São Paulo – The Minas Láctea trade show due this week in Juiz de Fora, in Brazil’s Minas Gerais state, will feature 50 dairy product exhibitors and 130 dairy industry machinery manufacturers. The event may spawn R$ 200 million (US$ 88 million) worth of deals according to Marcelo Lana, chairman of the Minas Gerais Agricultural Research Corporation (Epamig), the show’s organizer.
“Industries take the occasion of the event to launch products. New releases will include cheese cutting and cup filling machines,” says the executive. Minas Láctea will be divided into five sections: Expomaq (machinery), Expolac (dairy products), the National Dairy Product Contest, Lac’Ideia (lecture cycle) and Fino Paladar (product tastings).
Large, medium and small business will be in attendance. “It is an opportunity for dairy manufacturers to convene and discuss industry issues,” says Lana. The show is open to the general public. However, according to Lana, out of 12,000 visitors expected, 80% of attendees should be people in the industry. “They are supermarket people, industry people, food engineers, nutritionists, and businessmen,” says the executive.
Lana also says new technologies will be introduced at the event, including a kit for detection of salmonella, a bacterium that may cause gastric conditions and infections. “The test takes three minutes and the result is available in 24 hours,” he says. Another launch due is a technology for cutting down sodium in cheese. This is an important development, because too much sodium in the human body may lead to hypertension.
The Epamig chairman stresses the importance of the first edition of Lac’Ideia. “We will have market-oriented talks in which applied research will be conveyed to the society,” he says.
International buyers
The fair will also include the Forum of the Americas, designed to promote Brazil’s dairy industry internationally. The forum is held by PS-Lácteos, a partnership project between the Organization of Brazilian Cooperatives (OCB) and the Brazilian Export and Investment Promotion Agency (Apex), with backing from the Ministry of Agrarian Development, for the internationalization of dairy products.
The event will include a seminar on industry opportunities in Brazil, a meeting with PS-Lácteos-affiliated companies, and matchmaking rounds with international buyers.
The first edition of the Buyer Project, held by PS-Lácteos, will feature three non-Brazilian importing companies: Barakat International, a United Arab Emirates-based food distributing company, Industriel Goumid’s Group, from Algeria, and Digioca, from Venezuela.
“The goal is to come closer (to the foreign buyers). International prices have improved, and that makes Brazilian product more competitive,” says Gustavo Beduschi, the PS-Lácteos manager at OCB. “Buyers will be able to see the Brazilian product up close, especially the higher value-added items such as cheeses,” he explains.
Regarding the countries represented at the trade show, Beduschi notes that a delegate from the Algerian embassy will be in attendance. “This is quite interesting, because we are planning on having a mission to Algeria late this year or early on in the next one. Algeria is a landmark country in North Africa, and it is located very close to other Arab countries. We are beginning to show our strength on that market,” he says.
Algeria, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Iraq and Venezuela are the target countries for PS-Lácteos actions until 2014. The project aims to boost industry exports by 30% by next year. Project investment amounts to R$ 2.3 million (US$ 1 million).
Minas Láctea will take place at Expo Minas. The first edition of the event was held in 1972. Last year, participants closed R$ 175 million (US$ 77 million) worth of deals as a result of the trade show.
Service
Minas Láctea
Date: July 16 to 18, 2013
Place: Expominas Juiz de Fora, BR 040, Km 790, Bairro São Pedro, Cidade: Juiz de Fora, Minas Gerais
Additional information: www.minaslactea.com.br
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
