São Paulo – The Brazilian Fruit Institute (Ibraf), in partnership with trade fair promotion company Francal Feiras, launched yesterday (10), in the city of São Paulo, the Fruit & Log, International Fair of Fruit and Fruit Products, Processing and Logistics Technology, to be held from September 8th to 10th. "We are going to try to structure in Brazil a business event where we may come together to do business on an international level," said Ibraf president Moacyr Saraiva Fernandes.
According to him, the objective behind the event is to try to develop, implement and consolidate in the country a great business fair in the fruit and vegetable sector and bring the largest possible number of buyers from outside Brazil. "To us, the Arab market is one of the emerging markets, one of the new destinations for Brazilian marketing and promotion strategies. We will undoubtedly make all effort for buyers of juice, fruit and other products, mainly from the countries of the Gulf, to come," said Fernandes.
Brazil is the third main producer of fruit in the world, losing only to China and India. Each year, the country produces 43 million tonnes of tropical, subtropical and temperate climate fruit, and is responsible for 60% of the orange juice exported in the world. Advanced cultivation techniques make possible the production of some kinds of fruit all year around. Last year, sector exports totalled US$ 3.1 billion. "We have great diversity in production of fruit and vegetables," said Fernandes. According to him, the productive chain as a whole generates 11 million jobs, and the agribusiness sector is the main employer.
Despite being the third main producer, Brazil is still little known as a supplier in the sector in the foreign market and, according to Fernandes, it is necessary to use the fair to promote the country’s image.
Research for the promotion of this new fair began almost one year ago. "Through this research, we felt that an international sector fair in São Paulo was lacking," stated the president of Francal Feiras, Abdala Jamil Abdala. "The city of São Paulo, Brazil and Latin America needed a fair of this size," he added.
Initially, the space available to exhibitors should be 2,000 square metres, with the possibility of double that area in case of demand. According to the Ibraf president, the event should take place in São Paulo as the city is the main consumer market for the sector, and attracts visitors from all over Brazil, as well as offering good infrastructure.
Even in times of crisis, Fernandes believes that this is a good moment to launch Fruit & Log, as, according to him, it is at these times that businessmen should prepare themselves to be more competitive. "The food market should continue expanding, though, maybe, at a lower rate. It will depend on our competence and market intelligence to continue selling," he said.
The fair, to be turned to the supermarket, import, export, distribution, processing, industrial, restaurant and hotel industries, among others, should offer both finished products, like fresh, dried, frozen and mashed fruit, leguminous plants and vegetables, juices, herbs, organics and nuts and technology and services, like storage, quality control, packaging, inputs, logistics, insurance, irrigation and cooling technology and transportation.
In the sidelines of the fair, Fruit & Log should also include an international congress and talks on current matters, business roundtables and theme spaces, like a fruit bar and tropical cuisine. The event should take place at Expo Centre Norte and enrolment for exhibitors is already open.
Contact
Ibraf
Site: www.ibraf.org.br
*Translated by Mark Ament
