Brazilian Firms Win Over Market At Fair In Egypt

(MENAFN- Brazil-Arab News Agency (ANBA)) São Paulo – At the end of this year's Food Africa, a food fair held in Cairo, Egypt, from Tuesday (3) to Thursday (5), some of the participating Brazilian companies reported having closed deals during the event or expected to finalize negotiations soon. The companies aimed to open a new export channel, which they believe will happen.

The Brazilian companies participated in the fair through the Halal do Brasil project, spearheaded by the Arab-Brazilian Chamber of Commerce (ABCC) and the Brazilian Trade and investment Promotion Agency (ApexBrasil) to promote Brazil's halal production abroad. Halal products are those fit for Muslim consumption.

Julio Mariucci, export sales manager at Coperaguas agro-industrial cooperative, said participating in Food Africa was an opportunity to cement the company's presence in the Egyptian market, the second-largest destination of its exports, after India.

“The Egyptian market is one we've been serving for over 10 years. Our participation was excellent for further consolidating our presence in this market. We closed important deals and have already aligned our strategy with our buyers for 2025,” he said. The top products exported by Coperaguas to Egypt are beans, popcorn, and peanuts.

The Alta Paulista Mixed Agricultural Cooperative (CAMAP ) participated in Food Africa with the goal of reestablishing sales to Egypt, a market where it had previously operated but lost competitiveness due to pricing. The reduction in import tariffs provided by the free trade agreement between Egypt and Mercosur, according to the company's director Evandro Luiz Jurevits, is an ally in increasing competitiveness. The tariff is expected to be gradually reduced until it reaches zero in 2025.

“We got good leads, and we believe this will bring us back to Egypt,” he said, noting that Brazilian peanuts are currently out of season, which temporarily reduces their competitiveness.“As the new harvest comes, we'll be able to make good deals,” he added. After the fair, Jurevits was scheduled to have meetings to close deals before returning to Brazil.

The head of international projects at the ABCC, Fernanda Dantas, said Food Africa was busy and had an audience interested in doing business.“We'll have a booth next year. The idea is to increase participation, with a larger booth and more companies present,” she said, already thinking about marketing actions that could be implemented to attract even more customers.

“I believe that processed products that are not 'premium' have space here, and what we observed was a lot of demand and interest. There's room to open markets for many products,” said Dantas. However, she lamented the absence of Brazilian producers of açaí, an appealing product for international markets.“Maybe next year we can bring them and hold tasting sessions,” she said.

The head of the ABCC's office in Cairo, Micheal Gamal, highlighted the strong brand presence of Brazil in Egypt.“Brazil's share is very important in many products. Why? Because the name 'Brazil' carries a very good reputation. People look at the name Brazil and come to the booth to see what's there. So, the participation of Brazilian companies is very important,” he said. Gamal added that the Egyptian market has room for commodities, but beyond that, there are opportunities for chocolates, cereals, and nuts.

Read more:
Fair in Egypt an opportunity in African market

Translated by Guilherme Miranda

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