Brasília – Brazilian companies that participated, last week, in The Global Food Marketplace (Sial), in Paris, returned pleased with the foreign interest in their products. This statement was made yesterday (28) by the business director at the Brazilian Export and Investment Promotion Agency (Apex-Brasil), Maurício Borges.
He said that, despite the international financial crisis, the performance of Brazil at the Sial was better than expected: "We noticed great interest in products made by Brazilian companies that invest in quality, innovation and effectively manage to deliver the product in the specifications required by the several markets."
Coordinated by the Apex-Brasil, the 110 Brazilian companies that went to Sial, between September 19 and 23, made around 4,000 contacts with importers and distributors in over 100 countries. Brazilian exporters showed products like meats, sweets, wines, dairy products and fruit and generated business of around US$ 600 million, including deliveries for the next 12 months.
Apex-Brasil coordinator Juarez Leal added that participation in the Sial "consolidates the presence of Brazil in the international market and sensitises large importers to the diversity of products that the country offers the world, while it simultaneously expands opportunities for contacts with Brazilian companies." It also helps consolidate the image of "trustworthy supplier" of food and beverages, stated the Management director at the organisation, Ricardo Schaefer.
Apart from Brazilian product stands at five of the eight pavilions of Sial, the fair counted on one more attraction: the Gourmet Space. There, visitors could sample Brazilian products and special dishes prepared by French maitre Laurent Suadeau, who lives in Brazil.
*Translated by Mark Ament
