São Paulo – The change in consumer habits ushered in by the novel coronavirus pandemic makes it possible for Brazil to supply more value-added products to the Arab countries. Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce president Rubens Hannun (pictured above) spoke at the Fórum Paulista de Desenvolvimento (Fopa) on Tuesday (30) about the efforts being done to step up exports of more value-added products to the Arabs. The online event lasts the entire day.
“The Arab consumers are looking for other products. Instead of going to restaurants, buying premium products, premium meats, they eat at home, so they seek to buy these premium meats through ecommerce,” Hannun told the attendees. Such demands of online food commerce are arriving in Brazil. “In addition to these, they have looked for other value-added products in Brazil, which is a great opportunity for us,” he said.
Hannun participated in FOPA in the morning, in a section on international opportunities moderated by former São Paulo governor Geraldo Alckmin. The former governor said that the new exchange rate also boosts exports. “The new exchange rate, with the US dollar at BRL 5, gives us the chance to export value-added products, too,” Alckmin said, reinforcing other figures given by Hannun, such as the fact that the Arabs consist of Brazil’s third largest foreign trade partner, and second in agribusiness.
Hannun invited the companies interested in supplying to the Arab market to contact the Arab Chamber or the associations they are part of. He told that the entity has created a strategic commercial committee to meet the Arab needs that have arisen in the pandemic and that this work has been done in partnership with the associations. “We are talking with all sectorial associations and organizing new suppliers, training them to work with the Arab market,” he said.
The Arab Chamber president talked about the good performance achieved by Brazil-Arab trade last year and the importance initiatives seen in 2019, including the visit of the minister of Agriculture, Livestock and Supply, Tereza Cristina, and president Jair Bolsonaro to the region, the presence of the Arab Chamber international office in the United Arab Emirates, and the holding of the World Company Award (WOCA) in Egypt. He said that Brazil-Arab relations were great, and that the pandemic caused it to adapt but offered opportunities, too, including demands for new products.
WOCA is organized by the Global Council of Sales Marketing (GCSM), led by Agostinho Turbian, and hosted in Egypt in 2019 a discussion forum with businesspeople on Brazil-Egypt relations. GCSM is also the organizer of the Fórum Paulista de Desenvolvimento, featuring Hannun and aiming at discussing topics related to the state’s government plan for the next four years.
Translated by Guilherme Miranda
