São Paulo – Garibaldi winemaking cooperative made its first export shipment of grape juice to Libya in September and expects to increase sales in the coming months. Opening up this market could help the Brazil-based company reach more countries in the Arab world and North Africa, sales supervisor Emerson Brites told ANBA.
According to Brites, Garibaldi’s sales team negotiated the deal with the Libyan importer, with the support of an international agent responsible for prospecting customers and identifying market opportunities.
In its first sale to Libya, Garibaldi sold 4,500 cases of juice shipped in two containers. The shipment comprised 3,720 one-liter cases of Garibaldi Tinto Integral grape juice, 400 1.5-liter cases of Garibaldi Integral Tinto grape juice and 380 1.5-liter cases of Garibaldi Branco Integral grape juice. In total, 29,340 liters, equivalent to 27,000 bottles.
Libya, Brites said, was the company’s first Arab market. Garibaldi also exports to Chile, the United Kingdom and the United States. From January to September this year, the cooperative exported about 40,000 liters of juices and sparkling wines to these markets.
“The first shipment represents an opportunity to expand our presence in the region. We believe sales to Libya can grow as the products gain acceptance and negotiations progress. The experience also helps us better understand the market and could help us assess opportunities in other Arab and North African countries,” Brites said.
The sales supervisor sees significant potential to serve overseas markets beyond Libya, given Brazil’s large grape juice production. To sell to Libya, the company had to obtain a health certificate and certification from Brazil’s Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, translate the labels into Arabic and submit the new versions to the buyer.
“We will start to see how the grape juice performs. The customer we are currently serving has already expressed interest in placing another order early next year, so it is a promising market. Brazilian wineries have significant potential for grape juice production. At Garibaldi specifically, we expect production to reach around 13 million liters. It is a product that we can adapt within our product line to supply the export market,” Brites said.
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Translated by Guilherme Miranda
