São Paulo – Rasmi Al-Mallah, general manager of Jordanian food distributor SKM Tejaree, has visited Brazil several times as a tourist. In late August, however, he made his first business trip to the country at the invitation of the Halal do Brasil project. He liked what he saw.
“I came to explore the market. People in the Middle East like Brazil and have positive feelings toward the country because Brazilians are peaceful people who don’t attack anyone. When I had the opportunity to visit the country and see its products, I saw a real opportunity and said, ‘I’ll go to this meeting and see what they have to offer,’” Al-Mallah told ANBA on the second day of a business matchmaking event with Brazilian exporters organized by Halal do Brasil on Wednesday (26).
SKM Tejaree operates in both distribution and retail sales in three Jordanian cities. It also has a food factory and a cleaning products factory.
In his business meetings, Al-Mallah found more similarities than differences between Brazilian and Jordanian consumers. The products they consume and their consumption habits, he said, are very similar. During his search for suppliers in Brazil, he looked for products such as coffee, honey and biscuits, while also considering offers for other food products.
As for the possibility of doing business, he said there is strong potential in the medium term.
“Prices need to be good. If prices are good, there is an opportunity, but sea freight rates are currently very high,” he said, noting that high shipping costs reduce the competitiveness of food products.
The Halal do Brasil project is an initiative spearheaded by the Arab-Brazilian Chamber of Commerce (ABCC) to promote Brazilian-made halal products — those permitted for Muslim consumption — abroad. From August 24 to 28, the project brought six Arab companies to Brazil for business meetings with Brazilian companies and technical visits to food manufacturers. On August 25, the Arab buyers attended the Brazil & Arab Countries Economic Forum, organized by the ABCC. Al-Mallah was one of the event’s panelists.
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Translated by Guilherme Miranda
