Africa-Press – Eswatini. Women in Trade and Development (WITAD) launched a locally made chilli sauce known as Pecko Sauce in Taiwan on the last week of October 2023.
She sources cayenne pepper the main ingredient from other women in rural Eswatini.
Pecko Sauce is a meticulously handcrafted tomato sweet chilli sauce promoting the rich and bold flavours of Eswatini.
The products’ key ingredients are cayenne pepper and tomato among others. It is a versatile sauce used as a condiment or as an ingredient in various recipes, enhancing the flavour of dishes. It comes in two varieties, hot which is a fiery kick for those who savour a mouth-watering, tingling heat and mild which has a tang for those who prefer a gentle chilli touch but still enjoy a sweet and spicy taste.
Each bottle of Pecko Sauce is not just an indulgence in its delightful flavour but a contribution to a movement dedicated to fostering positive change. The young woman who is the founder and entrepreneur, Nontobeko Nxumalo, makes a difference beyond the culinary sphere by collaborating with WITAD in empowering other women and communities.
Taiwan Food Show
In collaboration with the Eswatini Investment Promotion Authority (EIPA) and the Taiwan Government, WITAD presented Pecko Sauce to the international market for the first time.
This was at the Kaohsiung Food Show (KFS), which started on 26 October 2023 and ended on 29th October 2023. The KFS enabled Eswatini to pitch or market products to Taiwan to establish trade partners, especially buyers to increase exports to Taiwan. It attracted the Taiwanese population and businesses, tourists and buyers from other international markets.
This event presented opportunities for marketing, undertaking market research, food tasting, business-to-business (B2B) meetings with industry players/associations, in-store research, assessing trends and competition, sourcing of inputs, machinery/equipment, equity partners, etc.
Market Response
The Taiwanese market overwhelmingly received Pecko Sauce. About 73 per cent of the product was sold on the Show’s first day because some customers bought between three and four units at once.
We had to hide some of the remaining products to have some for display and food tasting during the remaining three days.
Wes Davies, a popular social media marketer, also stated on YouTube https://youtu.be/DluRQCWNvUk?si=WI0DZwBwG84DSXlC that Kaohsiung Mayor recommended Pecko Sauce to him.
Buyers
While selling directly to consumers helped us to get feedback on the flavour and consistency, it was important for us to get feedback from potential business buyers too who include importers, sales agents, and distributors.
For Pecko Sauce, the interest came from importers, restaurants and catering businesses, Other important stakeholders to interact with in such events are freight forwarders or shipping companies who are familiar with the handling costs and risks.
The essential requirements that Pecko Sauce needs to fulfil to export are;
a. Food safety standards – the product needs to be safe from harmful fertilisers, pesticides, insecticides, and preservatives.
Some customers prefer organic and others prefer vegetarian ingredients only.
The packaging also needs to prevent contamination and list all the HACCP-related information.
This implies that the product must be tested and certified so that a food safety certificate will be attached to each consignment.
b. Capacity – the business must have a production line that can satisfy large shipping orders.
Before, negotiating an export contract, Pecko Sauce needs to ship samples to various potential buyers.
c. Price – establish the average price that generates a satisfactory gross profit while compensating foreign business buyers satisfactorily.
d. Rules of Origin, Customs and Value Added Tax – products made in Eswatini qualify for duty-free access to the Taiwan market if they substantially use inputs that are sourced in Eswatini or Taiwan or another country that qualifies for
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