Kumasi • Friends for Brands • Brand Activation

Kumasi

Increasing the earnings of cocoa farmers with a fruity juice

Whilst shooting a documentary in Ghana, journalist Lars Gierbergen discovered how the current cocoa chain leads to extreme underpayment of cocoa farmers in Ghana. Maybe this was to be expected, but something else caught his eye at the plantation: a huge amount of delicious juice being thrown away like waste. Why not market this strangely fruity juice to help the farmers get closer to a salary they deserve?

After coming home in the Netherlands, Lars and his team approached us for branding and communications around this unknown juice. They already called it Kumasi, named after the Ghanian region it comes from. Even though they’re still in the midst of the process of getting the juice to the Dutch market, they felt it important to start telling the Kumasi story.

 

Tasting Kumasi and knowing it comes from cocoa, you might expect a chocolate taste. But this isn’t the case. The taste, lightly resembling lychee, is actually strangely fruity! We decided this should be the core of all communication: making it known how fruity Kumasi is. Strangely fruity. With a visual identity that matches the fruity taste and celebrates its African roots. Plans for future content and campaigns will further explore the fruitiness of the product and the company.

Unfortunately, it will take about one more year before we can get our hands on a bottle of Kumasi. In the meantime you can already watch the documentary ‘Mede Mogelijk Gemaakt…’ that led to Kumasi on kumasijuice.nl or Videoland. And make sure to read the interview with founder Lars Gierveld on his journey from journalist to social entrepreneur. You can also start following their Instagram page for updates on the production process, getting to know the people of Kumasi and maybe support them in spreading this ‘Strangely fruity’ juice!