for N820 per carton, with 110 units in each carton as against industry average of 105-106.

Nevertheless, two key weaknesses of the product is that it is only majorly marketed and available in Northern Nigeria, and it is slightly hard to chew.

Strengths:

• The cheapest sausage brand (N10)
• Made specifically for children
• The highest number of unit per cartoon (110) as against the industry average of 105-106 units

Weaknesses:

• Mainly concentrated in the Northern region
• No bigger variant available
• Slightly hard to chew

Finally, Gala Sausage Roll is the best sausage brand given that it has the highest number of desired qualities (e.g. easily available in stores, packed in attractive wrap, and rich in vitamins and other healthy ingredients) and variants (the Mega, the Mini, and the Gala Chicken Sausage Rolls) that different class of consumers can opt for.