São Paulo – Executives with Al Sharif Co., an Egyptian importer and exporter of seeds, herbs and pepper, are currently in São Paulo seeking new partners. The company ships one to two containers’ worth of products to the Port of Santos each month. Their target is to raise that amount to five containers in 2012. For such, the export manager Abdel Ghaffar Abdel Kawi is hoping to sign contracts with seven new buyers, as well as increase sales to the ten local customers the company has had since 2007.
Kawi and the company chairman, Sherif Attaya, engaged in negotiations with Brazilian enterprises this Tuesday morning (29th) at the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce. They claim Brazil is gaining importance in international trade. For that reason, according to Kawi, the Egyptians expect the company to increase its business in the country over the next few months.
The main products sold to Brazil include mint, peppermint, pepper, basil, chamomile flower and seeds. The products are used for various purposes. The chamomile flower, says Kawi, can be used for making tea or to manufacture aromas for lotions, shampoos and other cosmetics.
The Al Sharif Co. was established in 1980 in Alexandria, Egypt. Ever since, it has exported its products to Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Kuwait and United Arab Emirates, Italy, Spain, Ukraine, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Germany, Poland, South Africa and Brazil. Kawi claims that Mexico, Venezuela and Ecuador are also “interesting,” as is Russia.
If it is up to businessman Ricardo Caruso, the Al Sharif executives will be successful in their trip to Brazil. After meeting with them at the Arab Brazilian Chamber, Caruso said he intends to buy their products. “I liked the company and I liked the products that they showed me. I find their prices to be somewhat above the market, but Egyptians drive a good bargain and I believe we will strike a deal,” he said.
The CEO of Ricex Importadora e Exportadora, Caruso has purchased dried fruit, spices, seeds and leaves from Arab exporters in the past. Now, he should resume buying spices, seeds and leaves to sell in the Brazilian Northeast, “the fastest growing region in the country.” Should he close a deal with the Egyptians with Al Sharif, Caruso will order a container to be unloaded at the Port of Suape, in Recife.
“I have a branch there. Out of Recife, I distribute products to the whole region,” he says. He claims that the demand for products such as fennel, aniseed and cumin is stronger in the Northeast than in the Southeast, where the parsley is taken to be processed and dehydrated. “Brazil does produce parsley, but not a sufficient amount. That is why we import, and the Arabs possess a good knowledge of how to treat these products, which arrive with very good quality,” he says.
Brazilian Ministry of Development, Industry and Foreign Trade figures show that from January to October 2010 and from January to October 2011, the country did not export fennel to the Arab country. On the other hand, it imported the equivalent of US$ 596,000 in 2010 and US$ 1.4 million from January to October this year. The same holds true of aniseed. Brazil did not export the product to the Arabs, but it purchased the equivalent of US$ 190,000 from January to October 2010 and US$ 1.7 million in the same period this year. There was an increase of 920.5% compared with the preceding year. Brazilian imports of cumin from the Arab world have trebled in January to October 2011 as against the same period of last year, from US$ 492,000 to US$ 1.4 million.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
