Frederico Falcão, was speaking to Lusa on the sidelines of the Great Tasting of Wines of Portugal that took place this Thursday in Luanda, with 33 producers and recalled that Angola became the main market for Portuguese wine exports in volume and the second largest in terms of volume. value.
However, it has been falling in recent years and Angola represented less than 3 percent of total exports in 2021, moving to 12th place on this list.
This decline in Angola's relative position is also due to the growth in exports to other countries that have gained ground in recent years, such as the United States of America, the United Kingdom or Germany, he explained.
10 years ago, wine consumption in Angola was around 10 liters per person, but currently it does not exceed two liters. However, sales have been growing at a significant pace this year.
"We hope that, this year, Angola will recover from the slump it had in recent years and continue to grow as it had until April", with a rate above 20 percent, he said.
"The Angolan economy is improving a little and we believe that consumption will improve", said Frederico Falcão, noting that the market has stood out this year in terms of growth in Portuguese wine exports, especially in terms of value.
The official added: "We are growing in average price, which is indeed our mission, since the objective is to raise the average price of exports".
"Portugal already exports on average almost half of what it produces, so we have no room to exponentially increase our exports in volume. What we have to do is increase the value, the average price of exports, be able to export better wines to bring economic sustainability sector", explained the president of ViniPortugal.
As for the profile of the Angolan consumer, it varies between two extremes, from high-end wines to very cheap wines, making Angola have the lowest average price among export destinations.
"There is a lot of consumption of non-certified wine", noted the head of ViniPortugal, the entity through which Portuguese wine is internationally promoted.
In the near future, the strategy in Africa will continue to be based on Angola. "We export some wines to São Tomé, Cape Verde and even Mozambique, but always in smaller quantities and at a lower price. Angola is a much more representative market and where high-end wines are sold", which will continue to deserve a greater investment in Portuguese promotion, according to Frederico Falcão.
"We are already in 21 countries, our objective is not to diversify many more markets and to concentrate investment in the markets where we are to cement our presence and strategic positioning", he said.
To reinforce its positioning in Angola, Portuguese wines have some advantages, namely the preference given to wines from Portugal, born of the affective bond and the common language, which ensure a market share of 85 percent.
But there are also some challenges: In addition to beer, Portuguese wines face other competitors who have their eyes on Angola, such as Spain and South Africa.
In addition, currency fluctuations pose other problems in terms of transactions, as the kwanza has doubled its value in this market compared to last year. "The volatility of the exchange rate, in terms of wine positioning, affects us", acknowledged Frederico Falcão.
