São Paulo – To attract Saudi capital to Brazilian agribusiness, the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Supply is gong to promote a seminar on the investment opportunities in the sector, in Riyadh, the Saudi capital, on November 2nd. The event, which is organized by the Agribusiness International Promotion department, should take place on the sidelines of the Brazilian food sector delegation to the Arab country.
"For some time now, Saudi Arabia has been announcing investment (in agribusiness) in other countries, but Brazil has never been mentioned," said the director of the department, Eduardo Sampaio. According to him, the establishment of a Saudi state-owned company, Agroinvest, to support investment abroad in the sector opens doors to Brazil, which offers high availability of farmland, a favourable climate, available water, specialized labour and technology.
According to Sampaio, the Brazilian diversity in agricultural food chains makes it possible for foreigners to invest through partnerships with large companies with great production, acquisition, transformation and food trade capacity. "The idea is to show that the Arabs may invest in agriculture in Brazil without the need for purchasing land," said the director.
Apart from partnerships with agro-industrial companies or trading companies, the seminar should show that the financing mechanisms in the country are already well known, which allows for greater safety, liquidity and product supply guarantee. These mechanisms are going to be presented by the Agribusiness vice president at the Bank of Brazil, Luís Carlos Guedes. Apart from him, the Agricultural Policy secretary at the ministry, Edílson Guimarães, should make a presentation.
"Brazilian agribusiness makes possible Saudi investment in all sectors, like grain, sugar, dairy, beef and chicken, fruit and honey," said the director. This is the first time that the Ministry of Agriculture promotes a seminar of the kind in the Middle East. According to Sampaio, the fact that these countries present local land and water restrictions for production, alongside the tendency for appreciation of the prices of agricultural commodities, caused the countries of the Gulf to announce several agricultural projects abroad, to guarantee the future supply of food.
At the end of the event, representatives of Brazilian associations in the beef, dairy, juice and grain sectors are going to participate in meetings with local businessmen.
Fair
From November 1st to 4th, 16 Brazilian companies in the food sector should participate in the Saudi Agro-Food fair, in Riyadh. The Brazilian pavilion should cover 144 square meters and is organized by the Ministry with the support of consultancy company Conceito Brazil and the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce. The event should bring together 650 exhibitors in over 38 countries. Among the sectors of Brazilian companies to be at the fair are dairy, meats, animal feed, coffee and sweets.
According to information supplied by the organizers of the event, Saudi Arabia imported in 2008 the equivalent to US$ 15 billion in food, an increase of 25% over 2007. Brazil alone exported the equivalent to US$ 1.43 billion in agribusiness products to the country last year, growth of 45% over 2007.
*Translated by Mark Ament
