São Paulo – Companies in the fresh and processed fruit sectors that participated in the Gulfood, the largest fair in the food industry in the Middle East, at the end of February in Dubai, closed deals of around US$ 3 million at the event, which represented growth of 119.8% over last year. The number of contacts made reached 820, according to a press statement disclosed yesterday (05) by the Brazilian Fruit Institute (Ibraf).
The estimate by the organisations for the next 12 months is for the fair to generate over US$ 10.2 million in deals. At the stand organized by the Ibraf, the companies present were Ruette Spices, Bony Açaí, Vittal and Amêndoas do Brasil. Apart from them, other associated companies participated in the fair, with Batia, Daros, Trop Frutas and Predilecta.
Vittal, for example, which produces fruit juice, coconut water and soft drinks, closed deals on the first day of the event, as informed by ANBA. Sales reached 66,000 cans of guarana to an importer in the United Arab Emirates, a country to which the company did not yet export.
To businessman Bony Monteiro, president of Bony Açaí, the event was very positive and his product was well accepted on the Arab market. This was the first time that the company participated in the fair and right on the first day the businessman was sought by the operations manager of the office of the royal palace of the Emirates to seek assai for prince Tahnoon Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, of Abu Dhabi.
In the case of Ruette Spices, of citric fruit, which has already participated in the fair and already exports to the Arab market, the event was also positive. According to the vice president at the company, José Ruette Filho, the visitors this year were more qualified and the business closed was above expectations. To him, despite the crisis, business was not affected, according to a release disclosed by the Ibraf.
Another company that was pleased at the fair is Amêndoas do Brasil, which participated for the first time. In the four days of the event, the foreign trade manager at the organisation, Simone Vasconcelos, made over 150 contacts, among them some with importers from the Emirates, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq, Saudi Arabia and Iran. "Our first participation was excellent, as we presented the quality of our nuts to clients who purchased from India and Vietnam," she said to Ibraf.
Further business
Before Gulfood, the Brazilian Export and Investment Promotion Agency (Apex-Brasil) promoted in Dubai event Flavours from Brazil, which brought together 400 buyers from 13 countries in the Middle East to negotiate with 40 Brazilian companies, among them five Ibraf associates. In the business meetings between the companies there were 720 contacts, generating US$ 22.8 million in deals.
*Translated by Mark Ament
