São Paulo – Samba International, a brokerage house specialized in international food trade from Curitiba, operates since 2005 in the market and holds as its main clients countries from the Middle East and North of Africa. Almost all of them have already imported products commercialized by the company, especially grains. Now, the company invests in the development of seeds specifically for the Arab countries. Last year, the company became a member of the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce to strengthen the relationship with the Arabs.
According to Samba’s diretor, Iuri Bruns, the focus of the company was to work with Brazilian companies and cooperatives with large capacity and great quality production, but without export experience. “Now, we are in another stage, one characterized by the development of new seed’s varieties to meet the client’s demand”, he says.
The development of these varieties is achieved through a partnership with Embrapa (Brazilian Corporation of Agricultural Research) and agricultural producers. Bean’s varieties are the ones in most demand by the Arabs. Black pepper and cloves are also very sought by the region’s clients. The company also exports to non-Arab African countries, the United States, Turkey, Venezuela, Colombia, Peru and the Caribbean region.
Another product of great appeal to Arab countries is popcorn, a variety that Brazil didn’t produce in years past. The country started to import seeds, became a producer and today is one of the biggest in the world. However, as there is a great demand in the domestic market, Brazil still exports a small volume if compared to Argentina, for instance.
Association and credibility
At the end of 2013, Samba became a member of the Chamber with the intention of getting close with the Arabs. “We became a member because we believe in the services provided, in the credibility, in the role of the Chamber to draw the countries close to each other, establish trade missions, and I think that introducing this partnership with the Chamber to the clients can be very helpful”, he said.
The company attended as an exhibitor the food market fair Gulfood in 2013 and 2014, which is held every year in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Next year, Samba intends to attend the fair again. Bruns says that there is potential to increase sales in the region, which now corresponds to 60% of the company’s revenue. “It is possible to expand business with them and we want to sell more, especially in volume of shipped products”.
Information:
Samba International
Phone: (+5541) 3045-7980
*Translated by Sérgio Kakitani
