Deals inked by Brazil at Gulfood add up to over $1.45 bi
Represented by 16 fewer companies than in 2018, Brazil had a promising participation at Gulfood 2019, the biggest fair for food, beverage, and agribusiness in the Arab world, with new business deals adding up to $1.451 billion both during the event and for the coming months.
The figure is $10 million above Brazil’s performance in 2018, when the Brazilian Export and Investment Promotion Agency (Apex-Brasil) took 95 companies to the event, held last month in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, an important commercial gateway for the Middle East, Africa, and Asia.
This year, following strategic changes and a stronger focus on companies with higher exporting capacity, 79 Brazilian firms took part in the initiative. The outcome reiterates the perception of quality of Brazilian goods in the region and also Gulfood’s role as an important hub for expanding the market on a large scale.
The amount was pulled up by the meat sector, which surpassed $988 million, followed by crops and industrialized foods, which added up to more than $236 million. Beverages was slightly lower—$3.75 million in all.
Highlights
One of the highlights among Brazilian companies attended the event was Oderich, based in Rio Grande do Sul state, which sells tomato products, sauce, jams, meats, and tinned vegetables, sweets, different types of mayonnaise, and spices.
Thomas Oderich, from the company’s department for Exports and Coordination, said the firm sees Gulfood as a chance to deepen ties with old clients in the Arab Emirates.
“We see Gulfood as a very diversified fair. We’ve always been present at major food fairs, but we chose to focus our efforts here on Gulfood because it seems more open to different cultures, with African and Asian countries,” the executive said.
Oderich sells to clients worldwide, including in Africa, the Middle East, Latin America, the Caribbean, Australia, and New Zealand. “For us, the markets in the Middle East and Africa are very inviting. Along with Apex-Brasil, we can export goods and rely on the agency’s support, which is practical for making things happen. To come to the fair is also important for benchmarking, to get to know what’s been recently done by the competition,” he added.
