São Paulo – The Brazilian Rice Industry Association (Abiarroz) and the Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (Apex-Brasil) will launch next Wednesday (23rd), in Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul state, the second phase of the Brazilian Rice project, for the promotion of Brazilian rice abroad. Just like in the first stage of the project, created in 2012, the next stage, set to last until 2017, will have Saudi Arabia as one of its target market, in addition to the United States, Panama, Peru, South Africa and Angola.
According to the manager of the Brazilian Rice, André Alene, the project has set three main actions to promote the product and increase exports: training to companies, international promotion via participation in fairs and events and establishing of the image of the Brazilian producers as an exporter. “The first two years of the project were important to develop our image. The Arabs, for instance, had no knowledge that we were exporters”, he said.
Saudi Arabia was chosen as one of the priority markets because it’s a large importer of the product, has spending power and is a gateway for the region. “Jordan and Dubai (United Arab Emirates) are also markets with great potential, but Saudi Arabia, besides being a consumer, is a gateway for the whole region”, said Alene to ANBA this Friday (18th). Through the project, producers attend, every year, the Gulfood fair, the largest of the food sector in the Middle East, held in Dubai.
The Saudi buyers demand a premium product with a sophisticated presentation, according to the manager. “They demand excellence and a product with greater added value. We are able to meet their demand”, he said.
According to information released by Apex-Brasil, the companies that took part in the project started to export to 42 countries. In the beginning, there were 21 international clients. At the end of 2014, exports by these companies were 55% higher than in the end of 2013. The project started with 22 companies and currently there 30. In this second stage, R$ 1.9 million (US$ 483,900) will be invested, an amount 31.4% higher than in the first stage. From this total, 68.5%, or R$ 1.3 million (US$ 331,000), will be disbursed by Apex-Brasil, and 31.48%, or R$ 598.100 (US$ 152,329) will be invested by Abiarroz.
*Translated by Sérgio Kakitani
